theadj.pron.²n.¹

(weak form, before consonants)Brit.

/ðə/, U.S.

/ðə/ (weak form, before vowels)Brit.

/ði/, U.S.

/ði/ (strong form, used to emphasize a contrast)Brit.

/ðiː/, U.S.

/ði/

Forms: 1. Inflected forms: singular. a. Nominative masculine.

α. Old English (rare)–early Middle English sa, Old English (Northumbrian, rare)–early Middle English sæ, Old English–early Middle English se, Old English (rare and chiefly late)–early Middle English seo, early Middle English ze (south-eastern). eOE (Kentish) Will of Æðelnoð & Gænburg (Sawyer 1500) in A. J. Robertson Anglo-Saxon Charters (1956) 4 Æðelnoð se gerefa to Eastorege.eOE (Mercian) Vespasian Psalter (1965) ix. 23 (4) Irritauit dominum peccator : bismerað dryhten se synfulla.OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Mark x. 24 Iesus rursus respondens : sæ [OE Rushw. Gospels ðe] hælend eftersona ond[u]earde.OE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Tiber. B.iv) anno 755 Gehyrdon þæt þæs cyninges þægnas..þæt seo cyning ofslægen wæs.?a1160 Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1135 On þis gære for se king Henri ouer sæ.?a1200 (?OE) Peri Didaxeon (1896) 3 Sa ruwa ȝealle byð wexenda on þan innoþe.a1225 (?OE) MS Vesp. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 235 Þis is seo king.c1275 Kentish Serm. in J. Hall Select. Early Middle Eng. (1920) I. 214 Se king of gyus.1340 Ayenbite (1866) 117 Ze þet ne heþ þise uondinges.

β. Old English (Northumbrian)–early Middle English ðe, Old English (Anglian, rare)–Middle English þe, late Old English þæ. For use in functions other than nominative singular masculine, as well as for nominative singular masculine instances in texts where this form type had become to a large extent generalized, see Forms 3aα. .OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Matt. ii. 3 Herodes rex : Herodes ðe cynig.OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Matt. ix. 15 Ait illis Iesus : cueð to him ðe hælend.OE (Mercian) Rushw. Gospels: Matt. ii. 9 Stella quam uiderant in oriente antecedebat eos : þe steorra þe hiae ær gesægon in eastdæle foreeade hię.lOE Let. of Bp. Denewulf to King Edward the Elder (Sawyer 1444) in W. de G. Birch Cartularium Saxonicum (1887) II. 282 Þonne biddæð þæ bisceop & þa hiwan on Wintanceastræ.a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 3 Hu þe helend nehlechede to-ward ierusalem.

b. Nominative feminine.

α. Old English sia (Kentish), Old English sio, Old English siu, Old English–early Middle English seo, Old English (Mercian)–early Middle English sie, late Old English–early Middle English se, early Middle English si (south-eastern), early Middle English syo, early Middle English zy (south-eastern). eOE tr. Orosius Hist. (BL Add.) (1980) ii. iv. 43 Seo ilce burg Babylonia, seo ðe mæst wæs & ærest ealra burga, seo is nu læst.eOE King Ælfred tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. (Otho) (2009) I. xxix. 520 Sio godcunde gesceadwisnes.OE (Mercian) Rushw. Gospels: Matt. xii. 13 Sicut altera [manus] : swa siu oþeru.OE West Saxon Gospels: Mark (Corpus Cambr.) xv. 40 Seo [c1200 Hatton sie] Magdalenisce Maria.lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1122 On þone lententyde..forbearn se burch.c1200 ( West Saxon Gospels: John (Hatton) xii. 17 Syo menio þe wæs mid him.a1225 (?OE) MS Vesp. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 233 Hwat deð si moder hire bearn.c1275 Kentish Serm. in J. Hall Select. Early Middle Eng. (1920) I. 216 Si Mirre signefiet uastinge.a1300 in Englische Studien (1900) 31 16 Si stille suge fret there grunninde mete.1340 Ayenbite (1866) 102 Zy þet ne serueþ bote to onlepy manne.

β. Old English ðio (Northumbrian), Old English ðiu (Northumbrian), Old English ðy (Northumbrian), Old English–early Middle English þeo, Old English–early Middle English ðeo, late Old English þio, early Middle English þie (East Anglian), early Middle English þo (south-west midlands and south-western). In Middle English also found for the accusative (compare quot. a1200).OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: John ii. 1 Erat mater iesu ibi : uæs ðiu [OE Rushw. Gospels ðio] moder & ðe hælend ðer.OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: John v. 25 Uenit hora et nunc est : cymmes ðio tid & nu is.OE Blickling Homilies 65 Þeo deaþberende uncyst us is eallum to onscunienne.OE West Saxon Gospels: John (Corpus Cambr.) xix. 20 Þeo stow wæs gehende þære ceastre.a1200 MS Trin. Cambr. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 107 Þe giuenesse of sinne is þe beste giue, and þie giue he giueð ech man in þe fulluht; þe giue of eche [lif] on blisse is te fulle giue, and þeo giue he giueð mid þe holi husel.?a1200 ( tr. Pseudo-Apuleius Herbarium (Harl. 6258B) xliii. 89 Syyðe raðe sceal þeo sceonesse [read seocnesse] beon ut atoȝen þur micȝþan.a1225 ( Ælfric's Homily In Die Sancto Pentecosten (Lamb. 487) in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 87 Þa wes þon folce iset þo tid to estertide.a1250 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Nero) (1952) 126 Þeo heorte ne ethalt none wete of godes grace.c1275 (?c1250) Owl & Nightingale (Calig.) (1935) l. 26 Þo vle song hire tide.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 2001 Þeo uniseli moder.

c. Nominative and accusative neuter Old English ðæt, Old English ðet (chielfy non-West Saxon and late), Old English þęt, Old English–Middle English þæt, Old English (chiefly late)–Middle English þat, Old English (rare)–Middle English þet, late Old English þad, Middle English that, Middle English þut (south-western). eOE tr. Orosius Hist. (BL Add.) (1980) i. i. 10 Is þæt land Cilia.eOE tr. Orosius Hist. (BL Add.) (1980) i. i. 11 Þæt hire æwielme..sie east irnende on þæt sond & þonne besince eft on þæt sand.OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 1st Ser. (Royal) (1997) xix. 328 Þæt ðridde gebed is.a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 7 Þat ebreisce folc sungen heore leof song.c1275 (?c1250) Owl & Nightingale (Calig.) (1935) l. 1259 Þah ich hi warni al þat ȝer.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 151 Þat child was ihaten Brutus.c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) l. 12014 Þo was þut lond in pes.1340 Ayenbite (1866) 2 Þet oþer heaued of þe beste of helle. d. Accusative masculine Old English (early Middle English in copy of Old English charter) ðæne, Old English–early Middle English þæne, Old English–early Middle English þene, Old English–early Middle English þone, Old English–early Middle English ðane, Old English–early Middle English ðene, Old English–early Middle English ðone, Old English–Middle English þane, late Old English (early Middle English in copy of Old English charter) thone, early Middle English tane (after d), early Middle English þage (transmission error), early Middle English þana, early Middle English þanne, early Middle English þænne, early Middle English þenne, early Middle English þeone, early Middle English þonne, early Middle English ðanne, early Middle English ðonne, early Middle English yene. In later use also found with indirect objects (compare Forms 1h), reflecting loss of distinction between the accusative and dative cases and perhaps also scribal uncertainty about final -e.eOE (Mercian) Vespasian Psalter (1965) iv. 4 Quoniam magnificauit dominus sanctum suum : ðætte gemiclað dryhten ðone halgan his.OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 1st Ser. (Royal) (1997) xxii. 362 Crist ableow þone [a1225 Lamb. þana] halgan gast uppon þam apostolon.lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) anno 1016 Eadric ealdormann gewende þa ðæne cyng ongean.lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1122 Þa com se fir on ufenweard þone stepel.a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 7 Þurh þene halie gast.a1225 ( Ælfric's Homily De Initio Creaturae (Vesp. A.xxii) in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 223 He worhte þa þane man mid his handen.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 1674 Mid Leir þanne kinge.c1300 Holy Cross (Laud) l. 252 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 8 Þene Nynþe day hom he cam.1340 Ayenbite (1866) 187 He ne may naȝt þolye þane guode smel..namore þanne þe boterel þanne smel of þe vine.c1350 (a1333) William of Shoreham Poems (1902) 4 Hit þorwe wasscheþ þane man Of senne. e. Accusative feminine Old English ða, Old English ðy (Northumbrian), Old English–early Middle English þa, late Old English tha, late Old English–early Middle English þæ, early Middle English þo. In Middle English also found for the nominative (compare quots. ?a1200 and a1225²). For later use as a generalized form see Forms 3aγ. .eOE tr. Bede Eccl. Hist. (Tanner) iii. xii. 196 Se biscop þa geseah þa eaðmodnesse þæs cyninges.OE West Saxon Gospels: John (Corpus Cambr.) xix. 17 On þa stowe.?a1200 (?OE) Peri Didaxeon (1896) 33 Þur þane wæten þa breorst [perhaps read breost] beoþ ȝeheafuȝede and þa heorte ȝe sydu byð ȝefullede mid yfele blode.a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 9 On þa ealde laȝe.a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 15 Hit wes þa laȝe.c1275 Kentish Serm. in J. Hall Select. Early Middle Eng. (1920) I. 216 We mowe habbe þo blisce of heueriche.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 16 He nom þa [c1300 Otho þe] Englisca boc þa [Otho þat] makede Seint Beda.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 2301 And nomen Godlac þene king & Delgan þæ quene.1340 Ayenbite (1866) 130 Þise byeþ..þe uour cornardyes þet amerreþ þo contraye þet god ssewede to zakarie þe profete. f. Genitive masculine and neuter.

α. Old English þęs, Old English ðaes, Old English ðęs, Old English–early Middle English þæs, Old English (rare)–early Middle English þeos, Old English (chiefly non-West Saxon)–early Middle English þes, Old English–early Middle English ðas, Old English–early Middle English ðæs, Old English (chiefly Mercian)–early Middle English ðes, Old English–Middle English þas, late Old English thæs, late Old English (early Middle English in copy of Old English charter) þaes, early Middle English tes (after t, d), early Middle English thaes (in copy of Old English charter), early Middle English þæd (transmission error), early Middle English þegs (probably transmission error), early Middle English þese (in copy of Old English charter), early Middle English þess ( Ormulum), early Middle English þis (probably transmission error), early Middle English þos (south-west midlands, perhaps transmission error). OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 1st Ser. (Royal) (1997) xvii. 314 For ðæs folces hreddinge.OE tr. Orosius Hist. (Tiber.) (1980) i. iv. 24 On þæs cyninges dagum on Egyptum.lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1122 Þet wes þes dæies viii idus Martii.a1200 MS Trin. Cambr. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 23 He..sit on rihthalf þes almihtie faderes.c1200 ( West Saxon Gospels: Luke (Hatton) Luke i. 10 Eall wered þas folkes.c1275 (?c1250) Owl & Nightingale (Calig.) (1935) l. 338 Þu a dunest Þas monnes earen þar þu wunest.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 3769 Þurh þeos [c1300 Otho þes] sweordes wunde.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 405 To telde þæs [c1300 Otho þis] kinges.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 358 To þas [c1300 Otho þis] kinges ferde.a1300 Vision St. Paul (Jesus Oxf.) l. 210 in R. Morris Old Eng. Misc. (1872) 153 Þat wes þes feondes red.c1400 (?a1300) Kyng Alisaunder (Laud) (1952) l. 489 And settleþ sone after þas On stede þere þe quene was.

