| 释义 |
shepron.1n.adj.  Brit.  /ʃiː/, /ʃᵻ/, /ʃi/, U.S. /ʃi/, /ʃᵻ/Origin: Probably a variant or alteration of another lexical item. Etymon: hoo pron. Etymology: Probably a variant of hoo pron., showing a sound change in which the palatal fricative /ç/ indicated by spellings of hoo pron. such as ȝo , ȝho developed to /ʃ/. The spread of this variant was probably in response to a functional pressure, to disambiguate the subject forms of the feminine and masculine singular third-person personal pronoun (compare he pron.), and, probably to a lesser extent, also the subject and object form of the third-person plural personal pronoun (compare hi pron.2, they pron.). This pressure probably explains the gradual geographical spread of forms with /ʃ/; it appears that the general pattern was for forms with initial /h/ to be replaced first by forms with initial palatal fricative /ç/, and for forms with the (rare and marginal) palatal fricative /ç/ subsequently to be replaced by variants with the much more common initial sound /ʃ/. This observable process of the spread of forms with /ʃ/, replacing forms with initial palatal fricative which had in turn replaced forms with initial h- , is a strong argument against the alternative hypothesis that forms with /ʃ/ originated as variants of the Old English feminine demonstrative pronoun sēo (sīo , sīe : see the adj., pron.2, and n.1 Forms 1b). The superficial resemblance of she to forms with initial s- as feminine third-person singular nominative personal pronoun in other Germanic languages (e.g. Old Dutch sie , Old Saxon siu , Old High German siu , sī , Gothic si : see further hoo pron. and n.) is probably entirely coincidental.The change from /ç/ to /ʃ/ has few parallels in English, and this has led some to see the influence of the speech habits of speakers of a western variety of early Scandinavian, since there is evidence for a similar change in some (later) Scandinavian varieties both from lexical items and from place names; compare especially the name of Shetland (compare the Old Icelandic form Hjaltland ), and see also shoop n. and discussion at that entry; compare also e.g. the place name Shapinsay , Orkney (apparently < an early Scandinavian form that would appear in Old Icelandic as *Hjalpandisey ) or Orkney and Shetland Scots sholmit ‘(of a cow) having a white face’ ( < the unattested Norn cognate of a form that would appear in Old Icelandic as *hjalmóttr , lit. ‘helmeted’). However, the existence of any parallels showing /ʃ/ developed from earlier /ç/ (or /hj/) in English, especially modern Scots pronunciations of huge adj. and hook n.1 with initial /ʃ/, suggests that the change may have been entirely an English one (showing a sporadic tendency for initial /ç/ or /hj/ to become /ʃ/), and the lack of parallels simply a result of the infrequency of initial /ç/ or /hj/ in English. See especially D. Britton in North-Western European Language Evolution 17 (1991) 3–51 and (for a revised account, especially of the development of the vowel) M. Laing and R. Lass in Folia Linguistica Historica 35 (2014) 1–41. On the geographical diffusion of the form types in two stages, first those with /ç/ and afterwards those with /ʃ/, see M. L. Samuels Linguistic Evolution (1972) 114–6. For an important earlier account see E. Dieth in English Studies 36 (1955) 209–17. The hypothesis that the word shows a borrowing of the early Scandinavian demonstrative form reflected by Old Icelandic sjá this (nominative singular masculine and feminine) fails to explain the vowel forms shown by the English word. Specific forms. The forms grouped at Forms 1ε are those which generally appear to indicate a front rounded vowel, whether in Middle English (although these spellings may result from association with those shown by hoo pron., and in some cases the spellings may arise from other causes), or (as a result of separate processes) in later northern English varieties and in Scots. In use as noun (see B.), also found in plural forms shes, she's, †shees. A. pron.1 The subjective case of the feminine third person singular pronoun. I. As personal pronoun. 1. The female person or animal previously mentioned or implied or easily identified. a. As subject or (now formal) subject complement. ?a1160 (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1140 God wimman scæ wæs, oc scæ hedde litel blisse mid him. c1300 (Laud) (1868) l. 1721 In al denemark nis wimman So fayr so sche, bi seint iohan! c1330 Adam & Eve (Auch.) 601 in C. Horstmann (1878) 145 Þo Eue wist sche schuld dye, Sche cleped forþ hir progenie. a1375 (c1350) (1867) l. 697 Ȝis, i-wisse, was it sche y wot wel þe soþe. 1417–18 in F. J. Furnivall (1882) 38 Ȝyf þat I passe Rather þan sche. 1447 O. Bokenham 10229 The bysshope & she wyth a greth cumpany Them ageynys wentyn processyonally. a1522 G. Douglas tr. Virgil (1959) vi. vii. 96 Hir eyn fixit apon the grond held sche. 1598 W. Shakespeare iv. iii. 274 King. No Diuel will fright thee then so much as shee . View more context for this quotation 1611 2 Kings ix. 30 Jezebel heard of it, and shee painted her face, and tyred her head, and looked out at a window. View more context for this quotation a1616 W. Shakespeare (1623) v. ii. 38 He..guesd that it was she . View more context for this quotation 1640 R. Brathwait 18 Shee it is I onely love, shee it is I onely seeke. 1738 J. Swift 105 She and you were as great as two Inkle-weavers. 1791 A. Radcliffe II. ix. 43 She had been..too much interested by the events of the moment. 1847 E. Brontë I. x. 202 She'll be delighted to find me capable of talking cheerfully. 1880 J. Hickock Let. Sept. in K. Payne (1983) 130 You will have to excuse your mother Janey, she knows she's queer and half baked. 1915 V. Woolf ix. 120 Aunt E. cheerful, though twingy, she says. 1960 M. Spark vii. 153 ‘Manners,’ the barmaid said as she rang the till. 1971 12 Feb. 17/2 The demonstrators held placards declaring:..‘Thank the Lord, She Will Provide’. 1982 M. Z. Bradley iv. viii. 757 The dark figure at the prow was She. 2000 Z. Smith (2001) vi. 126 She wanted to check that it was not her imagination, that she was not being unfair or undemocratic, or worse still racist. a1382 (Bodl. 959) (1961) Lev. xi. 7 Asouwe..al be hit þat sheo deuyde þe clee, sheo schoweþ not coode. a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus (BL Add.) f. 146v Whanne þe swan [L. Cignus] is in loue, sche secheþ the female and plesiþ hire wiþ byclippinge of þe necke and drawiþ hire to hymward and ioy[neþ] his necke to þe females necke. c1425 Edward, Duke of York (Vesp. B.xii) (1904) 10 (MED) An hare shal dure wel iiii myle or more or lasse and she be an olde hare mascle. a1529 J. Skelton (?1530) sig. Diiiv A peryllous thynge to cast a cat Upon a naked man and yf she scrat. 1575 G. Gascoigne lix. 162 Of the subtilties of an Hare, when she is runne and hunted. 1653 I. Walton vii[i]. 147 The Melter hovers over her all that time that she [the female pike] is casting her Spawn. View more context for this quotation 1665 J. North in (Friends' Hist. Soc.) (1912) 3rd Ser. 234 Tennants and vassalls..who dare not say the Crow is blacke if they say shees white. 