ye

UK: strong: /jiː/, weak: /jɪ/ US: /ji/ ,(yē)

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026

ye¹ /yi/   pron. 

1. [Archaic] (except in church writing or prayers ) or Brit. Dialect.
   • (used as the plural of thou, or the plural of you): O ye of little faith.
   • (used to mean you in the singular, esp. in polite address):
     Do ye not know me?
   • (used as an object form for you in the singular or plural):
     I have something to tell ye.
2. (used as a mild oath or the like):
   Ye gods and little fishes!

ye² /ði; spelling pron. yi/   definite article. [Archaic.]

1. the¹:
   Ye olde taverne.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026

ye¹ (yē),  pron. 

1. [Archaic] (except in some elevated or ecclesiastical prose), Literary, or Brit. Dial.
   • (used nominatively as the plural of thou, esp. in rhetorical, didactic, or poetic contexts, in addressing a group of persons or things):
     O ye of little faith; ye brooks and hills.
   • (used nominatively for the second person singular, esp. in polite address):
     Do ye not know me?
   • (used objectively in the second person singular or plural):
     I have something to tell ye. Arise, the enemy is upon ye!
2. (used with mock seriousness in an invocation, mild oath, or the like):
   Ye gods and little fishes!

• bef. 900; Middle English; Old English gē; cognate with Dutch gij, German ihr, Old Norse ēr, Gothic jus

ye²  (ᵺē; spelling pron. yē),  definite article. Archaic.

1. the¹.

Usage

The word ye², as in Ye Olde Booke Shoppe, is simply an archaic spelling of the definite article the. The use of the letter Y was a printer's adaptation of the thorn, þ, the character in the Old English alphabet representing the th- sounds (th) and (ᵺ) in Modern English; Y was the closest symbol in the Roman alphabet. Originally, the form would have been rendered as yͤ or y^e. The pronunciation (yē) today is a spelling pronunciation.

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

ye / jiː (unstressed) jɪ/ pronoun

1. refers to more than one person including the person addressed but not including the speaker
2. Also: ee / iː/ refers to one person addressed: I tell ye

Etymology: Old English gē; related to Dutch gij, Old Norse ēr, Gothic jus

ye / ðiː (spelling pron) jiː/ determiner

1. a form of the, used in conjunction with other putative archaic spellings: ye olde oake

Etymology: from a misinterpretation of the as written in some Middle English texts. The runic letter thorn (Þ, representing th) was incorrectly transcribed as y because of a resemblance in their shapes

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026

you /yu; unstressed yʊ, yə/   pron., poss. your or yours, obj. you, pl. you;
 n., pl. yous. 
pron. 

1. the pronoun of the second person singular or plural (used as the singular or plural pronoun of the person or persons being spoken to, as the subject of a verb, or the object of a verb or preposition):
   You are the highest bidder. I sent it to you.
2. one;
   anyone;
   people in general:
   a tiny animal you can't even see.
3. (repeated for emphasis after the subject):
   You rascal, you!
4. (used in place of the pronoun your before a gerund or present participle):
   There's no sense in you getting upset.

n. 

5. something or someone closely identified with or resembling the person addressed:
   [uncountable] That bright red shirt just isn't you (= It doesn't fit with your personality).
6. the nature or character of the person addressed:
   [countable] After our exercise program, your friends will see a new you!

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026

you  (yo̅o̅; unstressed yŏŏ, yə), pron., poss. your  or yours, obj. you, pl. you;
 n., pl. yous. 
pron. 

1. the pronoun of the second person singular or plural, used of the person or persons being addressed, in the nominative or objective case:
   You are the highest bidder. It is you who are to blame. We can't help you. This package came for you. Did she give you the book?
2. one;
   anyone;
   people in general:
   a tiny animal you can't even see.
3. (used in apposition with the subject of a sentence, sometimes repeated for emphasis following the subject):
   You children pay attention. You rascal, you!
4. [Informal.] (used in place of the pronoun your before a gerund):
   There's no sense in you getting upset.
5. Slang Terms [Archaic.]
   • yourself;
     yourselves:
     Get you home. Make you ready.
   • a pl. form of the pronoun ye. 

n. 

6. something or someone closely identified with or resembling the person addressed:
   Don't buy the bright red shirt—it just isn't you. It was like seeing another you.
7. the nature or character of the person addressed:
   Try to discover the hidden you.

• bef. 900; Middle English; Old English ēow (dative, accusative of gē ye¹); cognate with Old Frisian ju, Old Saxon iu, Dutch u, Old High German iu, eu

Usage

In American English the pronoun you has been supplemented by additional forms to make clear the distinction between singular and plural. You-all, often pronounced as one syllable, is a widespread spoken form in the South Midland and Southern United States. Its possessive is often you-all's rather than your. You-uns (from you + ones) is a South Midland form most often found in uneducated speech; it is being replaced by you-all. Youse (you + the plural -s ending of nouns), probably of Irish-American origin, is most common in the North, especially in urban centers like Boston, New York, and Chicago. It is rare in educated speech. You guys is a common informal expression among younger speakers; it can include persons of both sexes or even a group of women only. See also me.