β. early Middle English sæs, early Middle English ses. ?a1200 ( tr. Pseudo-Apuleius Herbarium (Harl. 6258B) clxxxi. 227 Wið þan yfele wæte sæs [OE Vitell. þæs] lichamæs.a1225 (?OE) MS Vesp. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 235 Ures hlafordes to-cyme ses helendes ihesu cristes.

g. Genitive feminine Old English ðaere (Northumbrian), Old English ðere, Old English–early Middle English þare, Old English–early Middle English þære, Old English–early Middle English þere, Old English–early Middle English ðare, Old English–early Middle English ðære, late Old English þęre, early Middle English þara, early Middle English þaræ, early Middle English þarre, early Middle English ðer (before a vowel), Middle English þer (chiefly before a vowel). eOE tr. Orosius Hist. (BL Add.) (1980) i. i. 14 On oþre healfe þære eas.eOE tr. Bede Eccl. Hist. (Tanner) v. xii. 422 Bisscopseðl in his þere meran byrig, sio alde worde þere þiode his nemded [read is nemned] Wiltaburg.a1250 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Nero) (1952) 59 Iob cleopeð þer ancre hus nest.c1275 (?c1250) Owl & Nightingale (Calig.) (1935) l. 28 Hit was þare hule eardingstowe.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 168 Þere [c1300 Otho þe] quene cun Heleine.c1350 (a1333) William of Shoreham Poems (1902) 3 Mannys blod Hys ryȝt þer saule giste. h. Dative masculine and neuter.

α. Old English thæm, Old English ðaem, Old English ðæm, Old English–early Middle English þam, Old English–early Middle English þæm, Old English–early Middle English þæn, Old English–early Middle English þem, Old English–early Middle English ðam, Old English (early Middle English in copy of Old English charter) ðæn, Old English–early Middle English ðem, early Middle English dan, early Middle English tan (after t, d), early Middle English ten (after t, d), early Middle English þaem (in copy of Old English charter), early Middle English þann, early Middle English þeon (south-west midlands), early Middle English þoen (in copy of Old English charter), early Middle English ðan, early Middle English ðen, early Middle English ðon, early Middle English yen, Middle English þan, Middle English þen (chiefly before a vowel in later use), Middle English þon, Middle English þun (south-western); N.E.D. (1912) also records a form Middle English thon. In later use also found with direct objects (compare Forms 1d), reflecting loss of distinction between the dative and accusative cases and perhaps also scribal uncertainty about final -e.OE (Mercian) Rushw. Gospels: Matt. viii. 24 In mari : on þæm sæ.OE Beowulf (2008) 143 Se þæm feonde ætwand.OE Ælfric Old Eng. Hexateuch: Gen. (Claud.) vi. 16 Binnan ðam arce.lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) anno 1087 Innan þam castele.a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 41 On þon deie.a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 121 Ibuhsum þan heuenliche federe to þa deðe.?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 54 Al þe lecun..of þen appel.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 4622 He redde þæn [c1300 Otho þan] kæisere.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 4068 Þu me smite bi þon [c1300 Otho þan] rugge.a1333 in C. Brown Relig. Lyrics 14th Cent. (1924) 25 Mon shal..deȝen at þen ende.c1350 (a1333) William of Shoreham Poems (1902) 121 Fram þan tyme he was ybore.c1380 Sir Ferumbras (1879) l. 2419 Ate laste þan gurdel he fond.

β. early Middle English san. ?a1200 ( tr. Pseudo-Apuleius Herbarium (Harl. 6258B) cxxxii. 173 Seo wirt swa some san [OE Vitell. þam] silfan ȝeme[te] þane heafodece ȝeliþeȝað.

i. Dative feminine Old English þęre, Old English ðara, Old English (early Middle English in copy of Old English charter) þaere, Old English–early Middle English þære, Old English–early Middle English þere, Old English (early Middle English in copy of Old English charter) ðaere, Old English–early Middle English ðare, Old English–early Middle English ðære, Old English–early Middle English ðere, Old English–Middle English þare, late Old English thære, late Old English þær (perhaps transmission error), early Middle English tare (after t, d), early Middle English ter (after t, d), early Middle English tere (after t, d), early Middle English þar, early Middle English þara, early Middle English þera, early Middle English þerere (transmission error), early Middle English þreo (transmission error), early Middle English ðer (before a vowel), Middle English þer (chiefly before a vowel). eOE King Ælfred tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. (Otho) (2009) I. xxxii. 535 Mid ðære ilcan spræce.OE West Saxon Gospels: John (Corpus Cambr.) xvii. 11 On ðære tide.?a1200 (?OE) Peri Didaxeon (1896) 5 By[n]d hy to þare wunda.a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 3 He com to þere dune.a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 31 Cume þenne to þer ilke chirche.a1225 (?OE) MS Vesp. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 235 To þar sawle.a1225 ( Ælfric's Homily De Initio Creaturae (Vesp. A.xxii) in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 225 Binnan þara birie.a1225 (c1200) Vices & Virtues (1888) 83 Spræng me mid tare ysope.c1275 (?c1250) Owl & Nightingale (Calig.) (1935) l. 31 [Þ]e niȝtingale..þuȝte wel wl of þare hule.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 2260 To þere [c1300 Otho þare] sæ.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 619 Mid þære [c1300 Otho þare] sæ.c1350 (a1333) William of Shoreham Poems (1902) 83 Þe sonne dym By-come in þare tyde. j. Instrumental (originally masculine and neuter)

α. Old English þi, Old English þy, Old English ði, Old English ðy. Compare thy adv. (and also the adv.).OE Daniel 684 Wiste he ealdormen in unrihtum, ða ðe ðy rice rædan sceoldon.OE Waldere i. 24 Ne murn ðu for ði mece.OE Wærferð tr. Gregory Dialogues (Corpus Cambr.) (1900) iv. xxxvii. 318 Þa þy dæge ne mihte nan læce beon funden, ac þy æfterfylgendan nihte þæt lic læg unbebyrged.

β. Old English þan, Old English þon, Old English ðan, Old English ðon. Already in Old English merged with the dative masculine and neuter (Forms 1h). Compare thon adv. (and also than pron.).eOE Bald's Leechbk. (Royal) (1865) i. xxxix. 100 Wiþ þon ilcan genim safinan.OE Exodus 134 Be þan readan sæ.

2. Inflected forms: plural. a. Nominative and accusative.

α. Old English tha, Old English þæ (chiefly late), Old English ðæ (chiefly late), Old English–Middle English þa, Old English–Middle English ða, early Middle English ta (after t, d, s), early Middle English þea, early Middle English þeo, early Middle English tho, early Middle English þoa, early Middle English ðoa, early Middle English to (after t, d, s), early Middle English za (transmission error), Middle English þo, Middle English ðo. For later use as a generalized form see Forms 3aγ. .eOE Épinal Gloss. (1974) 24 Funestissima, tha deatlicostan.eOE Corpus Gloss. (1890) 58/2 Funestissima, ða deadlicustan.eOE (Mercian) Vespasian Psalter (1965) v. 4 (6) Neque permanebunt iniusti : ne ðorhwuniað ða unrehtwisan.a1200 MS Trin. Cambr. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 35 On þa wurhliche weden.a1225 (?c1175) Poema Morale (Lamb.) l. 103 in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 165 Þa swicen and ta forsworene.?c1250 (?c1175) Poema Morale (Egerton) l. 192 in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 293 He scal deme þo quike and to dede.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 2820 Þeo [c1300 Otho þe] cnihtes weoren vnwepned.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 1163 Þa [c1300 Otho þe] hehste of þan hirde.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 1011 He..scæwede þea [c1300 Otho þe] leoden.

β. early Middle English sa. Also found with indirect objects (compare quot. ?a1200²).?a1200 (?OE) Peri Didaxeon (1896) 3 Þæt syndon sa ysene, þa mann mid curf unhæle [printed cnifun hæle] menn.?a1200 (?OE) Peri Didaxeon (1896) 11 To ðan sare þe abutan sa earan wycst.?a1200 (?OE) Peri Didaxeon (1896) 27 Wurm þanna sa handa & smyra þar mið.

b. Genitive.

α. Old English þeara, Old English ðaera (Northumbrian), Old English ðaere, Old English ðara, Old English ðæra, Old English ðære, Old English ðeara (chiefly Mercian), Old English ðęra (Northumbrian), Old English–early Middle English þara, Old English–early Middle English þæra, Old English–early Middle English þera, Old English–early Middle English þere, late Old English–early Middle English þære, early Middle English þaera (in copy of Old English charter), early Middle English þæræ, early Middle English þar, early Middle English þaræ, early Middle English þare, early Middle English þer, early Middle English þeræ, early Middle English þeren, early Middle English þeyre, early Middle English ðare, early Middle English ðæræ, early Middle English ðeræ, early Middle English ðere. OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 1st Ser. (Royal) (1997) i. 181 Ealra þæra þinga [a1225 Vesp. A.xxii þara þinge].OE Blickling Homilies 35 Ne bið þara fæstendaga na ma þonne syx & þritig.a1200 MS Trin. Cambr. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 129 Nan þere prophete þe ge wenen.a1200 MS Trin. Cambr. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 121 Þer apostlene lore.a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 133 Þurh ðere clerkene muðe.a1225 ( Ælfric's Homily De Initio Creaturae (Vesp. A.xxii) in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 229 An þera twelf Christes þeigne.a1291 in Anglia (1988) 106 412 Her lis arfaxat fader brandan ant kolmkilne ant cowhel þer halewe ant dame coroune moder þeyre halewe.a1300 Passion our Lord l. 372 in R. Morris Old Eng. Misc. (1872) 47 Schal ich þere gywene kyng lete gon al skere.

β. early Middle English sara. ?a1200 ( tr. Pseudo-Apuleius Herbarium (Harl. 6258B) cxxxii. 173 Ac eac sara [OE Vitell. þæra] sina toȝunge to hæle ȝelædeð.

c. Dative Old English þæm, Old English þem (Kentish), Old English ðaem, Old English ðæm, Old English–early Middle English þam, Old English–early Middle English þan, Old English–early Middle English ðam, Old English–early Middle English ðan, Old English–early Middle English ðem, late Old English–early Middle English þen, early Middle English pan (transmission error), early Middle English þæn, early Middle English þeon (south-west midlands), early Middle English þon, early Middle English ðen, early Middle English ðon, Middle English þane. OE tr. Orosius Hist. (Tiber.) (1980) i. i. 21 Be þæm gesetenessum [read gesetenum] iglandum.OE West Saxon Gospels: Mark (Corpus Cambr.) v. 2 Of þam byrgenum.a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 27 For þan deoflan.a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 139 To alle ðon monnen.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 376 Cuð he wes þen cnihten [c1300 Otho þeos cniþtes].c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 359 To þon cnihten [c1300 Otho to þe cniþtes].a1300 (c1250) Floris & Blauncheflur (Vitell.) (1966) l. 213 Seue hundred tures, witouten þan tuo, Þ[er] beþ.c1350 (a1333) William of Shoreham Poems (1902) 78 So holyche[rche], spouse of god, Sprang of þane wonden wyde. 3. Uninflected (generalized) forms. a.