1711 J. Addison No. 120. ¶15 She [sc. a Hen] mistakes a Piece of Chalk for an Egg, and sits upon it in the same Manner. 1789 H. L. Piozzi II. 231 An English lady once made me observe, that a cat never purs when she is alone. 1860 C. Reade vii She [sc. a leopard] was chained to the huntsman. 1891 D. Jordan (1892) ii. 44 He [sc. the sparrow-hawk], or ‘she’, as they say, will fly at anything. 1923 18 Aug. 84/2 Off the hen fluttered, and we discovered that she'd been trying to hatch the tennis ball! 1995 24 Mar. i. 27/1 A blue hare loped past me. She came quite close and I could see that she was in partial winter pelage. 2001 B. Dibra & E. Randolph v. 87 Even if your cat is declawed, she needs the stretching exercise that she can get from using a good, sturdy scratching post. c1330 (?a1300) (1886) l. 79 Þe maiden of heiȝe kinne Sche cald hir maisters þre. 1488 (c1478) Hary (Adv.) (1968–9) ii. l. 259 His fyrst norys..Till him scho come. a1500 (a1400) (Cambr.) (1844) l. 110 Upon the morowe the maydyn smalle, Sche wente before hur fadur in halle, Amonge hur byrdys bryght. ?1576 sig. Biv My sister, shee the jewell is. ?a1600 Beggar's Daughter Bednall-Green i. xvi, in F. J. Furnivall (1867) II. 282 Then Bessye shee sighed, & thus shee did say. 1644 6 The Queen she pretends to go over into Holland to see her daughter. 1739 A. Nicol 106 But some Men say, this Goddess she is blind, And deals at Rovers to all human Kind. 1806 R. Jamieson I. 221 The bride she cam wi' the bridal train. 1827 Chield Morice in W. Motherwell 273 This lady she died gin ten o' the clock, Lord Barnard died gin twal'. 1892 R. Kipling 21 My wife she cries on the barrack-gate, my kid in the barrack-yard. 1896 R. Kipling 86 The Liner she's a lady by the paint upon 'er face. 1967 J. Orton Diary 7 Mar. in J. Lahr (2000) 139 The old man said..‘My sister she said to me, “I wish I'd had your easy life”.’ 1998 M. V. Angrosino xv. 193 And Granny she said to me, ‘You poor half-wit.’ 1567 G. Turberville f. 20v Cruell shee, disdainefull, coy and curst, Forst not my words, but quaild hir Friend at furst. 1589 R. Greene sig. H Till proud she repent. 1594 W. Shakespeare sig. M1 Which speechlesse woe of his poore she attendeth. View more context for this quotation 1647 J. Hall i. 29 Yet is it midnight still with me, Nay worse, unlesse that kinder she Smile Day. 1684 J. Harington Grove 10 in Forth walk'd fair She who might present That Princess-Month, more excellent. 2. a. The thing personified or conventionally treated as female or (in early use) the thing grammatically feminine, previously mentioned or implied or easily identified. c1380 (1879) l. 2182 & þoȝ þe dore were strong & huge wiþ þe strok sche fleȝ. a1450 (Univ. Coll. Oxf.) (1912) 9129 The ship aflote Was She fonde redy. 1478 in J. Dalyell & J. Beveridge (1938) 6 Henry to..mak hir [sc. the mill] als gud..as scho was. 1484 W. Cely Let. 29 Feb. in (1975) 200 Oon Thursday..cam fforth a passonger ffrom Dower to Calleswardd, and sche was chasyd wyth Frenschemen. a1500 (Trin. Cambr.) l. 4495 A chambre..full fair wroght & well..She myght in no wise..more fairer be. 1561 J. Hollybush tr. H. Brunschwig f. 14v Roste a rape upon the fyre till she be all black, and eate her warm. 1594 in (1882) 1st Ser. V. 195 Haveing brocht in thair ship to ane place thair quhair thay thocht sho micht maist convenientlie ly. 1637 J. Roberts 25 (heading) To coole a Peece of Ordnance when she is growne hot with over-much fiering. 1692 i. xvi. 75 The Bilge, the breadth of the place the Ship rests on when she is a ground. 1704 J. Harris I Spunging of a great Gun, is clearing of her Inside, after she hath been discharged, with a Wad of Sheep-skins, or the like. 1748 B. Robins & R. Walter ii. iii. 151 She..was a fine roomy ship. 1821 W. Scott I. viii. 196 I'll give you my fowlingpiece; she will put a hundred swan-shot through a Dutchman's cap at eighty paces. 1865 C. Dickens II. iii. vii. 60 Mr. Venus..adjusting the kettle on the fire, remarked to himself..‘She'll bile in a couple of minutes.’ 1869 3 309 The certainty of Oriel's bumping Balliol, if she can only hold up as far as the Gut. 1877 E. Peacock (at cited word) The feminine pronouns she and her are used for many things, as an oven, a ‘stee’, a pianoforte, a ‘suff’, and a church-bell. 1888 J. A. Lees & W. J. Clutterbuck (1892) xxxiv. 372 A sleeping-car was being prepared here for attachment to the train when she should arrive. 1932 ‘N. Shute’ ix. 198 She went off with such a puff I fell backwards off the running-board. 1970 J. McPhee 33 She sank in twenty feet of water, stern in the air, bow down. 2002 Dec. 9/3 No leaks, rattles, graunches or trail of bolts, the only words he could utter were, ‘She runs like new’. c1380 (1879) l. 2359 To morwe we wolleþ..by-gynne þe sege..& fro þat time she ys by-gunne ne schal heo neuere be laft, Til þe tour aȝen be wonne. c1392 42 (MED) Whan the mone is direct wt caput or cauda, she hath no latitude. 1483 W. Caxton tr. J. de Voragine f. cxijv/2 The sonne..that day ascended as hye as she is on saynt Iohns day at none. 1588 R. Parke tr. J. G. de Mendoza Comm. Notable Thinges in tr. J. G. de Mendoza 340 They sayle alwayes towards the west, following the sunne when as she departeth from our hemispherie. 1588 A. King tr. P. Canisius I vj Conferring..hir [sc. the moon's] rising and setting with ye rysing and setting of ye sone..it salbe easie to knaw how longe scho do schyne. 1614 A. Roberts 169 The Moone cannot shine except shee receiue light from the Sunne. 1657 R. Ligon 77 I have seen a Negre with two short ropes clyme the tree, and gather the fruit, about this time, she is 80 foot high. 1677 O. Walker (ed. 3) i. viii. 73 Demosthenes..strengthened his voice by declaiming nere the sea side when she roared. 1679 J. Moxon 126 We say Saturn beholds Venus with an Hostile Ray, &c. when she is square with him. 1704 J. Hodgson in (Royal Soc.) 24 1638 At London she [sc. the moon] immerg'd at 38 minutes past 5. 1736 J. Atkinson 241 All the Lines and Circles that are or shall hereafter be described as a fixed Rete, close investing the Earth, whilst she turns round within it. 1823 W. Scott III. ii. 27 She [sc. the harvest moon] shed her yellow influence over rich and deep pastures. 1869 Mar. 518/1 Beside a meadow brook she grew, The stately weeping willow. 1903 A. Adams ix. 121 The driftwood..indicated what might be expected when she [the river] became sportive or angry. 1990 J. R. Ravetz in R. C. Colby et al. ii. xiv. 211 Within a few years Galileo could also report the phases of Venus (proving that she orbits the sun, contrary to Ptolemy but not to Tycho). 2007 L. de Angeles ii. v. 50 She [sc. the moon] waxes and wanes, affecting every tide and every one of us and every living being. a1450 in J. Kail (1904) 94 She [sc. the soul] is ashamed, now she is wys; Sche lyued in vowtrye so many a day. 1490 W. Caxton tr. (1885) vi. 136 Whan the cyte vnderstode this, she began to be sore moeved. 1585 T. Washington tr. N. de Nicolay i. xiii. 14 b [He] told the Ambassadour, that the Turkes army was at Malta, and that she had saccaged the towne. 1585 T. Washington tr. N. de Nicolay i. xvi. 17 Shee is inhabited & peopled with a great number of..Merchants. 1607 T. Rogers Pref. sig. ¶¶¶¶3 The purpose of our Church is best knowne by the Doctrine which shee doth professe; the Doctrine by the *39. Articles, established by Act of Parliament. 1638 F. Junius 21 Phantasie on the contrary doth take in hand also what shee hath not seene. 1702 D. Defoe 29 Alas the Church of England! What with Popery on one Hand, and Schismaticks on the other; how has she been Crucify'd between two Thieves. 1761 203 With all the pompous titles..bestowed upon France, she is not more than half so powerful as she might be. 1827 W. Scott Surgeon's Daughter in 1st Ser. II. ii. 39 Nature must not be hurried, and she avenges herself of every attempt to do so. 1845 M. Pattison in Jan. 72 The Church cannot be said to have created pilgrimages, or even to have encouraged them—she suffered them. 1871 S. Smiles i. 22 South Carolina;..if that state went out of the world to-day, she would not have done so much for the world as Socrates. 1900 G. C. Brodrick 252 Stanley had been ridiculing the habit of personifying the Church as a woman, and speaking of it tenderly as she. 1955 J. Thomas iii. 28 The collaborateurs, who hated England and all she stood for. 2011 Nghia M. Vo Pref. 4 By 2006 she was the largest city in the country. 1863 J. B. Austin 96 The miners say the Moonta will be a mine when the Burra is forgotten—because she has lodes and the Burra has none. 1874 W. M. Baines viii. 180 Suppose a piece of timber..is on the carriage... ‘Kreash,’ says the saw, and in twelve seconds she is out at the other end. 1899 M. E. M. Davis ix. 127 I think she's a fair job, myse'f.., But you 'll have to stretch a wire fence around the tank. 1903 ‘T. Collins’ i. 4 You dunno what you're doin' when you're foolin' with this run. She's hair-trigger at the best o' times, an' she's on full cock this year. 1941 J. H. Street x. 190 A wet spell would ruin us and she was coming rain before long. 1958 18 July 6/2 If you tear the hamstring, in the back of the leg just above the knee, you're gone a million—she's nasty. 1969 B. Garland 30 Cripes, she's a beaut drain, best I ever saw. 1973 P. Wilson xxi. 187 ‘Fix it all right?’ I asked. ‘She's jake now, mate,’ he said. ‘There she is, good as new’. 2006 7 Sept. 3/1 Australian air travellers take a ‘She'll be right’ attitude to safety. 1908 W. Mack XXIX. 153/1 Where the beneficiary submits her proofs to the trustees of the society and appeals from the rejection of her claim, she waives any fraud found prior to the submission. 1915 44 We have..the parent who cannot see why the child should have done anything wrong; when she had everything she wished for. 1935 Dec. 366/3 Children who often receive the brunt of the teacher's criticism, because she does not realize their handicaps. 1977 M. French ii. ii. 67 The exaltation and delight and terror the first human must have felt when she stood up on her hind legs. 1986 W. P. Alston in L. E. Hahn & P. A. Schilpp i. 60 Speaker meaning, what someone means by what she says. 2002 10 Jan. b1/1 When someone works for less than she can live on..then she has made a great sacrifice for you. 1931 B. Niles xi. 216 Glory fell unconsciously into use of the feminine gender. It seemed natural to use ‘she’ and ‘her’ in speaking of these ‘fairies’. 1963 J. Rechy 104 ‘Now, honey,’ she says with real indignation, ‘I can see them bustin me for Impersonating a man—but a woman!—really!’ 2018 M. B. Sycamore (e-book ed.) I'm pushing Bobby aside, cackling and saying you're no supermodel honey. But she actually can walk—even if she's so exaggerated it's scary, she does work it. a1525 (c1448) R. Holland Bk. Howlat l. 797 in W. A. Craigie (1925) II. 120 A bard owt of Irland..Said..Raike hir a rug of ye rost or scho sall ryme [read ryiue] the. c1707 in (1898) 12 105 She sall Confin Her nane Speak to te Salt, an te Excise, whilk she far sees will touch Her nane sell Mickle. 1757 T. Smollett i. ii The commander has sent for her [i.e. me] to play a spring to the sasenach damsel. 1817 W. Scott III. ii. 44 She'll speak her mind and fear naebody—She doesna value a Cawmil mair as a Cowan, and ye may tell MacCallummore that Allan Iverach said sae. 1819 W. Scott Legend of Montrose iv, in 3rd Ser. III. 205 What the de'il, man,..can she no drink after her ain master without washing the cup. 1819 W. Scott Legend of Montrose iv, in 3rd Ser. III. 212 ‘And here she comes,’ said Donald, as Captain Dalgetty entered the hall. 1893 R. L. Stevenson i. i. 9 Here one of the gillies addressed her in what he had of English, to know what ‘she’ (meaning by that himself) was to about ‘ta sneeshin’. 4. Used for the objective case; = her pron.2 1. a1533 Ld. Berners tr. (?1560) lxxxi. sig. Xiiiv I haue no mo chyldren but she. ?1576 sig. B.ivv Who can but smyle and laugh to see the state of Fortune shee? 1592 S. Daniel Tears xi, in Yet will I weepe, vowe, pray to cruell Shee. 1598 W. Shakespeare v. ii. 469 The Ladies did change Fauours; and then wee Folowing the signes, wood but the signe of shee . View more context for this quotation 1599 sig. C2 v But shall I frame then mine excuse, by serving Venus she. a1616 W. Shakespeare (1622) iv. ii. 3 You haue seene Cassio and she together. View more context for this quotation a1616 W. Shakespeare (1623) iii. ii. 102 I neuer saw a woman But onely Sycorax my Dam, and she . View more context for this quotation 1790 D. Morison 106 Nor does our blinded master see The trocks between the Clerk and she. 1881 O. Schreiner (1889) ii. xiii. 284 I want no angel, only she. 1950 10 Feb. She he instructed in philosophy three times a week at five o'clock in the morning. 1752 S. Foote i. 14 The fat Cook..fell out at the Tail of the Waggon, so we left she behind. 1763 I. Bickerstaff iii. v. 65 I have got rid of she. 1856 D. M. Mulock I. x. 217 ‘I hope—our presence did not inconvenience—the young lady?’ ‘Bless your heart, sir! nothing ever inconveniences she.’ 1889 Ld. Tennyson 36 'E promised a son to she. 1893 G. E. Dartnell & E. H. Goddard (at cited word) ‘How he did twire an' twire at she, an' her wouldn't so much as gie 'un a look!’ 1901 ‘M. E. Francis’ ii. v. 257 I never should ax to quarrel wi' she. 1904 30 July Tell she ah wud like to see she to tell she wot ah tink bout she and she pedigree way she always toking bout. 1956 S. Selvon 113 You remember the night when Mavis make you buy ten rum for she? 1964 R. D. Abrahams 3 And I take note you hop on that donkey quick enough this morning to take she out, tie she up for grass. 2008 L. Fish vi. 88 Afraid to leave Mary Ann near Mister Sam I told she, ‘Go. Do yu chores.’ II. As antecedent pronoun with postmodifying clause or phrase. Cf. he pron. II., that pron.1 II., they pron. II., those pron. 5. 5. a1325 (c1250) (1968) l. 1925 Hu mai ðis sen..