α. (a) Old English (rare)–1500s þe, early Middle English dhe, early Middle English se (transmission error), early Middle English þae, early Middle English þæ, early Middle English þea, early Middle English ðæ, early Middle English ðe, early Middle English we (transmission error), Middle English ȝe, Middle English he (transmission error), Middle English thee, Middle English thy, Middle English þee, Middle English þei, Middle English þey, Middle English þhe, Middle English þi, Middle English yee, Middle English yhe, Middle English ze, Middle English–1500s they, Middle English–1600s (1700s– archaic) ye, Middle English– the, 1900s ther (in representations of regional and nonstandard speech); English regional 1800s thee (Cheshire), 1800s thi (Northumberland); U.S. regional 1900s– thay, 1900s– they; Scottish pre-1700 ȝe, pre-1700 ȝhe, pre-1700 he, pre-1700 thee, pre-1700 thei, pre-1700 thie, pre-1700 thy, pre-1700 þe, pre-1700 ye (now archaic), pre-1700 yee, pre-1700 yhe, pre-1700 yi, pre-1700 1700s– the, 1800s thi', 1900s– tha, 1900s– thi; Irish English (northern) 1900s– tha; (b) (chiefly after t, d, s in early use) Middle English de, Middle English te; English regional 1700s–1800s te, 1700s–1800s teh, 1800s de, 1800s ta, 1800s tay, 1800s to (East Anglian); U.S. regional 1800s– de, 1900s– da, 1900s– duh; Scottish pre-1700 1700s– de, pre-1700 1800s te, 1700s– ta, 1800s– da (Shetland); Welsh English 1600s te; Caribbean 1900s– da, 1900s– de, 1900s– deh, 1900s– dey, 1900s– dhe, 1900s– di. Early Middle English þæ may sometimes alternatively show the reflex of Old English þā (accusative singular feminine, or nominative and accusative plural: compare Forms 1e, 2a).OE (Mercian) Rushw. Gospels: Matt. i. 22 Per essaiam prophetam dicentem : þurh esaiam þe witgu cweþende.OE Arundel Psalter cxvii. 27 Constituite diem solemnem : gesettaþ þe dæg symbelne.lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) anno 1020 Æðelnoð munuc..wæs þe ilcan geare þarto gehadod to biscop.lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1122 Se fir weax..up to þe heouene.?a1160 Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1132 Henri abbot..uureide þe muneces..to þe king..; þurh þe biscop of Seresbyri & te biscop of Lincol & te oþre rice men.., þa wiste þe king ðat he feorde mid suicdom.?a1160 Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1137 Martin..heold mycel carited in the hus & þoþwethere wrohte on þe circe.c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 1485 & gaddresst swa þe clene corn All fra þe chaff to geddre.a1225 (c1200) Vices & Virtues (1888) 41 Ðe dieule..ararð upp ðe wraððhes and þe cheastes and te bitere wordes.a1325 (c1250) Gen. & Exod. (1968) l. 2949 But if it were in ðe lond gersen, Ðor-inne woree [read woren] ðe ebrisse men.1389 in J. T. Smith & L. T. Smith Eng. Gilds (1870) 19 It is ordeynede yat alle ye bretheren and sisteren..shul comen to-geder..on ye day of seynt Katerine.a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 6859 Suilk was þi lessun and þi lare [Fairf. þe lessoun & þe lare].a1425 Rule St. Benet (Lansd.) (1902) 12 Sua sais te prophete.?c1450 Life St. Cuthbert (1891) 1491 It es vnstabill as ȝe se.a1525 ( Coventry Leet Bk. (1907) I. 185 Þat þey prior be not suffered to make no more off þe Stan wall vndur þey priory.1548 Hall's Vnion: Richard III f. xxvij^v Lo y^e honorable courage of a kyng.1657 in J. Stuart Sel. Rec. Kirk Aberdeen (1846) 234 Thie Provincial Assemblie laying to ther..consideration thie sadd..effectes.1744 E. Young Complaint: Night the Sixth 24 The almighty Fiat, and the Trumpet's sound.1814 W. Scott Waverley II. vi. 99 It was either ta mickle Sunday..or ta little government Sunday that they ca'd ta fast.a1825 R. Forby Vocab. E. Anglia (1830) Ta, te, to, art. or pron. the, this, that, it.1887 T. Darlington Folk-speech S. Cheshire 53 Go i' thee cellar an' fatch thee beer for thee men.1986 N.Y. Times 7 May a10/4 We reaffirm the continued importance of the case-by-case approach.2007 Leaflet (Health Promotion Agency for Northern Ireland) Gin yersel or anither bodie in tha hoose is no weel.2011 T. Bryan in A. Bissett & C. MacDougall New Writing Scotl. 29 10 Thit's hoo tae restore thi forest tae oor native reid [squirrel].2014 V. Bergin Rain xiv. 178 I..snatched the bottle from him.

β. late Old English seo, late Old English–early Middle English se, early Middle English si (south-eastern). lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough interpolation) anno 656 Swa ðet nan man na haue þær nan onsting buton seo abbot & se muneces.lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough interpolation) anno 1114 Þet dugeð þet wæs on Englalande forð mid se cyng.lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1123 Se prior & se munecas of Cantwarabyrig..hit wiðcwæðen.lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1124 Þet wes for se miccle unfrið þet he heafde wið se king Loðewis of France & wið se eorl of Angeow & wið his agene men alremest.a1200 MS Trin. Cambr. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 31 Lusteð nu..hwu he se tiðinge teald[e].?a1200 (?OE) Peri Didaxeon (1896) 17 Nim ðanne se sealfe and smire mid þa lippa.a1225 (?OE) MS Vesp. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 239 Si hali rode tacne..þurh angles beoð forð ibrocht.

γ. (a) late Old English–early Middle English ða, late Old English–Middle English þa, early Middle English ðeo (south-west midlands), early Middle English ðo, Middle English tha, Middle English theo (west midlands), Middle English tho, Middle English thoe, Middle English thoo, Middle English þaa, Middle English þeo (chiefly south-west midlands and south-western), Middle English þo, Middle English þoȝ, Middle English þoo, Middle English þowȝ, Middle English þu (East Anglian), Middle English ya (chiefly northern), Middle English yo (chiefly north midlands); Scottish pre-1700 tha, pre-1700 ya, pre-1700 yo; (b) chiefly after t, d, s early Middle English teo (south-west midlands), Middle English ta, Middle English to, Middle English too. lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough interpolation) anno 656 Ða þa kyning heorda þæt gesecgon, þa wærð he swiðe glæd.lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1131 On þa tun þa wæs tenn ploges oðer twelfe gangende, ne belæf þær noht an.a1225 (c1200) Vices & Virtues (1888) 47 Se..is ilich ðo manne ðe berð dust amidewarde ðe winde.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 665 Ne beo þa dai na swa long.c1275 Kentish Serm. in J. Hall Select. Early Middle Eng. (1920) I. 216 So us defendet þo ileke þinges..fram þe amonestement of þo dieule.c1350 (a1333) William of Shoreham Poems (1902) 50 And water in ta bacyn.c1400 J. Wyclif On the Seven Deadly Sins (Bodl. 647) in Sel. Eng. Wks. (1871) III. 120 If a mon synne ageyne þo Holy Gost, hit may not be forgyven, more þen synne of þo fende.1447 O. Bokenham Lives of Saints (Arun.) (1938) 1710 His scep..in too dayes were his most cure.c1450 (c1415) in W. O. Ross Middle Eng. Serm. (1940) 46 Þe grace of almyghty God thorowght þoȝ besechyng of ys blessed modur..be with vs now.c1450 (c1415) in W. O. Ross Middle Eng. Serm. (1940) 113 Oure Ladie and all þowȝ seyntes þat been in heven.a1475 Liber Cocorum (Sloane) (1862) 19 Take þo kelkes of fysshe anon, And þo lyver of þo fysshe.a1500 tr. Lanfranc Sci. Cirurgie (Wellcome) f. 23 Abowe þe wounde of the fell lay a mundificatiue..that it over go þo wounde an vnche.

δ. English regional (Surrey) 1800s 'ee; U.S. regional 1900s– 'ee (rare); Scottish (chiefly north-east central and northern) 1800s ey, 1800s– 'e, 1800s– ee, 2000s– i; Irish English (Wexford) 1700s ee, 1800s eee. 1789 C. Vallancey Vocab. Lang. Forth & Bargie in Trans. Royal Irish Acad. 1788 2 38 Up came ee ball.1873 J. A. H. Murray Dial. S. Counties Scotl. 26 In the West of Forfar and Fife, South of Perth, in Kinross, Clackmannan, etc., the article is regularly abbreviated into ee: ee haid ŏ ee toon,..pyt ee braid i' ee prêss.1890 A. C. Bickley Midst Surrey Hills II. xv Let 'ee words as did vor vather do vor son.1944 in H. Wentworth Amer. Dial. Dict. 632/2 When 'ee moon comes over 'ee mountain.1987 A. Fenton (title) Wirds an' wark 'e seasons roon, on an Aberdeenshire farm.2021 A. Lawrie in Lallans 99 48 Bit at’s i verra Thing I’m tryin tae tell ye.

b. Combined (in contracted form) with a preceding or following word.

α. (chiefly before a vowel in early use) Middle English tth-, Middle English þ-, Middle English y-, Middle English–1500s t-, Middle English– th- (now regional and poetic), 1600s t'-, 1600s– th' (now regional and poetic), 1600s– th'- (now regional and poetic); English regional (chiefly northern) 1700s–1800s d', 1800s 't, 1800s– t, 1800s– t', 1800s– th'; U.S. regional 1900s– th'; also Scottish pre-1700 th', pre-1700 th-, pre-1700 y. ?a1160 Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1140 Henri..s[pa]c wid Rodbert eorl & wyd þemperice.c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 5937 Tatt himm ummbeshorenn wass. hiss shapp o þalde wise.c1400 (?c1380) Patience l. 325 Þacces [emended in ed. to þ'acces] of anguych watȝ hid in my sawle.a1450 (a1338) R. Mannyng Chron. (Lamb.) (1887) i. l. 5734 Þapostles holy lyf.1485 Malory's Morte Darthur (Caxton) ii. xiii. sig. dv No thyng but thold custome of the castel.1485 in M. Oppenheim Naval Accts. & Inventories Henry VII (1896) 8 To be levied by thands of Thomas Combes.c1515 Ld. Berners tr. Bk. Duke Huon of Burdeux (1882–7) vi. 13 Out of temperours fauore.1529 Will of Thomas Cromwell in R. B. Merriman Life & Lett. T. Cromwell (1902) I. 58 Kept to thuse of my saide Soonne.1529 in Vicary's Anat. Bodie of Man (1888) App. ii. 100 M^r Whittington, scolmaster to thenxmen [i.e. henchmen].1533 T. More Apologye 283 More old than thage of eyght hundred yere.a1616 W. Shakespeare All's Well that ends Well (1623) v. iii. 245 Come, come, to' th' purpose.c1616 ( in T. Stapleton Plumpton Corr. (1839) p. cxx Sir Marmaduke Constable thelder, knight,..on thone partie, and Sir Robert Plompton..on thother partie.c1616 ( in T. Stapleton Plumpton Corr. (1839) p. ci The said lands..and t'ofice of the Steward.1645 J. Milton Il Penseroso in Poems 39 Gently o're th'accustom'd Oke.1699 in Shropshire Parish Reg.: Diocese of Lichfield (1901) II. 590 July 8. Peter Price, thelder..bur[ied].1763 ‘T. Bobbin’ Toy-shop (new ed.) To Rdr. p. xiii By th' Miss, th' owd story ogen.1883 T. Lees Easther's Gloss. Dial. Almondbury & Huddersfield at T Th' man i'th' mooin.1888 S. O. Addy Gloss. Words Sheffield 13 T' beeas has got into t' corn.1892 M. C. F. Morris Yorks. Folk-talk ii. 19 Gan inti d' hoos.1933 ‘B. Ross’ Trag. of Z vii. 109 I don't know what th' real stuff tastes like.2003 Picture (Sydney) 8 Jan. 40/1 I'm in th' mood for some ol' fashioned En-Zed lovin'!2007 J. McCourt Now Voyagers ix. 444 You done with that, an' yew tron it on th' floor?

β. (after t) early Middle English e. c1225 (?c1200) Sawles Warde (Royal) (1938) 42 Wið þe feder ant e sune ant e [a1250 Titus te] hali gast.

Origin: A word inherited from Germanic.