Ðat ðine breðere, and ic, & she Ðat ðe bar, sulen luten ðe? a1393 J. Gower (Fairf.) i. l. 148 Sche that is the Source and Welle Of wel or wo. a1425 (Lansd.) (1902) 26 (MED) And so þat gas vt of þe wuke, and so þat cumis in, sal recaiue þe benichun at morne at matins. 1490 (1962) xlviii. 186 Goo ayen to Tormaday to see the noble lande of that lady, she of whom thou arte amorouse soo moche. a1540 R. Barnes (1573) 361/2 Faith is shee, whiche by prayer, obtaineth that thing, that the law commaundeth. a1592 R. Greene (1593) ii. sig. H4v She which is vicious in her youth may be vertuous in her age. 1609 W. Shakespeare iii. sig. Bv For where is she so faire whose vn-eard wombe Disdaines the tillage of thy husbandry? View more context for this quotation 1609 W. Shakespeare ii. iii. 236 Praise him that gat thee, shee that gaue thee suck. View more context for this quotation 1623 H. Cockeram Effectrix, she which hath done some thing. 1707 J. Stevens tr. F. de Quevedo (1709) 329 She that White-washes her House, has a Mind to lett it. 1770 E. Thompson 60 She who brought mighty Cæsar on his knees, To pay the turnpike to the seat of ease. 1847 Ld. Tennyson iii. 59 There is nothing upon earth More miserable than she that has a son And sees him err. 1871 R. Ellis tr. Catullus lviii. 2 That bright Lesbia,..she than whom Catullus Self nor family more devoutly cherish'd. 1927 R. A. Taylor iii. ii. 324 She whose divine nature for ever repures and recastles itself from the embraces of her lovers. 2003 G. Bruno in R. Allen & M. Turvey 246 She who wanders through an art installation acts precisely like a film spectator absorbing and connecting visual spaces. 1589 W. Warner (new ed.) vi. xxxii. 143 He of Lancaster, and she of Yorke the heire. Of which letigious Famelies here mapped be the Lines. 1643 M. Newcomen 32 Such a succenturiation there hath been of plots, that we may say of them, as she of Gad, A Troope commeth. 1740 W. Somervile iii. 183 She of the Gypsy Train..artful to view The spreading Palm, and with vile Cant deceive The Love-sick Maid. 1819 W. Scott III. xiv. 361 The Church gave her full solemnities, graced with all the splendour which she of Rome knows how to apply with such brilliant effect. 1828 H. G. Bell Mary Queen of Scots in A. A. Watts (1829) 113 And there walks she of Medicis,..the haughty Catherine! a1849 E. A. Poe Assignation in (1857) I. 377 ‘Ha!’ said he thoughtfully,..‘the Venus of the Medici?—she of the diminutive head and the gilded hair?’ 1850 H. Taylor i. iv. 29 She In the red scarf, is Fiordeliza. 1874 A. Trollope I. xiv. 113 She with the German name, whom you made me dine with in Park Lane? 1913 E. Ferber ii. 39 ‘Well,’ sing-songed she of the ruffled, starched skirt, ‘we have ham'n-aigs, mutton chops, [etc.]’. 1925 Nov. 3/1 How I wished that she in the straw sun-shade weeding a pansy bed would invite me in to help. 2007 (National ed.) 9 Sept. ii. 86/4 She of ‘American Idol’ losership, ‘Dreamgirls’ fame and titanic voice will release her first album. †III. As demonstrative pronoun. a1413 (c1385) G. Chaucer (Pierpont Morgan) (1881) ii. l. 1747 And þough ye wolden han after merye dayes Than dar ye nought, and why for she and she Spak swych a word. a1513 W. Dunbar (1998) I. 122 Than will thay say, baith scho and hie, That I am iaipit, lait and air. 1513 G. Douglas in tr. Virgil i. Prol. 317 He or scho Quha takis me nocht, go quhar thai haue ado. 1562 (Spalding Club) 7 Quhasumeuer within this toun, he or sche, jniuris..their nychtbour with infamous..wordis. 1684 in R. Renwick (1910) 114 Thair wes none thair bot she and she. B. n. Chiefly opposed to he. the world > life > sex and gender > female > [noun] a1400 (a1325) (Vesp.) l. 619 (MED) Þe bestes all, bath sco and he, War broght forwit him to see. c1405 (c1395) G. Chaucer (Hengwrt) (2003) Prol. l. 93 Freletee clepe I, but if þt he and she Wolde leden al hir lyf in chastitee. 1567 J. Maplet f. 105 It is also carefull in laying vp store for Winter, both the Hee and Shee. 1591 (?a1425) Noah's Flood (Huntington) in R. M. Lumiansky & D. Mill (1974) I. 47 (MED) Of cleane fowles seaven alsoe, the hee and shee together. 1612 J. Davies f. 115v Though he fed of others, that shall be Restor'd the owner, be it he or she. 1623 W. Shakespeare & J. Fletcher v. iii. 24 Any That had a head to hit, either young or old, He or shee, Cuckold or Cuckold-maker. View more context for this quotation 1634 T. Herbert 24 These and the Date-tree thriue not, except the male and female be vnited, and haue copulation: the she is only fruitfull. 1649 R. Lovelace vi For y'are in Falcons Monarchy, And in that just Dominion bred, In which the Nobler is the Shee. 1771 Jan. 68 Our Author, whether he or she we cannot tell, intimates, that all the French youth in the rank of Gentlemen, are such creatures as these. 1888 20 Oct. 467/1 Any not a poet, whether he or she, might toil [etc.]. 1924 R. C. Temple ii. 116 Self-fertilizing plants..have..both male and female organs of generation, and are therefore both he and she. 2008 M. Holmes i. 54 This medical ‘explanation’..assumes that the child must be either he or she but not both and/or neither. 2. As a count noun. the world > animals > family unit > [noun] > female ?1527 L. Andrewe tr. sig. hiv The she is strongest & hathe but ones yonges in her lyfe. 1556 tr. J. de Flores sig. G3 So the moste parte of the sheos [Fr. des femelles], aswell of the birdes as of the beastes, will be praide. 1604 R. Cawdrey at Female The she in mankind, or other creatures. 1609 Bp. W. Barlow sig. B2 A Prey to the Eagles of the Epicene gender, both Hees, and Shees. 1626 F. Bacon §852 He-Lions are Hirsute, and haue great Maines; the She's are smooth like Cats. 1677 A. Behn i. i. 5 He..Had better snatch the She from the fierce side Of a young Amorous Lion, and 'twere safer. 1698 J. Fryer iv. v. 177 The She [= tigress] brings forth but once in Twelve Years. 1759 R. Brown 39 Especially the shees which are with kid. 1871 B. Jowett tr. Plato II. 281 Do we divide dogs into hes and shes, and take the masculine gender out to hunt? 1893 T. Roosevelt vii. 125 The shes and young of any game should only be killed when there is a real necessity. 1926 Nov. 29/1 It was clear that the female crabs, or shes were held in very little esteem. 2004 R. Morecroft et al. 27/1 The keepers call CB [a penguin] ‘her,’ but in fact they don't know for sure if she's a she or a he! the mind > emotion > love > a lover > [noun] > one who is loved or a sweetheart > specifically a female sweetheart or girlfriend 1547 W. Salesbury Banyw, a she. ?1548 J. Bale ii. sig. Biijv Infidelitas. What, sumtyme thu wert an he. Idolatria. Yea, but now ych am a she. ?1578 W. Patten 72 The heez to sum laughing, but the sheez to more sport. 1590 R. Greene i. 28 Bright she was, for twas a she That tracde her steps towards me. a1592 R. Greene (1598) i. sig. C4 Her vertues may compare, With the proudest she that waits vpon your Queen. 1609 W. Shakespeare cxxx. sig. H4 And yet by heauen I thinke my loue as rare, As any she beli'd with false compare. View more context for this quotation a1616 W. Shakespeare (1623) iv. iv. 347 I was wont To load my Shee with knackes. View more context for this quotation 1646 R. Crashaw 134 Who ere shee bee, That not impossible shee That shall command my heart and mee. 1671 ii. 80 For every he Has got him a she. 1709 D. Manley (ed. 2) II. 228 The lovely she grew calm and tender. 1752 H. Fielding IV. x. ii. 11 The He Domino began to make very fervent Love to the She. 1796 R. Jephson ii. i. 28 Rome's proudest she, Even Sextus' sister, even the elect of Titus, Had statue-like stood still at my command. 1819 Ld. Byron clxxv. 206 The freest she that ever gazed on glass. 1840 W. M. Thackeray i I would not change my condition—no, not to be..the luckiest she in England. 1881 ‘Rita’ xviii ‘She's a friend of yours naturally?’ ‘How do you know it's a “she”?’ 1894 G. M. Fenn 40 Those are not shes—they're both men. 1930 J. Collier vii. 87 Not..that there is really a lack of healthy physical instinct among the cultivated shes of today. 2000 S. Crouch (2004) i. v. 95 The only people who are ever aware of what is truly going on between a man and a woman are the he and the she. C. adj.the world > life > sex and gender > female > [adjective] the world > people > person > woman > [adjective] > characteristic of 1531 J. Vaus (new ed.) ii. sig. ddii The epicine gener it comprehendis baith the hie kynde and the scho kynde. 1576 A. Fleming tr. J. Caius 7 Albeit some of this sort in English be called Brache, in Scottishe Rache, the cause hereof resteth in the shee sex and not in the generall kinde. 1602 T. Heywood iii. ii. E 3 And since I sware,..To trust no she tongue, that can name a man. a1625 J. Fletcher Wife for Moneth i. ii, in F. Beaumont & J. Fletcher (1647) sig. Ggggggv/2 There's no such cure for the she-falling-sicknesse, As the powder of a dried bawds skin. 1633 J. Ford ii. i. sig. C4v This is but she-newes, I had it from a midwife. 1638 R. Brathwait (new ed.) i. sig. E1 Furnish'd with their spritely weapons She-flesh feeles Clarks are no Capons. 1655 T. Fuller vi. 297 Nunneries also were good shee-schools, wherein the Girles, and Maids of the Neighbourhood, were taught to read and work. 1655 T. Fuller vi. 297 Conveniency of Shee-Colledges. 1713 N. Rowe Epil. The Poets frequently might move Compassion, And with She Tragedies o'er-run the Nation. 1821 Ld. Byron iii. i. 92 Lydian Omphale's She-garb. 1831 E. J. Trelawny I. xxxiv. 277 He is self-willed and obstinate as the she-kind are. 1847 Ld. Tennyson Prol. 8 He long'd..for she-society. a1849 H. Coleridge (1851) II. 50 He had so little of the woman in him that he could resemble nothing She. 1892 28 Apr. 3/1 What someone contemptuously phrased as ‘she-poetry’. 1941 E. B. White in Jan. 219/2 The prejudice against females made a deep impression on me, and I grew up thinking that there was something indecent and unclean about she-things in general. 1978 Feb. 85/1 As a ‘she-tragedy’ and a history play (of sorts), the choice of Banks's play is an interesting move. 1986 C. McGlinchey et al. x. 83 The she-kind has green berries all over it but the he-kind has no berries at all. 2006 H. Headley in (2010) v. 48 I need some me time..I need some she time Not some him and some her Just a little bit of free time. society > occupation and work > equipment > tool > parts of tools generally > [adjective] > other types of part 1816 J. Welch The claws or prongs of the he part received or inserted in the she part. 1876 W. Papworth in IV. 472/2 The joint joggles made as at a..is called by workmen a he, and that at b a she joggle. 1911 19 Mar. iii. When an iron..water pipe was being laid..[t]he small or ‘he’ end was inserted in the hub or ‘she’ end. 1970 E. J. March II. vi. 241 Moulds were taken every 2 ft along the length, known as ‘he’ and ‘she’ moulds to shipwrights, one for the hog and one for the keel. the world > people > person > woman > [noun] > in West Indies 1855 Aug. 134/1 ‘She mother die las' night,’ lightly said a young African girl. 1899 M. McTurk (ed. 3) 5 De Paason hab a li'le Daag an ‘Kankah’ was she name. 1973 26 82 This dog is she own. 1986 B. Gilroy iii. 11 He like Token when he see she photo. 2009 M. Roffey 255 Look how she blush and fan she face. Phrases1878 ‘C. Bede’ in 25 May 402/1 I cannot find any mention of this saying..in books of proverbial expressions, but it is one with which I have been acquainted from my youth... For example, a little girl runs in to her mother, and says excitedly, ‘O mamma, we met her just as we were coming home from our walk, and she was so glad to see us!’ Upon which the mamma says, ‘Who is “she”? the cat's mother?’ 1897 ‘S. Grand’ xx. 204 Don't call your mamma ‘she’. ‘She’ is a cat. 1913 C. Mackenzie I. i. i. 9 ‘Who's She?’ demanded Nurse. ‘She's the cat's mother.’ 1949 N. Streatfeild ix. 105 ‘She said so.’ Jane looked superior. ‘She, my boy, is the cat's mother.’ 1972 H. Casson & J. Grenfell 21 Who's she? The cat's grandmother? 2001 H. Cross (2002) 219 ‘Who's she, the cat's mother?’ Lindy said, not looking up from the magazine. 1883 (title) English as she is spoke: or, A jest in sober earnest. 1887 8 Oct. 4/7 In the main the colonial speech flows tolerably pure from ‘the well of English undefiled’. It is nearer the standard of classical English than ‘English as she is spoke’ in Yorkshire, or Lancashire, or Somersetshire. 1899 A. C. Maudslay & A. P. Maudslay xxiv. 232 A masterpiece of ‘Spanish as she is spoke’. 1929 Dec. 34/3 Her language is of comic strip acceptance of English as she is spoke. 1933 Apr. 409 A helpful little treatise on ‘French as she is spoke’. 1979 K. C. Lee ix. 79 The study of linguistic features of a new variety of English such as Singapore English cannot be said to be reliably done by random sampling of English ‘as she is spoke’ in certain random situations in Singapore. 1995 D. Bellos (rev. ed.) xxxiv. 348 His long efforts on behalf of le néo-français—‘French as she is spoke’. 2006 M. A. Boden (2008) I. vii. 417 Performance concerns what people actually do when they speak on particular occasions (English as she is spoke). Compounds C1. attributive. Female. a. a1382 (Bodl. 959) (1961) Lev. xxii. 28 Sheo oxe oþer sheo sheep [a1425 Corpus Oxf. shee oxe, other shee sheep, L. sive illa bos sive ovis]. c1405 (c1390) G. Chaucer (Hengwrt) (2003) §350 A she Ape. 1574 A. Golding tr. J. Calvin (new ed.) cli. 711/2 Mention be made here precisely of the Hinds and of the shee rockegoates or other wilde Goates. 1596 J. Dalrymple tr. J. Leslie (1888) I. 50 The hie Salmonte haueng castne the meltis, and the sche salmonte the Rounis. a1641 J. Smyth (1885) III. 319 The Conger alias the conger eele, beinge the hee-fish, and the Shee fish is called a quaver. 1692 No. 2733/4 A light coloured She-Foal. 1753 4 The She-Linnet..prunes her wings, cleanses her tail, and perks herself out to enjoy a fine day. 1843 F. Marryat III. ix. 174 The she-panther laid dead. 1844 H. Stephens II. 702 The she-pigs are treated in a different manner. 1897 R. Kipling v. 119 Great she-whales slain beside their young. 