Etymology: Use as definite article of the reduced and uninflected stem of the Old English demonstrative adjective and pronoun and definite determiner se (masculine, nominative; later þe ), sēo (feminine, nominative; later þēo ), þæt (neuter, nominative and accusative; compare that pron.¹, that adj.¹); the forms of this paradigm are cognate with: (masculine, feminine, and neuter nominative singular forms are cited for each language) Old Frisian thī , thiū (also thiō ), thet , Old Dutch thē , thiu (Middle Dutch (masculine and feminine) de , also die ; Dutch de ), that (Middle Dutch dat ; in modern Dutch replaced by het ), Old Saxon thē (also thie , se ), thiu , that (Middle Low German dē , dǖ , dat ), Old High German der , diu , daz (Middle High German der , diu , daz , German der , die , das ), (in all West Germanic languages showing a range of functions broadly similar to those in Old English), and also Old Icelandic sá , sú , þat (and cognate forms in other North Germanic languages, used as demonstrative pronoun), and Gothic sa , so , þata (used as demonstrative pronoun). For use in relative constructions in Germanic see discussion at that pron.² For other later English words based on forms from this paradigm see that pron.¹, adj.¹, adv., and n., that pron.², that conj., and (now obsolete or only in regional use) , that adj.², tho adv., thes adv., than pron., thy adv. and pron., thon adv. and pron.¹, tho pron.¹ and adj., tho pron.², thae adj. and pron.; see also (ultimately derived from forms from this paradigm) this pron., adj., and n., those pron. and adj., and these pron. and adj. The English and other Germanic forms parallel and are cognate with Greek ὁ , ἡ , τό (definite determiner), Avestan hō , hā , tat̰ , and Sanskrit saḥ , sā , tat . In each of these languages, all the inflectional parts except the nominative singular masculine and feminine reflect an Indo-European stem *to- (Germanic *þa- ). For other English words showing this stem see the adv., the conj. and pron.¹, than conj., then adv., thenne adv. (and thence adv.), there adv., n., and int., thither adv. and adj., and (via early Scandinavian) the personal pronoun they pron. The nominative singular masculine in Old English (as also in North Germanic, East Germanic, Sanskrit, Avestan, and Greek), belongs to another demonstrative stem, Indo-European *so- (Germanic *sa-), found also in Early Irish -so, clitic demonstrative particle. In all of these languages except Old English, the nominative singular feminine is formed on this same stem. In Old English, it shows a distinct stem *si-. In English, the masculine and feminine nominative singular forms show remodelling in þ-, by analogy with all of the other forms in the paradigm. This is found already in the 10th cent. in the Northumbrian dialect of Old English, but the replacement was very gradual across different dialects (see below), although it is likely that spoken colloquial use differed from the conservative practice of scribes. Similar remodelling (at a date preceding the earliest surviving records) is probably shown by the equivalent forms in all other West Germanic languages, with the exception of some dialects of Old Saxon.The paradigm of the definite article and simple demonstrative in Old English. The pattern in Old English can be summarized as follows: Singular, masculine: nominative sē (unstressed se ; also, in Anglian, ðe ), accusative þone (also þane ), genitive þæs , dative þǣm (also þām ), instrumental þȳ , þon (also þan ). Singular, feminine: nominative sēo (also, in Northumbrian ðīu ), accusative þā , genitive þǣre , dative þǣre . Singular, neuter: nominative þæt , accusative þæt , genitive þæs , dative þǣm (also þām ), instrumental þȳ , þon (also þan ). Plural: nominative þā , accusative þā , genitive þāra (also þǣra ), dative þǣm (also þām ). See further A. Campbell Old Eng. Gram. (1959) §708, R. M. Hogg & R. D. Fulk Gram. Old Eng. (2011) II. §§5.4–8, D. Ringe & A. Taylor Devel. Old Eng. (2014) 389–90. For discussion of functions of individual forms see further that pron.¹, adj.¹, adv., and n., that pron.², tho pron.¹ and adj., than pron., thy adv. and pron., and thon adv. and pron.¹ Compare also the adv. Note on Old English usage. In Old English texts it can be difficult to tell in some contexts whether the word is being used as a determiner to indicate definiteness or as a demonstrative, a distinction which may rest only on the degree of stress on the word, which is not reflected in writing; instances of such ambiguity persist into early Middle English. In Old English verse, the word is not obligatory in definite use, apparently reflecting an earlier stage when use as definite article was not yet grammaticalized. Specific forms. For assimilatory change of initial þ to t after a word ending in a dental or s see T n. 7. The form ye in modern use as an archaism (see Forms 3aα. ) is frequently pronounced (either facetiously or through lack of awareness of its origin) as /jiː/, especially in the collocation ye olde adj. Development of the modern uninflected form. The initial þ- was occasionally extended to nominative singular masculine already in Old English, especially in Northumbrian (see Forms 1aβ. ). The resulting form þe was then extended beyond nominative singular masculine to other genders and cases both singular and plural, with rare examples attested already in Old English (see Forms 3aα. ). The spread of this form becomes pronounced in the latest Old English and earliest Middle English sources. Frequency of generalized þe at the expense of the reflexes of the historically expected forms increases over time (with north-east midland and East Anglian texts normally showing a more advanced state of replacement), with these forms disappearing almost entirely after the first quarter of the 14th cent. The last major texts where traces of the historical paradigms are found with any frequency are the Ayenbite of Inwit and the poems of William of Shoreham (both Kentish). After the mid 14th cent., reflexes of the historically expected forms survive only in set phrases and adverbial uses (compare, for example, thes adv., than pron., or variants of at the ale at ale n. Phrases 2). Alternative generalizations of forms other than þe are also found: compare the occasional levelling of Old English sē , sēo (originally forms of the nominative singular masculine and feminine: see Forms 1aα. and 1bα. ), which leaves no trace after the early 13th cent. (see Forms 3aβ. ); and the more extensive levelling of þā , the original Old English form of the nominative and accusative plural and accusative singular feminine (Middle English þa , þo : see Forms 3aγ. ). In Middle English, generalized forms of the þa , þo type are rarer than those of the þe type, with both types often occurring in the same texts. Such forms become very rare in the second half of the 15th cent., and disappear by the end of that century. The forms at Forms 3aδ. reflect loss of initial th- in low-stress positions, and are especially characteristic of northern and north-eastern varieties of Scots (compare ζ. forms at they pron., adj., adv., and n., δ. forms at their adj. and pron., etc.). Specific senses. In sense A. 2b apparently showing substitution of the for to prep. in today , etc. With use preceding names of ships (see sense A. 5e) compare earlier examples with the Anglo-Norman definite article (preceding post-classical Latin, Anglo-Norman, Middle English, and ambiguous names), sometimes with a noun denoting a ship type, in e.g. le Hulc Sancte Marie (1225), but also independently, in e.g. la Planet (1242), la Christemasse (1253). Compare also the use of the Old Icelandic definite article -inn with the names of some medieval Scandinavian ships, e.g. Krosssúðinn , Mariusúðinn (both early 14th cent.; compare súð ship's board, ship). With use in Irish English and Scots preceding a language name (see sense A. 6) compare note at Gaelic n. on similar usage in Celtic languages.

A. adj. Definite article (determiner).

I. Referring to an individual item (or items).

* Marking an item as having been mentioned before or as already known, or as contextually particularized (e.g. They escaped in a car. The car was later found abandoned or I had some in a jar but it all leaked out through the lid).

a. Before a noun in ordinary general use.

OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Matt. ii. 9 Supra ubi erat puer : ofer ðer uel hwer wæs ðe cnæht [OE Rushw. Gospels se cneht].

OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 1st Ser. (Royal) (1997) xxv. 382 Ða magas setton þam cilde naman Zacharias, ac seo modor him wiðcwæð.

OE West Saxon Gospels: John (Corpus Cambr.) ii. 7 Þæt hig þa fatu mid wætere gefyldon.

lOE St. Margaret (Corpus Cambr.) (1994) 166 Se gerefa het þæt me him þæt mæden toforen brohte.

c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 1082 He toc þe recless & te blod & ȝede upp to þatt allterr.

a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 133 Sum of þe sede feol an uppe þe stane..sum bi þe weie.

c1300 (c1250) Floris & Blauncheflur (Cambr.) (1966) l. 152 Bi þat hit was middai hiȝ, Floriz was þe brigge niȝ.

1340 Ayenbite (1866) 186 Wel ssolle we habbe reuþe..þe on of þe oþre.

c1405 (c1387–95) G. Chaucer Canterbury Tales Prol. (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 845 The sothe is this, the Cut fil to the knyght.

a1450 Seven Sages (Cambr. Dd.1.17) (1845) l. 10 The emperour and is wif Lovenden the child as hare lyf.

1530 Myroure Oure Ladye (Fawkes) (1873) ii. 140 There ys a dyfference bytwypte [read bytwyxte] an hyghe waye, and a bypathe, for the hyghe waye ys large and commune to all.

1566 W. Adlington tr. Apuleius .XI. Bks. Golden Asse vii. xxxi. She toke a great barre..and neuer ceased beatinge of me till she was so weary y^t the barre fell out of her handes.

1603 R. Knolles Gen. Hist. Turkes 120 In strugling with him for the knife,..hee hurt himselfe therewith.

1695 W. Congreve Love for Love iv. i. 65 What's the matter now?

1740 D. Hume Treat. Human Nature III. iii. 277 Means to an end are only valued so far as the end is valued.

1767 ‘A. Barton’ Disappointment i. i. 13 He brought up the wine.

1818 W. Cruise Digest Laws Eng. Real Prop. (ed. 2) V. 494 That the recovery enured to the uses of the settlement, and therefore that the purchaser had no title.

1857 Househ. Words 18 Apr. 372/1 A cat is in a cart, and the wind blows over the cat.

1902 J. Gairdner Eng. Church 16th Cent. (1903) viii. 149 He re-considered the matter.

2014 V. Bergin Rain xiv. 178 I..snatched the bottle from him.

b. Placed before pronouns and determiners. the which: see which adj. and pron. the one: see one adj., n., and pron. (cf. also tone pron. and adj.). the other: see other adj., pron., n., and adv.² (cf. also tother pron. and adj.).Pronominal the one also frequently occurs before a particularizing relative clause: cf. sense A. 13.

a. Used before a word denoting time, as the day, hour, moment: the day, hour, moment, etc., in question or under consideration; the time (now or then) present. Also (Irish English) the Christmas.In later use chiefly in idiomatic uses.the time: see time n. 5c. the while: see while n. 2.

ΚΠ

OE Wærferð tr. Gregory Dialogues (Corpus Cambr.) (1900) iv. xxxvii. 318 Þa þy dæge ne mihte nan læce beon funden, ac þy æfterfylgendan nihte þæt lic læg unbebyrged.

a1275 Doomsday (Trin. Cambr.) in C. Brown Eng. Lyrics 13th Cent. (1932) 43 Foure engles in þe dairet blouit here bemen.

c1300 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Otho) (1963) l. 843 (MED) Alle dai hii..resden to þan castle Fort him com þe niþte..In þan castle..at þe midniþt [c1275 Calig. a þa mid-niht] inomen to rede.

a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Trin. Cambr.) l. 3889 Þe while holde lya in bedde þenne shal þou rachel wedde.

c1405 (c1390) G. Chaucer Reeve's Tale (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 314 Aleyn wax wery in the dawenynge For he hadde swonken al the longe nyght.

c1540 J. Bellenden tr. Livy Hist. Rome (1903) II. v. xxiii. 227 Þe said voce was contempnit and necleckit in þe tyme.

1616 J. Lane Contin. Squire's Tale viii. 213 And, iust at thinstant, all the canons plaien From towne to Campe, from Camp to towne againe.

1780 Mirror No. 76. ⁋3 He comes there only as he does to the coffee-house, to enquire after the news of the day.

1848 C. Dickens Dombey & Son liv. 543 At the moment, the bell rang loudly in the hall.

1864 Ld. Tennyson Aylmer's Field in Enoch Arden, etc. 61 A tongue that ruled the hour.

1866 J. H. Newman Dream of Gerontius (ad fin.) And I will come and wake thee on the morrow.

1922 D. H. Lawrence Aaron's Rod (N.Y. ed.) xii. 137 Having no job for the autumn, Aaron fidgetted in London.

1927 Amer. Mercury Nov. 351/2 These things are mere fads of the hour.

1949 K. Ferrier Let. 18 May (2004) iii. 79 I pointed out they hadn't put up my fee..and got it put up on the instant!

1995 J. Murphy Brothers of Brush i. ii, in Two Plays (2001) 97 I'll give him a bit of work for the Christmas.

2015 J. Colgan Summer at Little Beach Street Bakery xx. 299 He could start at Polly's at five, do his rounds and be finished with his two jobs for the day by nine.

b. Chiefly Scottish, Irish English, and English regional (northern), and U.S. regional. Before day, morn, morrow, night used adverbially, with the force of to- in today, tomorrow, tonight: see day n. Phrases 9e, morn n. 3d, morrow n. 2c, night n. and int. Phrases 1a(c)(a). the year: this year.the streen: see β. forms at yestreen adv. and n.

ΚΠ

a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 702 Þe sun was þat time..Seuen sith brighter þen þe dai [Gött. to-day].

1572 (a1500) Taill of Rauf Coilȝear (1882) 301 Cum the morne to the Court.

1597 A. Montgomerie Cherrie & Slae sig. C^v Defferrand of the day, may not be mend the morne.

1669 Hist. Sir Eger 45 The streen to chamber I him led.

1692 ‘J. Curate’ Sc. Presbyterian Eloquence iii. 106 I have brought him to you the day.

1725 A. Ramsay Gentle Shepherd iii. iii. 48 Lets steal frae ither now and meet the Morn.

1768 A. Ross Fortunate Shepherdess i. 52 Tell me gin ye saw twa men the day, The tane wi' yellow hair, the tither gray?

1776 D. Herd Anc. & Mod. Sc. Songs (ed. 2) II. 189 I winna be married the year.

1808 W. Watson Misc. Sc. Poetry 17 A Chryston weaver canna buy Himsel' a marte the year.

1814 W. Scott Waverley II. xix. 289 But we maun a' live the day, and have our dinner.

1851 J. J. Hooper Widow Rugby's Husband 159 No, sir, I'm with me House, sir; and if any man gits more'n that out ov me the night, he'll rise betimes in the mornin'.

1895 Dial. Notes 1 394 The year, for this year. Springdale, Pa.

1896 Cosmopolitan Aug. 376/2 I'll gie him twa or three lines o' my mind the morn.

1914 Dial. Notes 4 112 The, used for to, in the day, the night, the morrow.

1945 A. Fraser Second Crop viii And my turnips, Mr Thomson, will you be seeking them the year?

1949 Scots Mag. July 287 We'll get tea the morn off the van.

1974 People's Jrnl. 29 June (Inverness & Northern Counties ed.) 9/4 Where's everybody the night, Joe?

1978 B. T. Hiser Quare Do's in Appalachia v. 27 Tell that John Bill what you've seed me do the day.

1978 B. T. Hiser Quare Do's in Appalachia viii. 43 I'm a goin to the trustees the morrow and lay a complaint.

1987 C. Reid Joyriders ii. i, in Plays: One (1997) 144 She'll be day dreamin' all day the morra.

2002 I. Welsh Porno (2003) ix. 110 Ali's been tae the hairdresser's the day and hud her hair cut shorter.

c. Used before numerals denoting years.Now only (often with ellipsis of the hundreds of a century) either in reference to certain historical events (e.g. fifteen adj. 2, forty-five n.), or in expressions denoting a particular decade of a century, or of a person's life.See further eighty adj. 2b, fifty n. 2b, forty n. 1b, nineties n., etc.

1576 A. Golding tr. Lyfe Shatilion sig. Av^v The next yeere following which was the .1554. the Emperor of Germanie Charles the fifth, & Marie Queene of England ioyning their forces togither, made sore and sharp warre vppon Henrye King of Fraunce.

1651 Remonstr. Presbyterie of Sterling 9 We remember in the 1646. or thereabouts, albeit necessitie was pleaded by the Committee of Estates, for the Capitulation with James Graham and his Adherents.

1704 Vindic. Episcopal Addr. Gen. Assembly, 1692 6 The Government of the Established Church is the very same as it was in the Nintie Two.

1724 R. Wodrow Life J. Wodrow (1828) 60 Elizabeth died..about the 1684 of a consumption.

a1776 Ld. Auchinleck in Scotch Acts (1844) I. Pref. 188 I take this Manuscript to have been wrote before the 1500, and it is clear it was not wrote before the 1455.

a1797 H. Walpole Mem. George II (1846) I. 266 A man engaged in the former rebellion or as the Scotch call it in the Fifteen.

1824 W. Scott Redgauntlet II. xi. 247 Ye have heard of a year they call the forty-five.

1880 R. Broughton Second Thoughts II. iii. iv. 157 I know that I am somewhere in the fifties, and that I was born on a Monday.

1889 R. B. Anderson tr. V. Rydberg Teutonic Mythol. 9 A series of works published in the fifties and sixties.

1904 Hist. Ottawa Collegiate Inst. 1843–1903 vi. 75 In the earliest printed constitution, undated, but evidently in the early eighties.

1953 Manch. Guardian 25 May 2/3 Until he was well into the seventies, Lord Ebbisham played cricket regularly.

1999 K. Hart Samuel Johnson & Culture of Prop. i. 11 A grisly reminder of the Forty-Five.

2013 L. Edwards In Kingdom of Sick (2014) iii. 63 Working in the corporate world in the 1980s and '90s, she witnessed an evolution in understanding of disability.

a. Before a noun denoting a thing or person that is unique or considered to be unique, or of which there is only one at a time (e.g. the sun, the earth, the sea, the sky, the air, the world, the universe, the Almighty, the Lord, the Saviour, the Devil, the Emperor, the Pope, the Net, the Web, etc.).

eOE Metres of Boethius (2009) xxvi. 6 Aulixes under hæfde ðæm casere cynericu twa.

OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: John iv. 6 Iesus ergo fatigatus ex itinere sedebat : se hælend [OE Rushw. Gospels ðe hælend] forðon uoerig uæs..of geong sittende uæs uel gesætt.

OE Ælfric De Temporibus Anni (Cambr. Gg.3.28) (2009) viii. 90 Seo sæ & se mona geðwærlæcað him betweonan.

?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 67 Þe deouel..is leas & leasunge fader.

a1250 Ureisun ure Louerde (Lamb.) in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 185 Iwend me from the worlde.

a1350 (a1250) Harrowing of Hell (Harl.) (1907) l. 228 (MED) Ich am moyses..þat hueld þe lawes þat þou byhete, þat þou ihesu..woldest to þe helle come.

a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) v. l. 1773 (MED) For be that cause the godhede Assembled was to the manhede In the virgine.

c1400 Brut (Rawl. B. 171) 33 Þe Emperoure..he..ordeynede a stronge power.

c1475 (?c1400) Apol. Lollard Doctr. (1842) 28 Bi lawe..of þe kirk,..ilk prest haþ þe same power to vse þe key in to ani man in þo poynt of deþ, as þe pope.

a1500 (?c1440) J. Lydgate Horse, Goose & Sheep (Lansd.) l. 171 in Minor Poems (1934) ii. 546 (MED) Whan wilde gees hihe in the ayer vp fleen, A pronostik o[f] snow & wedris colde.

1549 Bk. Common Prayer (STC 16270) Communion f. xxvii^v Who wyll geue thee thankes in the pyt?

1580 in Publ. Catholic Rec. Soc. (1905) 1 69 To the Tuission of Thallmightie.

1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene i. i. sig. A7^v The Sunne that measures heauen all day long.

1611 Bible (King James) Psalms xxiv. 1 The earth is the Lords, and the fulnesse thereof.

1654 R. Flecknoe Ariadne deserted by Theseus 3 Any Pow'rs Beyond this Sphere of ours, In Heav'n, or the Abyss, To punish crimes like this.

1709 J. Addison Tatler No. 119. ⁋2 While you are admiring the Sky in a Starry Night.

1757 J. H. Grose Voy. E.-Indies ii. 318 An act which..the Romish priests in those parts..attribute to the power and craft of the Devil.

1842 Ld. Tennyson Beggar Maid ii As shines the moon in clouded skies.

1931 Pittsburgh Courier 12 Dec. 6/3 We wondered why the Almighty would suffer such to be.

1995 Newsweek 31 July 8/4 For those who can't make it to the exhibits, a selection of the photos is available on the Web.

2015 BBC Focus Aug. 26/3 It seems the Universe may not end with a bang or a whimper.

b. Before a noun denoting a natural phenomenon, a season, etc. (e.g. the spring, the summer, the autumn, the winter, the day, the night; the wind, the cold, the clouds, the rain, the fog, etc.). Also: before a noun denoting any of the points of the compass (e.g. the north, the east).

OE Old Eng. Martyrol. (Julius) 7 Nov. (2013) 212 Se winter hafað tu ond hundnigontig daga.

OE Ælfric De Temporibus Anni (Cambr. Gg.3.28) (2009) x. 94 Se wind hæfð mislice naman on bocum.

a1200 MS Trin. Cambr. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 9 (MED) Ðe niht is forðgon and dai neihlecheð.

a1300 Vision St. Paul (Jesus Oxf.) l. 74 in R. Morris Old Eng. Misc. (1872) 149 (MED) Mo saulen þolieþ þer sucche wowe Þane be floþre in þe snowe.

c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Matt. ii. 2 We han seyn his sterre in the este.

a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) v. l. 5945 (MED) A nyhtingale..Which in the wynter is noght sene.

a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 3384 Þai held..þe landes þat war til-ward þe est.

c1400 (?c1380) Cleanness (1920) l. 953 Þe rayn rueled adoun, ridlande þikke.

c1450 Alphabet of Tales (1904) I. 106 Vppon a fayr day, whar þe wynde blew.

a1500 ( J. Yonge tr. Secreta Secret. (Rawl.) (1898) 142 (MED) The coldis and the hetis of the Somer and the wyntyr helpyth to the Spryngynge and the bourgynge of naturall thyngis.

?1566 W. P. tr. C. S. Curio Pasquine in Traunce f. 77^v He..is brought forth..into the sunne shyne.

1653 H. Holcroft tr. Procopius Gothick Warre iv. 135 in tr. Procopius Hist. Warres Justinian He staid till the winter was past.

1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Georgics iii, in tr. Virgil Wks. 107 They That wing the liquid Air; or swim the Sea, Or haunt the Desart.

1785 W. Cowper Task i. 749 God made the country, and man made the town.

1791 W. Cowper tr. Homer Odyssey in Iliad & Odyssey II. ix. 194 The rosy-finger'd daughter of the dawn.

1820 J. Hogg Winter Evening Tales II. 328 When the gloaming came, I began to weary.

1867 J. R. Browne Land of Thor xlli. 408 Frequent and terrible gales from the north.

1949 V. Bell Sel. Lett. (1993) 521 At first the heat was terrific and one could only walk a few yards and collapse from exhaustion.

2015 A. Jordan Edible Memory iv. 113 That summer morning, the fog was so thick I had the windshield wipers on.

†c. Before an abstract noun. See also death n. 2, life n. 7, Phrases 5a. Obsolete.

eOE King Ælfred tr. Gregory Pastoral Care (Hatton) (1871) iii. 35 On ðære gesundfulnesse mon forgiett his selfes.

OE Ælfric Lives of Saints (Julius) (1881) I. 306 Se wisdom is selra þone scinende gold.

c1225 (?c1200) St. Juliana (Royal) l. 569 (MED) Leaueð þe lease ant luuieð þe soðe.

c1330 (?a1300) Kyng Alisaunder (Auch.) (1952) l. 185 Amiramis..wan þe cite wiþ al þe honour And XV. kingriches tut entour.

a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) iv. l. 1915 (MED) The destine it hath so schape, That he schal noght the deth ascape.

a1400 in F. J. Furnivall Polit., Relig., & Love Poems (1903) 257 Ase..roust on þe knife, and ase deþ to þe life.

1490 Caxton's Blanchardyn & Eglantine (1962) xxiii. 74 So cam he toward blanchardyn..And gaff hym the goode nyght.

1490 Caxton's Blanchardyn & Eglantine (1962) xxi. 70 The prouost..cam sone toward the proude mayden in amours, and made to her the reuerence.

a1500 tr. Thomas à Kempis De Imitatione Christi (Trin. Dublin) (1893) 146 Þe pes stondiþ more in very mekenes þan in propre exaltacion.

1525 Ld. Berners tr. J. Froissart Cronycles II. ccxxiii. [ccxix.] 695 If Lamorabaquy wolde gyue them the herynge.

1588 W. Allen Admon. to Nobility & People 11 A verie fable to the posterite.

1676 M.D. tr. F. Bacon Novum Organon 6 He rejects difficult things, through impatiency of inquiry; sober things, because they confine the hope.

1848 P. Boyd tr. Bk. Ballads from German 45 How they fought for ‘the Freedom—the Right!’

4. Before a noun denoting one of a class of persons, things, events, etc., used to indicate a particular instance that is most relevant in the context.When the word denotes a person, thing, event, etc., of public importance it assumes something of the character of a proper name, and is often written with a capital letter, e.g. the Queen, the Lord Mayor, the Town, the House, the Court, the Tower, the Abbey, the River, the Channel, the Flood, the Reformation, the Revolution, the Enlightenment.In quots. OE¹, a1225² with reference to the gospel of the day at gospel n. 3.

OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 2nd Ser. (Cambr. Gg.3.28) iv. 31 Nis gecweden on ðam godspelle þæt ða wæterfatu sume heoldon twyfealde gemetu.

OE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Tiber. B.i) anno 986 Her se cyning fordyde þæt bisceoprice æt Hrofeceastre.

?a1160 Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1140 Sume helden mid te king & sume mid þemperice.

a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 3 Segged þet þe lauerd haued þar-of neode.

a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 5 Ȝe iherden er on þe godspel hu ure drihten sende his .ii. apostles.

c1300 St. Edward Elder (Laud) l. 193 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 52 Go..to Schafteburi to þe Abbesse of þe house.

c1390 King of Tars (Vernon) l. 884 in Englische Studien (1889) 11 56 Forþ wente sire Cleophas To þe court þorw godes gras.