1975 22 Aug. 13 The Swazi Queen Mother..enjoys exclusive right to the title of Ndlovukasi, which means ‘great-she-elephant’. 1986 P. Conroy (1987) xix. 403 The she-owl..flew through a lacery of fabulous dreams. (b) c1384 (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Zech. ix. 9 Thi kyng shal cume to thee..styinge [read sytinge] vpon a she asse, and vpon a fole, sone of the she asse [L. asinae]. 1535 Job i. 3, v. C. yock of oxen, v. C. she asses. 1692 No. 2733/4 A..She-Ass, with a light coloured She-Foal. 1758 x. xxix. 241 A rope of rushes, which a she-ass is devouring as fast as it is made. 1895 B. M. Croker (1896) 230 But Zālim Sing had no such excuse—he is a shaitan, the son of a she ass. 1952 G. F. Hervey & J. Hems viii. 102 The offspring of a stallion and a she-ass is a hinny. 1991 T. Mitchell iii. 109 Intended to show that the toro being fought was not bravo but, in the words of Miguelín, a ‘she-ass’. 1568 (a1508) W. Kennedy Flyting (Bannatyne) in (1998) I. 208 Generit betuix ane scho beir and a deill. 1575 G. Gascoigne lxxvii. 214 When the Shebeare doth feele hir yong within hir. 1665 T. Stanley tr. Ælian xiii. i. 258 A she-Bear robbed by Huntsmen of her Whelps. ?1795 S. T. Coleridge 30 A little ape with huge she-bear..: An unlicked mass the one—the other An antic huge. 1856 E. K. Kane I. xxix. 392 A stout Esquimaux..fired at a she-bear. 1997 10 June b1/1 A metaphysical umbilical cord that can turn the mildest soccer mom into a marauding she-bear at any sign of threat. 1579 T. Lupton vii. 176 A Cowe, an Ewe, a she Asse, a Bitche, a she Catte, and such other..Beastes of the Female kinde. 1630 T. Dekker i. iii. 106 This wench (your new wife)..This Shee-cat will haue more liues then your last Pusse had, and will scratch worse. 1775 J. Baretti viii. 28/2 Think of a she-cat's paw! 1898 G. B. Shaw Man of Destiny in 318 This is your revenge, you she cat, for having had to give me the letters. 1955 R. Wilson vii. 49 I've got one. A real she-cat. Can I bring her in? 1991 G. Greer v. 135 Receptive she-cats present the nape of the neck to ingratiate themselves with the tom. the mind > goodness and badness > inferiority or baseness > inferior person > [noun] > as abused > female 1624 T. Heywood i. 55 Hecuba the Queene Turnes to a she dogge, keeping still her spleene. 1742 H. Fielding I. 124 I am a Woman as well as yourself,..and no She-Dog . View more context for this quotation 1821 Lamb in S. T. Coleridge (1858) 117 ‘Yet,’ said Lamb, ‘Letitia was only just tinted; she was not what the she-dogs now call an intellectual woman.’ 1924 Sept. 87/2 Why, I wouldn't give a she-dog houseroom, not for any amount of money. 1997 13 Apr. (Review Suppl.) 42/1 Suppose you were some filthy murderous scumsucker, the blood-drenched lardbelly whoreson of a promiscuous she-dog. the mind > goodness and badness > harmfulness > savagery > savage person > [noun] > female the world > action or operation > behaviour > bad behaviour > fierceness > [noun] > person or being > female a1425 (Stonyhurst) f. 22v Dracona, a shouȝ dragon. a1513 W. Dunbar (1998) I. 115 Him meit sall in the air ane scho dragoun. 1753 T. Smollett I. xvii. 100 The she-dragon employed by her mother..immediately put on her veil. 1841 C. Dickens i. xxxiv. 288 She-dragons in the business, conducting themselves like professional gentlemen. 1957 E. Dahlberg Prol. 6 One should wive an unsociable she-dragon, or a sloven who won't sit. 2003 Apr. 23 c6/3 Sometimes the stereotype was of a she-dragon who ran her male boss's working life. a1382 (Bodl. 959) (1959) Gen. xv. 9 A sche geyt [a1425 Corpus Oxf. she gehet, L. capram] of þre ȝere. 1587 A. Day sig. A1v The sucke it receiued from one of his shee-goates. 1688 R. Holme ii. 175/1 A Musimon.—This Beast is engendered of a She-Goat and a Ram. 1723 J. Chamberlayne tr. J. Saurin (new ed.) I. xxix. 228 Taking out all the He-Goats that were ringed, streaked and spotted, and all the She-Goats that were speckled. 1816 W. Scott Black Dwarf vii, in 1st Ser. I. 130 The dog..pulled down and throttled one of the Hermit's she-goats. 1991 S. Cisneros 101 Diego born in Tlatizapán of that woman who calls herself Missus Jorge Piñeiro. Ana María in Cuautla from that she-goat Petra Torres. 2000 M. Fletcher (2001) viii. 206 The [Lambeg drum] ‘heads’ he makes from she-goat skins, those of billy-goats being far too thick. society > trade and finance > money > medium of exchange or currency > coins collective > English coins > [noun] > shilling 1568 Nahum ii. 12 The lion made his praye aboundauntly for his Whelpes, and strangled for his she lions, and hath filled his dennes with pray, and his abyding places with spoyle. 1655 R. Fanshawe tr. L. de Camoens iv. 82 As a She-Lyon..That finds, whilst Hunger, Her from home did call,..a bold Massylian shepherd lurcht them [sc. her whelps] from her Hold. 1720 D. Defoe 115 A Chase between a She Lion, or Lioness, and a large Deer. 1744 G. North Let. 5 Aug. in J. Nichols (1812) V. 429 I congratulate you on your year of silence being expired, and wish you great plenty of she-lions [shillings]. 1785 F. Grose She-Lion, a shilling. 1898 Oct. 648/2 The passion of protection, that a she-lion may feel for her cub. 1920 A. Abdullah i. 19 Her waist like the waist of a she-lion. 2006 L. Wingate 327 I didn't care if Ursula ruined me in LA. For once, I was going to come out on top. The she-lion would not be leaving me bleeding on the floor today. 1884 3 Aug. 3/1 The taking out of steer cattle alone and leaving their she stock at home..would be ruinous to themselves in the present condition of their already overcrowded pastures. 1923 H. G. Evarts 88 There were..no she-stock on the range. 1937 15 Nov. 14/6 She stock gathered enough strength to finish around 25c. higher than a week earlier. 2004 S. M. Evans iv. 126/1 (heading) ‘She stock’ and steers. the world > animals > mammals > group Ungulata (hoofed) > group Ruminantia (sheep, goats, cows, etc.) > cow > [noun] > collective or female cattle 1898 80 I might give you tips, cues and pointers, whereby you might do exactly the right thing—quit buying at the right time.., buy the best classes of bulls or she stuff, [etc.]. 1923 H. G. Evarts 87 The herd would have been worked on the spot,..the she-stuff..being allowed to scatter. 1964 14 July b6 Aunt Mag ordered us to fence the neck of the ‘second sod’ 80 which stuck out, she claimed, like a sore thumb, from her two-section ‘she stuff’ pasture. 1994 R. Hendrickson 209 She-stuff, a cowboy term for the females of cattle, sheep, horses and other species. c1450 (1904) I. 232 (MED) Euer-ilk day, at meate tyme, þer come vnto his yate a sho-wulfe. 1562 T. Phaer tr. Virgil viii. Z iij b A she wolfe downe was layed, and next her dugs two goodly twins. 1620 Bp. J. Hall ii. xvii. 253 That sowre milke wherewith the Shee-Wolfe of the Seuen-hils feedes the faction of her Romulists and Rhemists. 1787 G. Greive tr. F. J. de Chastellux II. 48 They have been observed..to raise their coats and howl at the smell only of two mongrels, engendered by a dog and a she-wolf. 1868 J. S. Northcote v. 297 The marriage, doomed to so unhappy an issue, between Edward II. of England, and Isabella, the she-wolf of France. 