1485 Device Coronation Henry VII in W. Jerdan Rutland Papers (1842) 22 The King and the Quene..shall retourne to their seages roiall and of estate, in the said pulpitt.

1525 Ld. Berners tr. J. Froissart Cronycles II. f. xxxiv/1 Without any busynesse or reencounter we came to the captall.

a1568 R. Ascham Scholemaster (1570) i. f. 21^v Ye great ones in y^e Court.

1621 H. Elsynge Notes Deb. House of Lords (1870) 16 To make his answere here at the barre.

a1684 J. Evelyn Diary anno 1666 (1955) III. 463 The Queene was..in her Cavaliers riding habite.

1689 N. Luttrell Diary in Brief Hist. Relation State Affairs (1857) I. 557 The house of commons..ordered..that the then judges should attend the house.

1751 Impartial Relation Late Parish Trans. ix. 98 A Scotch Highland Bag-piper was procur'd..on Easter-Monday, the Day before the Election.

1779 Lady's Mag. Oct. 507/2 After tea she asked me if I liked a walk to the wood, to which I very readily assented.

1837 F. Palgrave Merchant & Friar (1844) Ded. 1 Any bibliopolist, in or out of the Row.

1845 B. Disraeli Sybil II. iv. i. 145 ‘Are you going down to the house, Egerton?’ inquired Mr. Berners at Brookes' of a brother M.P.

1875 Ld. Tennyson Queen Mary i. i. 4 He swears by the Rood.

1904 V. Bell Sel. Lett. (1993) 12 It does seem ages since I saw you off at the station.

1959 Irish Times 3 Nov. 1/3 Wendy..was turned away by the headmaster because she was wearing high-heeled shoes.

1991 Shooting Times 18 Apr. 6/1 The government has encouraged Britain's farmers to consider shooting and other fieldsports as a potential source of income.

2013 L. Moriarty Husband's Secret 326 Just go to the shop, Mum, and get some butter.

5. Before proper names.

a. Before the names of geographical entities, frequently with ellipsis of a word modified by the name (as river, mountains, islands, etc.): (a) rivers (e.g. the Missouri, the Nile, the Severn); (b) mountain ranges (e.g. the Andes, the Drakensberg, the Hindu Kush); (c) groups of islands (in the plural) (e.g. the Azores, the Hebrides); (d) certain countries (e.g. the Argentine (now archaic), The Gambia); (e) regions (e.g. the Camargue, the Tyrol, the Sahara); (f) (Irish English) counties (e.g. the County Cavan); (g) certain topographical features, especially some mountains (e.g. the Jungfrau, the Matterhorn, the Lizard); (h) streets (e.g. the High Street, the Banbury Road, or with ellipsis the High); (i) numbers denoting major roads (e.g. (North American) the 401, (British) the M1, the A34).Many proper names occur in variants with and without the, and practice has varied considerably over time. In particular, use with country names has declined considerably; for instance, the Ukraine was once common but is now widely considered nonstandard.Some particular names in these categories occur rarely if at all with the (e.g. mountain names with the are today confined largely to the names of major mountains in the Alps).

OE Acct. Voy. Ohthere & Wulfstan in tr. Orosius Hist. (Tiber.) (1980) i. i. 16 Seo Wisle is swyðe mycel ea, & hio tolið Witland & Weonodland..; & seo Wisle lið ut of Weonodlande.

lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) anno 1099 Willelm..ofer sæ for & þone eorl Elias of þære Manige [i.e. Maine] adraf.

a1250 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Nero) (1952) 149 (MED) Tet folc of israel wende þuruhut þe reade see.

c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) l. 4740 Wippe was king of þe march & adelfred of humberlond.

a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1872) IV. 207 (MED) Iulius come to þe Capitoil, and was i-stiked þoruȝ, and hadde þre and twenty woundes, and deyde.

a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 4778 Iacob yode walcand be þe nile.

a1439 J. Lydgate Fall of Princes (Bodl. 263) vi. l. 2880 (MED) This marcial prince..Passyng the Alpies rood thoruh Germanye.

a1500 in C. Brown Relig. Lyrics 15th Cent. (1939) 201 Prynce of knythode throwoute the grete breteyne..Holy seynt Albon, thou settest but in veyne Al worldly pomp.

1555 R. Eden Two Viages into Guinea in tr. Peter Martyr of Angleria Decades of Newe Worlde f. 350^v We had syght of Teneriffa and of the Canaries.

1573 H. W. in G. Gascoigne Hundreth Sundrie Flowres 202 From my lodging nere the Strande the xx. of Ianuary.

1632 P. Massinger & N. Field Fatall Dowry ii. sig. D3^v I would they were the Burmudas.

1653 H. Holcroft tr. Procopius Gothick Warre ii. 43 in tr. Procopius Hist. Warres Justinian When the Vesuvius casts out cynders.

1762 Ann. Reg. 1761 Characters 52/1 The Devizes.

1785 W. Cowper Task iii. 583 Th' Azores send Their jessamine.

1814 W. Scott Waverley II. xvii. 250 The travellers now..reached the Torwood.

1822 W. Scott Fortunes of Nigel I. x. 265 I should like to see the broad Tay once more before I die—not even the Thames can match it, in my mind.

1845 J. C. Prichard Nat. Hist. Man (ed. 2) 467 The Tupi, or native inhabitants of the Brazils.

1853 ‘C. Bede’ Adventures Mr. Verdant Green x. 88 He at once sallied forth to ‘do the High’, and display his new purchases.

1855 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. IV. xviii. 119 From the Land's End to the Straits of Dover.

1863 R. Young Poet. Wks. 120 (note) Thomas White, ancestor of the Redhill family in the County Cavan.

1920 G. Bell Let. 14 Mar. (1927) II. xviii. 484 The afternoon's news..that Faisal had been crowned King of Syria and Abdullah King of the Iraq.

1951 Duke of Windsor King's Story xii. 209 Britain had an investment of £400,000,000 in the Argentine.

1959 Chambers's Encycl. VIII. 431/2 In internal affairs the Lebanon had to face considerable economic and financial difficulties after the end of the 1939–45 war.

1971 Globe & Mail (Toronto) 24 July 18/2 Sunday afternoon on the 401.

1974 J. I. M. Stewart Gaudy xii. 228 I had crossed Broad Street and was walking down the Turl.

1981 Church Times 6 Nov. 14/5 The Hoopoo had nested in his walls when he was in the Yemen.

1984 Times 18 Feb. 1/2 Princess Anne's four-day visit to The Gambia brings an extra air of festivity and importance to a tiny African country.

1987 B. MacLaverty Great Profundo (1989) 137 Mr Keogh from the County Mayo sounds better.

1987 A. Fugard Master Harold & Boys in Port Elizabeth Plays (2000) 19 Repeat after me, Sam: Gold in the Transvaal, mealies in the Free State, sugar in Natal and grapes in the Cape.

2012 S. T. Rosenblum Herself when she's Missing 92 Andrea glides from the 405 to the 101 before she grasps where she's going.

2013 T. Cope On Trail of Genghis Khan xvi. 277 I spent a week riding from Astrakhan south along the banks of the Volga.

b. Before the names of literary or musical compositions, such as plays, poems, anthems, etc., works of art, such as paintings and sculptures, and newspapers and periodicals.

ΚΠ

OE Ælfric Let. to Wulfsige (Corpus Cambr.) in B. Fehr Die Hirtenbriefe Ælfrics (1914) 15 Se mæssepreost sceal secgan..þæs godspelles angyt on englisc þam folce. And be þam pater nostre and be þam credan eac.

OE Wærferð tr. Gregory Dialogues (Corpus Cambr.) (1900) i. Pref. 8 Marcus & Lucas writon þæt godspel nalæs þæt hi hit gesawon, ac hi hit geleornodon.

?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 19 Þus..ed þe beginnunge of þe venite.

?a1400 (a1338) R. Mannyng Chron. (Petyt) (1996) i. l. 58 One mayster Wace þe ffrankes telles þe Brute, alle þat þe Latyn spelles.

a1450 (c1405) On translating Bible (Trin. Cambr.) in Medium Ævum (1938) 7 174 (MED) Venerabile Bede..translatid þe Bibel or a grete parte of þe Bibile, wos originals ben in many abbeis in Englond.

1587 A. Golding tr. Solinus Worthie Work xxviii. sig. O.ii^v Y^e Ile of the Apollonits..from whence Marcus Lucullus brought vnto vs the Apollo of the Capitoll.

1667 Answer Company of Royal Adventurers of Eng. 18 They had taken care to make the Dutch rejoyce at the Ruine of the Royal Company, which is expressed in the Harlem Gazett of the 30th. of October.

1693 J. Evelyn Diary (1955) V. 147 I..saw & indeede admired the Venus of Coreggio.

1705 J. Addison Remarks Italy 349 I have seen on coins..the Hercules Farnese, the Venus of Medicis, the Apollo in the Belvidere, and the famous Marcus Aurelius on Horseback.

1780 Mirror No. 99. (1781) III. 232 The Orestes of the Greek poet.

a1831 Encycl. Metrop. (1845) IX. 408 The Apollo Belvidere, the Venus de Medicis, and the Laocoon, have for ages been regarded as the highest possible models of excellence.

1845 P. H. Gosse Ocean (1849) iv. 159 Plato, in the Timæus, gives the fullest account.

1925 Irish Times 2 Jan. 9/4 The Marseillaise alone was played when the teams came on the ground.

1984 Times 13 Sept. 13/4 Difficult to think of an art theft with greater sex appeal than that of the Mona Lisa.

2001 M. Billingham Sleepyhead 167 I wouldn't like to see myself splashed across the front page of the Sun.

c. Before personal names and titles.

(a) Before surnames (e.g. the Bruce, the Mortimer). Frequently following a first name (cf. sense A. 15b(a)). Now archaic except when following a first name.the Magdalene: see Magdalene n. 1a. [In some instances apparently a substitution for Anglo-Norman and Old French, Middle French de de prep. in names (compare de prep. 8). Compare occasional similar use of le in Anglo-Norman (in some cases perhaps intended to denote specifically the head of a particular family).]

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c1300 St. Mary Magdalen (Laud) l. 18 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 462 Heo was icleoped in propre name ‘þe Maudeleyne’.

c1300 St. Thomas Becket (Laud) l. 1797 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 158 At douere were kniȝtes ȝare..Sire Reinaud of wareygne and sire Randolf þe brok.

c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) l. 11134 Sir Roger þe Mortimer.

a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1882) VIII. 311 Among alle þese two lordes þe [a1425 Harl. de] Mortymer took hastiliche citees in þe marches.

c1450 (c1430) Brut (Galba) (1908) 427 The Erle of Somersette and his brothir, and the Fytz-Watir.

1489 (a1380) J. Barbour Bruce (Adv.) i. 67 That..Robert the Brwys erle of Carryk Aucht to succeid to the kynryk.

1570 G. Fenton tr. J. de Serres Disc. Ciuile Warres Fraunce ii. 69 The Montgomery..sommoned the sayd ten Cornets of horsemen to bee before him at Pons.

a1616 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 1 (1623) iii. vii. 37 Charles. A Parley with the Duke of Burgonie. Burg. Who craues a Parley with the Burgonie?

1793 C. Reeve Mem. Sir Roger de Clarendon II. 236 Glory for us; honour for the Montfort; Bretagne for the Montfort.

1815 W. Scott Lord of Isles iii. xxvii. 110 As heroes think, so thought the Bruce.

1888 E. S. Holt In Convent Walls i. ii. 52 Was it—Sir Roger the Mortimer of Ludlow?

1991 J. Kirkup Poet could not but be Gay (BNC) 199 Titian's Christ Appearing to the Magdalen.

2013 L. Porter Tudors versus Stewarts p. ix Mary Queen of Scots is the only Scottish ruler they have heard of, with the possible exception of Robert the Bruce.

(b) Before the surnames of some Irish and Scottish chiefs of clans (e.g. the Chisholm, the MacNab, the O'Gorman Mahon).Probably a local use of sense A. 5c(a). According to Sc. Hist. Rev. (1913) 10 46: ‘In early times, and down to the close of the seventeenth century, the heads of Scottish families bearing Lowland or at least territorial surnames were occasionally, if not frequently, distinguished from others of their kindred by the distinctive epithet “the”... In the nineteenth century the form was imitated by the Highland Chiefs,.. and in the present day “the” has come to be regarded, popularly at least, as the normal epithet to apply to the surname of a Scottish or Irish chieftain which happens to be a patronymic beginning with Mac or O'.’

1488 (c1478) Hary Actis & Deidis Schir William Wallace (Adv.) (1968–9) viii. l. 750 With him the Boid that gud Iornays had maid.

c1540 J. Bellenden tr. H. Boece Hyst. & Cron. Scotl. xv. i. f. ccxviii^v/2 The Dowglas to make his manheid..patent in all partis quhare he come, went to the kyng of Aragon, and faucht in his support at sindry ieoperdyis.

1561 Inverness Sheriff Court Rec. II. 15 Apr. (MS.) [Sederunt] the Dollace of Cantray.

1562 Inverness Sheriff Court Rec. II. 7 Apr. The jugis hes consignit hir to produce the samyn and to wairne the Dollace upon ane xv dayis warning.

1690 T. S. Hist. Affaires Scotl. 213 Several Partys of the Rebels designed to Rendevouze about the Castle of Erchless, belonging to the Chisholm of Strathglass.

1767 F. Warner Hist. Rebellion & Civil-war Ireland ii. 106 He caused his proclamations to be made in the name of the O Neil.

1847 W. M. Thackeray Mrs. Perkins's Ball i. 4 I became acquainted with the Mulligan through a distinguished countryman..who..did not know the chieftain himself.

1880 A. M. Shaw Mackintoshes p. xxvii Moy Hall, the residence of The Mackintosh.

1910 Daily Chron. 1 Feb. 4/6 Three ‘Thes’ have sat in the House of Commons in our time—The O'Conor Don, The O'Donoghue of the Glens, and The O'Gorman Mahon. The MacDermott, K.C.,..was an Irish law officer in Liberal Governments.

1938 W. B. Yeats New Poems 27 Sing of the O'Rahilly,..Sing a ‘the’ before his name.

2007 T. Waters Persistence of Subsistence Agric. iii. 86 The clan leader, the MacLeod of MacLeod..bankrupted himself in the late 1830s and left the island.

(c) Originally: before the names of well-known singers, actors, etc., in imitation of French and Italian usage. Later also more generally (slang and sometimes derogatory) before a woman's surname or nickname. Cf. La adj.

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society > society and the community > social class > nobility > title > title or form of address for persons of rank > [noun] > for woman of rank > prefixed to name

dam1297

damec1305

madama1375

madame1617

the1730

La1869

1730 O. Swiny Let. 29 July in R. B. Peake Mem. Colman Family (1841) I. 18 If he does not, then we must provide a soprano man, and a contr' alto woman, (though the Merighi stays).

1786 A. M. Bennett Juvenile Indiscretions V. 32 The Siddons.

1796 Publ. Advert. 18 Nov. in T. Campbell Life Mrs. Siddons (1834) II. viii. 201 Last night the Siddons and the Kemble, at Drury Lane, acted to vacancy.

1822 in Byron's Wks. (1846) 585/1 The Guiccioli was present.

1845 B. Disraeli Sybil III. v. vii. 92 Well, what do you think of the Dashville, Fitz?

1922 Dial. Notes 5 143 [At] Somerville..‘The Pen’ is the Lady Principal, Miss Penrose, ‘The Darb’, Miss Derbyshire, etc.

1930 P. G. Wodehouse Very Good, Jeeves iv. 96 The Bellinger..had sung us a few songs before digging in at the trough.

1973 P. G. Wodehouse Bachelors Anonymous xii. 155 The Fitch was at the hair stylist's having a permanent.

2016 Student Printz (Univ. Southern Mississippi) (Nexis) 5 May 1 The look..was truly something only the Madge herself could pull off.

d. Before the names of taverns, theatres, and other prominent or well-known buildings.

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c1405 (c1387–95) G. Chaucer Canterbury Tales Prol. (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 20 In Southwerk at the Tabard as I lay Redy to weenden on my pilgrymage.

a1500 Warkworth's Chron. (1839) 13 Casten in presone in the Marchalse at Londone.

1509 Sale of Rights in Inn (Brasenose Coll. Oxf. Archives) (Hurst Cal. of Munim. 29, Wycombe 9) One Tenement or Mansion called the Lyon.

a1616 F. Beaumont Let. to B. Jonson in F. Beaumont & J. Fletcher Comedies & Trag. (1647) sig. Xxx4 What things have we seen Done at the Mermaid!

1710 J. Swift Jrnl. to Stella 15 Oct. (1948) I. 60 Prior and I..sat at the Smyrna till eleven.

1779 Mirror No. 32. ⁋5 Stopping at the George on his way home.

1838 Actors by Daylight 20 Oct. 271 Miss Julian, who has been successfully playing at Astley's during the present season, will immediately on its closing join the Garrick.

1905 Daily Chron. 24 Oct. 3/4 (heading) Playlet at the Coliseum.

1943 Observer 7 Mar. 2/5 An interesting exhibition of works by modern painters at the Ashmolean in Oxford.

2014 C. Bramley Conditional Love ii. 18 Lunch was two pints in the Nag's Head.

e. Before the names of ships.

1450 W. Lomnor in Paston Lett. & Papers (2004) II. 35 He was yn the Nicolas tyl Saturday next folwyng.

a1509 in Hist. MSS Comm.: Rep. MSS Var. Coll. (1907) IV. 87 in Parl. Papers 1906 (Cd. 3218) LXIV. 1 A vessaill called the Mighell of Brykelsey.

1521 Will of John Berryff in Essex Rev. (1904) 13 221 Out of the Barbara and the Mayflower, if God send them well home.

1652 Faithful Scout No. 64. 499 The Royal Soveraign is taken one Deck lower, and is now putting forth to Sea.

1779 Scots Mag. Feb. 92/1 The signal for coming into the Victory's wake was flying from three o' clock in the afternoon till eight in the evening unobeyed.

1805 in Ld. Nelson Dispatches & Lett. (1846) VII. 168 (note) The Santa Anna rolled over all her lower masts.

1872 G. W. Rusden Discov. Port Phillip 43 Fawkner put off from George Town in the Enterprise, intending to go to Western Port.

1938 N.Y. Times 1 May 32/5 Britain's new super-carrier, the Ark Royal, which is starting her trials next week.

2000 C. Hibbert Queen Victoria (new ed.) i. v. 37 The royal party..were sailing in the Emerald, tender of the royal yacht, the Royal George.

6. With names of languages. Now chiefly Scottish and Irish English, except in elliptical use (e.g. from the German = ‘from the German language or from the German original’) or in the construction the—for—is ‘the equivalent for—in the—language is’ (e.g. the French for house is maison).

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OE Ælfric Lives of Saints (Julius) (1900) II. 220 Sulpicius..wrat þa be him [sc. Martinus] þa ðing þe he ofaxode..and we þæt englisc nimað of þære ylcan gesetnysse.

c1330 Lai le Freine in Smith Coll. Stud. Mod. Langs. (1929) 10 iii. 7 (MED) Þe Freyns of ‘þe asche’ is a freyn after þe language of Breteyn.

a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add. 27944) (1975) II. xvii. clxxvii. 1069 Þe latyne for picchynge of sowiles for traylynge is paxillare.

a1400 (c1303) R. Mannyng Handlyng Synne (Harl.) l. 1365 Of holy wryt, þe englysh y toke.

a1464 J. Capgrave Abbreuiacion of Cron. (Cambr. Gg.4.12) (1983) 123 Trecente marce..This is þe Englisch: Thre hundred mark.

1593 T. Nashe Strange Newes in Wks. (Grosart) II. 263 To borrowe some lesser quarry of elocution from the Latine.

1600 W. Shakespeare Merchant of Venice i. ii. 68 You will..sweare that I haue a poore pennie-worth in the English.

1728 E. Chambers Cycl. (at cited word) Their publick officers, as Notaries, Lawyers, Judges, and chief Magistrates, write and speak the Mandarin.

1760 C. Allen Polite Lady xi. 28 Let not your studying the French make you neglect the English.

1782 W. Shaw Enquiry Authenticity Poems Ossian 14 The Earse dialect of the Gaelic was never written nor printed until Mr. Macfarlane..published, in 1754, a translation of Baxter's Call to the Unconverted.

1797 R. Southey Lett. from Spain xxii. 369 Every advantage that..a complete knowledge of the Arabic could afford.

1818 W. Cobbett Gram. Eng. Lang. xix. § 255 It is the same word, you see, in both instances; but you will see it different in the French.

1835 Belfast News Let. 23 Jan. There will be an evening class in the Irish for those whose occupations may not admit of their attending during the day.

1865 Dublin Rev. July 73 It admits of no doubt that the Gaelic is withering away.

1877 Month Nov. 302 A new translation directly from the Hebrew.

1922 G. K. Chesterton Eugenics & Other Evils i. i. 11 I am content to answer that ‘chivalrous’ is not the French for ‘horsy’.

1934 Webster's New Internat. Dict. Eng. Lang. p. lxxxii/1 The modern descendants of the Latin are called the Romance languages. They include the Italian, the Spanish, the Portuguese [etc.].

1962 S. Ennis tr. P. Sayers Old Woman's Refl. xv. 109 Don't be surprised..at the Gaelic being so fluent with me, because my mother had it and she never hid it from me.

a1965 B. Higgins Northern Fiddler (1966) 34 ‘I'm corrupt’ he said to me in the French, ‘I think I live in corruption's stench.’

1985 J. McGahern in D. Bolger Picador Bk. Contemp. Irish Fiction (1994) 77 I was never much good at the Irish, but I was a terror at the maths, especially the Euclid.

2012 N.Y. Times 13 Dec. a35/2 This essay was translated from the Chinese by Yaxue Cao.

a. With terms for diseases, ailments, etc.Now less common than forms without the definite article except with colloquial and slang terms (e.g. the flu, the clap) and in regional use.

eOE Bald's Leechbk. (Royal) (1865) ii. lvi. 278 Sio utsihtadl cymð manegum ærest of to miclum utgange.

c1300 St. James Great (Laud) l. 118 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 37 Ane Man he helde of þe palasie.

a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add. 27944) (1975) II. xvii. cxxxiii. 1027 Smylle of leek..heleþ the kynges yuel and þe dropesye.

a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 11819 In his heued he has þe scall, þe scab ouer-gas his bodi all.

c1475 ( Surg. Treat. in MS Wellcome 564 f. 113 (MED) Þe poudre maad of stercus humani & brent salt mortifieþ þe Cankre and Noli me tangere.

a1513 W. Dunbar Poems (1998) I. 117 Quhill that thai gatt the Spanȝie pockis.

1520 Chron. Eng. vii. f. 127^v/1 Also that tyme a sekenes that men call the pockes slewe bothe men and women thrugh theyr infectynge.

1660 J. Gauden Mem. Bp. Brounrigg 225 Sharp fits of the stone.

a1678 Countess of Warwick Autobiogr. (1848) 9 I..fell..ill of the measles.

1709 Tatler No. 82. The old Man..was laid up with the Gout at London.

1743 H. Mann Let 12 Feb. in J. Doran ‘Mann’ & Manners at Court of Florence (1876) I. vi. 144 Everybody [in Rome] is ill of the Influenza, and many die.

1787 J. Beattie Scoticisms 91 He has got the cold, the fever.

1801 Ld. Nelson Let. 5 June in Dispatches & Lett. (1845) IV. 403 Sir Thomas Graves is still very ill..In the St. George we have got the Influenza.

1809 R. Southey Let. 23 Apr. in C. C. Southey Life & Corr. R. Southey (1850) III. 228 I instantly recognised the sound of the croup.

1883 G. W. Peck Mirth for Million 360 You have got to be darn careful when you have the mumps,..or you will have your neck swell up biggern a milk pail.

1908 Lone Hand (Sydney) Mar. 571/2 It was the first and last time I had the earache. Next day I was noticeably deaf.

1951 J. Jones From Here to Eternity xlii. 644 As a deepsea sailor Jack Malloy had had the clap six times—‘The syph never, knock on wood.’

1972 Time 17 Apr. 41/2 Shortly before he was scheduled to make his first space flight aboard Apollo 13 two years ago, the longtime bachelor..was accidentally exposed to the German measles.

1996 F. McCourt Angela's Ashes i. 61 This is the capital city of the weak chest and the weak chest leads to the consumption.