1936 Nov. 333/2 A figure of the Roman she-wolf is being erected in Addis Ababa. 2001 22 Jan. 51/1 The she-wolf has had her moment; even Courtney Love has gotten rid of her combat boots and half her nose. b. With reference to persons (now somewhat contemptuous). (a) ?1533 G. Du Wes sig. Diii A she thefe, laronnesse. 1580 C. Hollyband Amoureuse, a shee louer. a1586 Sir H. Sidney in R. Parr (1686) Misc. Lett. 25 There is nothing more irksom than a She-Fool. 1594 R. Carew tr. J. Huarte xiv. 241 There haue been..many she Greekes..specially seen in the sciences. 1607 T. Dekker & J. Webster ii. ii. sig. C3 She..is such an intycing shee-witch. 1615 sig. A3 A Disputation betweene a Hee-Foyst, and a Shee-Foyst. 1624 T. Heywood vi. 303 One Pharsalia, a Thessalian shee-dancer. a1627 T. Middleton & W. Rowley (1653) iv. sig. G3 This young shee Gipsie. 1664 S. Pepys 9 Sept. (1971) V. 266 My two she-Cosen Joyces. 1727 Lady M. W. Montagu Apr. (1966) II. 74 Which naturally attracts all the she and he fools in London. 1775 J. Baretti vi. 21/2 You speak like a she-doctor. 1808 25 June 1001 I trust, that mothers and wives and sisters and she-cousins..will have very little to do in the appointing of generals and other officers. 1823 C. Lamb in May 534/1 Your indigent she-Relative is hopeless. 1840 W. M. Thackeray I. 180 All the he and she scoundrels of the capital..rush by you. 1881 G. M. Hopkins (1959) 170 The woman, that is she-being, not she-man, of the Apocalypse. 1920 R. Kipling et al. in v. 17 For fierce she-Britons, apt to smite Their upward-climbing sisters down. 2011 28 Apr. 51/1 The kitchen of the patrona, the she-boss. (ii) the mind > emotion > love > friendliness > [noun] > friend > female friend > woman's society > morality > moral evil > licentiousness > unchastity > [noun] > illicit intimacy > person > a mistress 1600 J. Golburne tr. C. de Valera ii. 363 She gaue to her beloued Hee and shee friendes, some droppes of her menstruous blood, making them beleeue it was the blood of Christ. 1616 B. Jonson Epicœne ii. ii, in I. 541 Shee will..for that cause goe liue with her she-friend, or cosen at the colledge. View more context for this quotation 1668 C. Sedley ii. ii And then a Bottle of Wine or two, and a She-Friend is an approv'd Remedy. 1754 No. 91 (1756) II. 248 She [i.e. Elizabeth] had no She-Friends in her Cabinet-Council. 1845 R. Browning Let. in (1899) I. 48 A viperine she-friend of mine who, I think, rather loves me, she does so hate me. 1904 C. Holland xv. 245 ‘A friend is coming here on the way back to my land.’ ‘A she-friend?’ queried Mio San, with a sinking heart. 2011 L. Wingate xv. 169 All those she friends who did favors for him. society > faith > aspects of faith > holiness > saint > [noun] > female 1537 tr. H. Latimer sig. Cv They swere by al he sayntes and she sayntes to. 1579 W. Fulke Confut. Treat. N. Sander in 615 S. Vncoulber a she Saint. a1625 J. Fletcher Humorous Lieut. ii. ii, in F. Beaumont & J. Fletcher (1647) sig. Qqq3v/1 He..Commends his soule to his she-saint, and exit. 1682 A. Behn i. i. 4 I have an assignation here at Church..with the dearest she-Saint, and I hope sinner. 1840 R. H. Barham Lay St. Odille in 1st Ser. 258 Then let's act like Count Otto, and while one survives Succumb to our She-Saints—videlicet wives! 1906 J. H. Harris viii. 68 There were she-saints as well as he-saints... St Agnes was a she-saint. (b) a1500 Nominale (Harvard Law 43) in (1981) 56 576 Luminator, a limnour; Luminatrix, a she lymnour. 1580 C. Hollyband Boulengiére, a she baker. 1607 R. Wilkinson 17 Christ did call no she Apostles. a1628 F. Greville (1651) xv. 188 This She-David [sc. Elizabeth I] of ours ventured to undertake the great Goliath among the Philistins abroad, I mean Spain and the Pope. a1639 T. Dekker et al. (1658) iv. ii. 48 Winnifrede as a Page comes in. Frank... Ah, my She-Page! a1640 P. Massinger Guardian iii. vi. 138 in (1655) Would I were a she-Priapus, Stuck up in a garden to fright away the Crows. a1679 Earl of Orrery (1694) Prol. sig. A2 Rare Scenes like Opera's, nay She-Actors too. a1704 T. Brown Walk round London in (1708) iii. 22 [She] makes a compleat She-Preacher, fit to denounce Hell and the Devil. 1712 W. Rogers 279 The other she-Negro (call'd Daphne). a1771 T. Gray Impromptus in (1884) I. 141 Mrs. Keene the she Bishop of Chester [i.e. the bishop's wife]. 1809 B. H. Malkin tr. A. R. Le Sage I. ii. iv. 216 The she-adventurer who had played the part of Camilla. 1846 C. Dickens 25 A gate, which this She-Goblin unlocked. 1874 L. Carr I. iii. 73 A flirtation with a she-costermonger or other female. 1892 July 354 A Salvationist she-captain. 1937 E. Pound xlii. 12 By Della Rena and M. Magdalene the She Guardian, tutrice. 2008 5 May 47/3 They were working, they said, as prostitutes in discos, all paying off travel debts that the ‘she-pimp’, as Lena called her, claimed they owed her. (ii) 1530 J. Palsgrave 266/2 Sche devyll, diablesse. ?1544 J. Heywood sig. D.iv My comynge is for a she deuyll What calste her quoth he thou horyson Forsoth quoth I Margery coorson. a1593 C. Marlowe (1604) sig. B3v There was a hee diuell and a shee diuell. 1675 T. Duffett ii. ii. 19 Methinks I hear a great she Devil, call for [a] Groats worth of the Crispe of my Countenance. 1778 L. Carter 15 Aug. (1965) II. 1145 Thus does the hypocritical She devil..who first made..all the male race rebel against God's commands. 1840 W. M. Thackeray ii I don't think I ever saw such a she-devil. 1900 F. T. Elworthy ii. 91 Cecco d'Ascoli was burnt in 1327..for having had illicit intercourse with a succuba, or she-devil. 2001 5 Apr. (Online section) 15/3 A fantastic ad-hoc fancy dress party..in which..wand-carrying fairies pose for photos alongside sexy she-devils. a1700 T. Ken Edmund in (1721) II. 113 When with her Philtre the She-Fiend arriv'd. 1883 J. H. Hopkins 48 Give me my hauberk, helm, and sword, thou foul She-fiend of Hell. 1922 J. Joyce i. iii. [Proteus] 47 A shefiend's whiteness under her rancid rags. 1571 sig. I.ij Deesse, a she God, a goddesse. 1674 D. Brevint vii. 161 They took her for their Patroness, and consequently for their she God. 1893 E. F. Fenollosa 132 Gray sky and misty Skirt of wild she-gods, They that beheld me Borne to my cradle Like a young eagle. 1959 J. Garrigue (1992) 68 Emblems of water pouring from emblems, Griffons that jut it, like merry she-gods..From whose breasts spurt the magnificent jets! 1998 B. Elton (1999) xx. 122 A ten-foot-high puppet of a She-God called Wooma. 1614 W. Lithgow sig. G2v The she Poet Sapho. 1717 87 A She Poet made her Fulsome Addresses to the Generous Otho. 1876 J. Brown Let. 6 Aug. in J. M. Gray (1895) I. 39 She is the greatest she-poet since Sappho. 1929 A. MacLeish 4 Oct. (1983) 231 There are at least fifty (or say five) better she poets in America as of Oct. 4, 1929. 1993 A. Rich xiii. 97 One of the attacks on me for writing that Hariot book spoke of me as a she-poet—that I had no business to be doing this. 1581 N. Burne xxii. f. 96 The scho Paip Ioanna. a1778 A. M. Toplady (1794) V. 470 The statue of this she-pope remained, in the cathedral church of Sienna, so low down, as until about the year 1677. 1816 Dec. 470/2 The cruelties practised during the forty-four years supremacy of this she Pope [sc. Elizabeth I]. 1998 6 Apr. ii. 2/3 Dismissing the she-pope as an anti-papal conspiracy. 1571 sig. Aa.iv Prestresse, a she priest. 1591 R. Percyvall Dict. at Sacerdotissa A shee priest. 1610 P. Holland tr. W. Camden ii. 231 A French God: whose shee-priestes, vowing perpetuall virginity, are said to be nine in number. 1736 R. Ainsworth I. Nomina Propria at Cithæron It was sacred to Bacchus, and here his she priests were wont to keep their revels. 1868 S. Brooks III. xxiv. 367 But this character is a she-priest—what do they call it?—and she wears long clothes. 1982 D. K. Mano i. 34 She-Priest Marries Incredible Nerve-Deaf Man. 1582 T. Watson ix So shuts or sprouts my ioy, as doth this flow're, When my Sheesunne doth either laugh or lowre. 1591 T. Lodge f. 4v A filbert is better than a faggot, except it be an Athenian she handfull. 1603 R. Johnson in tr. G. Botero 81 Almost euery common soldior carrying with him his she-baggage, besides his bag and other furniture. 1639 J. Ford i. sig. C2v And him have we beleagred to accost This shee-peece, under a pretence of being Grandee of Spain. a1641 T. Heywood (1953) i. i. 11 Shipp all your goodds. wth these shee chattyles. 1694 P. A. Motteux tr. F. Rabelais xxi His Office was to cast anew those She-pieces of Antiquity. 1735 J. Miller iv. 62 I had a great fat She-Creature sat next me, that had got the Ptysick, and wheesed so hideously all the time, that I could not hear a single Piano! 1759 R. Hurd 2 Nov. (1995) 348 Hence he is perfectly enamourd of that She-monster, something between a fox & an Hyaena, the Q. Mother. 1871 R. Ellis tr. Catullus vi. 4 Some she-malady, some unhealthy wanton, Fires thee verily. 1904 E. Dowden 246 The lone she-sparrow of the house-top [i.e. a poor girl in a garret]. 2006 3 July 60/3 A parachute-silk evening pajama of 1966 smothered with three-dimensional floral appliqués: dainty camouflage for a she-yeti. 1597 T. Middleton xiv. sig. S O idol-worshipping, thou mother art, She-procreatresse of a he offence. ?1609 J. Healey tr. Bp. J. Hall i. vii. 95 But iust as I was plodding on with this thought in my head, rushes mee forth an Ambush of armed Sheelandresses. 1641 W. Thomas 12 What indignity it was, that a she daughter of France, being promised to be a Queene, was become no better than a waiting woman. c1440 61 (MED) Þe mydwarde barke of þe scho asche. a1577 G. Gascoigne Princelie Pleasures Kenelworth sig. C.vj, in (1587) Mary there are two kinds of Holly, that is to say, he Holly, and she Holly. 1585 J. Higgins tr. Junius 114/1 Abrotonum mas. The hee Southernwood. A. femina. The shee Southernwood. 1626 F. Bacon §608 For the difference of Sexes in Plants, they are oftentimes by name distinguished; as Male-Piony, Female-Piony..He-Holly, She-Holly. 1663 G. Harvey II. ii. v. 287 The she Palm-trees it is observed do not yield any fruit unless planted near to a male Palm tree. 1705 R. Beverley ii. iv. 29 The other..looks shrivell'd with a Dent on the Back of the Grain, as if it had never come to Perfection; and this they call She-Corn. 1756 P. Browne ii. ii. 362 The she-plants throw out their flowers separate. 1884 C. S. Sargent 210 Abies Fraseri, Lindley... Balsam. She balsam. 1898 E. E. Morris at She-Oak The prefix she is used in Australia to indicate an inferiority of timber in respect of texture, colour, or other character; e.g. She-beech, She-pine. 1974 19 Dec. 889/1 Leaves from she-holly, that is pricklebush without its prickles, were placed under pillows in the north of England for divination by dreams. 2005 A. St. John x. 93 A red spruce is a relatively plain-looking tree with short needles and tiny cones, hence its nickname ‘the she balsam’. C2. society > faith > aspects of faith > Bible, Scripture > text > edition > [noun] > Authorized Version 1877 7 July 12/1 The first and second issues of the Authorized Version of 1611, designated..the ‘Great Hee [sic] Bible’ and the ‘Great She Bible’. 1878 H. Stevens 109 This pair..we shall distinguish by calling the first the Great He Bible, and the other the Great She Bible, from their respective renderings of Ruth iii. 15. 1911 A. W. Pollard iii. 72 The first edition of the translation is frequently called the He-Bible and the second the She-Bible. 2006 37 1110 The second edition of the KJB, nicknamed the ‘She’ Bible after a reading of Ruth 3:15, introduces ‘more errors than corrections’. the world > time > period > cycle of time > cycle of the year > [noun] > kalends a1661 B. Holyday in tr. Juvenal (1673) ix. 177 A trimme creature, to whom thou might'st send guifts forsooth, such as at the she-calends they send to women. society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > privateer or pirate ship > [noun] > privateer 1623 P. Massinger iii. ii. sig. G3v As he came From a close fight at Sea vnder the Hatches, With a she Dunckerke. 1637 J. Fletcher & P. Massinger iv. ii. sig. G2 As if they had newly come from a vaulting house, And had beene quite shot through 'tweene winde and water By a she Dunkirke. the mind > attention and judgement > esteem > approval or sanction > commendation or praise > flattery or flattering > [noun] > directed at females 1637 T. Nabbes iv. E 2 b Melancholy hath been some neglected Courtier; hee's perfect in she-flattery. society > authority > rule or government > rule or government of family or tribe > [noun] > matriarchy or matriarchalism > house 1785 F. Grose She House, a house where the wife rules, or, as the term is, wears the breeches. 1821 Ld. Byron ii. i. 44 The she-king, That less than woman, is even now upon The waters with his female mates. 1593 T. Nashe 77 b These shee retayling bodie-traffiquers. 1887 H. R. Haggard xv. 169 ‘She-who-must-be-obeyed’ commands thy presence, my Baboon. 1897 13 Mar. 709/1 The dies dominae will dawn before very long, and in that case ‘She that shall be’ will most probably appear as ‘She-who-must-be-obeyed’. 1911 G. B. Shaw Getting Married in 287 Collins. Excuse me, sir; but do you stay to breakfast?.. Hotchkiss. How do I know? Is my destiny..in my own hands? Go: ask She Who Must Be Obeyed. 1944 9 Feb. 12/7 Many a girl who turns out after marriage to be she-who-must-be-obeyed was before marriage a little appeaser. 1978 J. Mortimer 7 Hoping to turn a bob or two which won't be immediately grabbed by the taxman, or my clerk Henry, or by She Who Must Be Obeyed. 1998 C. Worrall i. 7 ‘So how is She Who Must Be Obeyed these days?’.. ‘She's been better.’ 2007 18 Nov. 63/5 The groom [was] wearing his future mother-in-law's corsage. He had picked up the flowers but didn't realise the beautiful buttonhole was meant for she-who-must-be-obeyed. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2013; most recently modified version published online September 2022). <  pron.1n.adj.?a1160 |