2015 S. G. Browne Less than Hero xiii. 108 His lips look thin and colorless, and he appears to have come down with the flu.

b. With plural nouns used as colloquial or humorous names of afflictions.the blues, the collywobbles, the creeps, the D.T.'s, the gapes, the giggles, the habdabs, the heebie-jeebies, the hyps, the jitters, the runs, the shakes, the slows, the willies, etc.: see the noun.

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1664 C. Cotton Scarronides 15 It bounces, foams, and froths, and flitters, As it were troubled with the squitters.

1710 J. Swift in J. Swift & R. Steele Tatler No. 230 Will Hazzard has got the Hipps, having lost to the Tune of Five Hundr'd Pound.

1881 Academy 15 Oct. 289/3 There is much humour—here and there, however, tending to degenerate into ‘a fit of the giggles’.

1885 Punch 3 Jan. 4/1 You'll be thinking I've got the blue-mouldies, old man.

1928 J. Galsworthy Swan Song ii. iv, in Mod. Comedy (1929) 633 She makes very good coffee, Michael—nothing like it for the grumps.

1976 Publishers Weekly 11 Oct. 90/3 The case of the ‘cutes’ infecting text and pictures.

1991 Hair Flair Jan. 56/2 Dry hair: what to do if you've got the frizzies.

2004 C. Bouchez Your Perfectly Pampered Pregnancy iv. 111 Your first trimester can find you battling a severe case of the ‘greasies,’ as hair suddenly gets oilier than ever before.

a. With the effect of a possessive adjective, before a noun denoting any part of the body of a person previously named or indicated (e.g. she took him by the hand, i.e. ‘by his hand’). Similarly with heart, soul, used figuratively (cf. sense A. 19c), and with articles of dress.

OE tr. Vindicta Salvatoris (Cambr. Univ. Libr.) in J. E. Cross Two Old Eng. Apocrypha (1996) 291 Titus and Vespasianus..þa Iudeas ahengon, þa fet up and þæt heafod adun.

?a1160 Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1137 Me henged up bi the fet... Me henged bi the þumbes other bi the hefed.

a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 41 (MED) He him sceawede þe wrecche saulen a-honge, summe bi þa fet..summe bi þe eȝen.

a1250 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Nero) (1952) 8 (MED) Makieð..a large creoiz mit þe þreo vingres vrom abuue þe vorheaued dun to þe breoste.

c1300 St. Edmund Rich (Harl.) l. 212 in C. D'Evelyn & A. J. Mill S. Eng. Legendary (1956) 499 Seint Edmund he nom bi þe hond & his pameri drouȝ.

a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) v. l. 2575 That love..Ne schal noght take hem be the slieve.

c1400 (?a1300) Kyng Alisaunder (Laud) (1952) l. 2277 Fulbor he smoot vpon þe rygge.

a1470 T. Malory Morte Darthur (Winch. Coll. 13) (1990) I. 283 Launcelot..toke hym on the hede, that downe he felle in a sowghe to the grounde.

a1500 (a1460) Towneley Plays (1994) I. xxiv. 313 I shall knap hym on the crowne That standys in my gate.

1540 J. Palsgrave tr. G. Gnapheus Comedye of Acolastus ii. iii. sig. M From the hed to the ankles thou art faire.

a1592 R. Greene Mamillia (1593) ii. sig. H^v Ruffes of a Syse, stiffe starcht to the necke.

1615 G. Markham Countrey Contentments i. i. 31 The Hare..though the beast be little, yet are the members worth inioyment, as the flesh, which is good for all manner of fluxes, the braines [etc.].

a1616 W. Shakespeare Comedy of Errors (1623) ii. ii. 207 To put the finger in the eie and weepe.

1669 S. Lee Contempl. Mortality 33 'Twill gawl him to the heart.

1782 F. Burney Cecilia II. iv. i. 134 He says something so sorrowful that it cuts us to the soul!

1789 H. L. Piozzi Observ. Journey France I. 306 Heavy lace robbins ending at the elbow.

1838 C. Dickens Oliver Twist III. l. 295 To be hanged by the neck till he was dead.

1847 Ld. Tennyson Princess vii. 153 Pale was the perfect face;..And the voice trembled and the hand.

1932 Manch. Guardian 10 Mar. 16/5 Reynolds..caught him by the shirt collar and threatened to kill him.

1972 Oxf. Bk. Vertebr. 152/1 Shetland Pony... In winter the coat is of long hair.

2015 L. Chapman Accidentally Evil ii. 11 The door..swings open and smacks me right in the face.

b. colloquial. With a noun denoting a person in a familiar (esp. family or working) relationship with the speaker or person addressed (e.g. the wife, the boss), equivalent to ‘my’ or ‘your’.

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1816 W. Scott Antiquary I. xv. 326 It's like we maun wait then till the gudeman comes hame.

1838 J. M. Wilson Hist. Tales Borders No. 210 (1839) V. 9/1 What shall I say to the wife?

1843 Bentley's Misc. Feb. 122 Wouldn't the guv'nor swear neither if he know'd it!

1846 W. Cross Disruption ii. 12 Everybody aboot the hoose kens o' the muirburn that the mistress raised on you yestreen for takin' up wi' Miss Migummery.

1853 ‘C. Bede’ Adventures Mr. Verdant Green vii. 62 ‘It's a long while since the governor was here..,’ remarked Mr. Charles Larkyns, very unfilially.

1888 J. Payn Myst. Mirbridge xxvii The Mater will do anything for me.

1891 S. J. Duncan Amer. Girl in London 82 The mother and sisters would like to call upon you.

1900 G. Swift Somerley 126 The pater will say I'm a fool, the mater'll say the girl isn't good enough for me.

1901 W. Churchill Richard Carvel xliv [I] sent off an express to Patty and the Mother last night.

1913 Sat. Evening Post (Philadelphia) 22 Feb. 13/1 I'd tried to touch the old man—the boss—for an advance.

1941 Manch. Guardian 29 Jan. 10/1 Me and the missis had a proper row.

1995 C. Bateman Divorcing Jack vi. 61 ‘That's some fuckin' crap you write in the paper.’ ‘Thanks.’ ‘Mind you, the husband loves it.’

1998 T. P. Dolan Dict. Hiberno-Eng. (1999) 270/1 The grandfather (i.e. my grandfather) will be expecting me for my tea.

2001 D. Marcus Oughtobiography xvii. 136 Anyway, the wife would have had my balls for buttons.

2015 Kwani? 8 236 Yeah man, it's Friday. I waited for the boss to go to the toilet and whoosh I was gone.

c. Before own adj. 2b and self n. 1a.

9. With terms for branches of learning, arts, crafts, games, and pursuits. Now regional.

ΚΠ

OE Byrhtferð Enchiridion (Ashm.) (1995) iii. iii. 162 On þam boccræfte fela hiw synd amearcode, þa synd on Lyden figure geciged.

c1330 (?a1300) Richard Coer de Lyon (Auch.) l. 2184 in Medium Ævum (1949) 18 6 Þai..fond king richard pleye At þe ches in his galaye.

c1390 (?c1350) St. Augustine l. 706 in C. Horstmann Sammlung Altengl. Legenden (1878) 73 (MED) Þere he accuseþ him self at al Hou he pleyed at þe bal.

c1400 (?a1300) Kyng Alisaunder (Laud) (1952) l. 3293 (MED) Þe ribaude plaieþ at þe dys; Swiþe selde þe fole is wys.

a1470 T. Malory Morte Darthur (Winch. Coll. 13) (1990) II. 493 On a day kynge Marke played at the chesse.

a1500 (a1460) Towneley Plays (1994) I. xxiv. 319 That is a gam all the best, bi hym that me boght, For at the dysyng he dos vs no wrang.

1561 H. Bennet tr. P. Melanchthon Hyst. Lyfe & Actes M. Luther in Famous & Godly Hist. Three Reformers sig. B.ii^v He studied foure yeares vnder one Scholemayster, who taught hym the Grammer more promptly and luckely, then any other.

1598 F. Meres Palladis Tamia f. 273^v Manie think themselues so ingenious, that they neither regard philosophy, nor Logicke, nor the phisickes.

a1616 W. Shakespeare Taming of Shrew (1623) i. i. 37 The Mathematickes, and the Metaphysickes Fall to them.

1653 T. Urquhart tr. F. Rabelais 1st Bk. Wks. xi. 80 It would make us play the better at the tennis and the baloon.

1739 Ld. Chesterfield Let. 20 Nov. (1932) (modernized text) II. 396 As you are now reading the Roman history.

1786 J. Pinkerton Anc. Sc. Poems II. 428 Shooting at buts, and the football, were..the genteel diversions of the time.

1824 L. L. Cameron Pink Tippet iv. 22 What was the use of my getting you taught the dress-making?

1834 N.-Y. Mirror 1 Mar. 276/1 Their familiarity with the arithmetic may have the effect of expanding the imaginative faculty.

1887 Wellington (Somerset) Weekly News 3 Feb. in Eng. Dial. Dict. Apprentices and improvers wanted to the millinery, to the dressmaking, to the currying.

1901 Union Mag. Apr. 150/1 I wad raither hae seen ye at the joinerin' like masel'.

1930 N. Shepherd Weatherhouse (2010) iv. 43 His heart was never in the joinering.

1955 W. P. Milne Eppie Elrick v. 52 He lecters upo fat 'ey caa the Mathematicks.

1985 J. McGahern in D. Bolger Picador Bk. Contemp. Irish Fiction (1994) 77 I was never much good at the Irish, but I was a terror at the maths, especially the Euclid.

1998 I. Welsh Filth 4 It's like the fitba, you have to time your runs.

2016 S. Connolly Turn for Bad vii. 62 Those young men decided to give up the fishin' and go another way, after seein' what was comin'.

10. Before terms for weights and measures, in stating a rate.

a. With prepositions by, in, †on, to. Now especially with reference to time, e.g. (so much) by the day ‘(so much) each day’.

c1350 Nominale (Cambr. Ee.4.20) in Trans. Philol. Soc. (1906) 7* M. selluth wax by the pounde.

a1399 in W. G. Benham Oath Bk. Colchester (1907) 8 (MED) A bale of Pepyr and..merchandyse of sotit [read sotil] were that is sold by the li.

1439 in F. B. Bickley Little Red Bk. Bristol (1900) II. 154 Whanne a strange man of the seid Crafte schal come to the toune for to go vpon his passage for to wirche by the day or by the weke with eny maister.

1477–9 in H. Littlehales Medieval Rec. London City Church (1905) 79 Paid to Sir Iohn Colyns..at viij s. iiij d. by the quarter.

a1500 Tracts Eng. Weights & Meas. 17 in Camden Misc. (1929) XV Elys be sold by the stike, that ys xxv elys.

1531 W. Tyndale Answere Mores Dialoge f. lxxxv I finde in all ages that men..haue sofred deeth by the hundred thousandes in resistynge their doctrine.

1533 in J. B. Paul Accts. Treasurer Scotl. (1905) VI. 151 To Thomas Scott passing in Ingland with writtingis and credence to the King..to him on the day iij li.

1569 R. Grafton Chron. II. 373 A hundreth thousande Frankes, thirtie tymes tolde..which of English money was CCC.xxxiij. thousand .CCC.xxxiij. pounde .vj. shillinges .viij. pence, after ix. Franckes to the pound.

1623 W. Shakespeare & J. Fletcher Henry VIII v. iii. 31 What should you doe, But knock 'em downe by th' dozens?

1632 W. Lithgow Totall Disc. Trav. vi. 298 The Dromidory..will ride aboue 80 miles in the day.

1687 A. Lovell tr. J. de Thévenot Trav. into Levant ii. i. iv. 17 Cloath is sold there by the Pick.

1727 A. Pope et al. Περι Βαθους: Art of Sinking 75 in J. Swift et al. Misc.: Last Vol. It may be..let out by the Day.

1730 A. Bedford Script. Chronol. v. iv. 564/2 The Value hereof, at four Pounds to the Ounce, or 48 l. to the Pound, will be as followeth.

1847 C. Dickens Dombey & Son (1848) xxxix. 386 He would sit and avail himself of its accommodations..by the half-hour together.

1851 H. Mayhew London Labour II. 284/2 The sherds run about 250 pieces to the bushel.

1884 Law Rep.: Queen's Bench Div. 12 206 Etymologically considered, a journeyman is one who is employed by the day.

1922 M. A. Souder Notions Merchandise Manual Ser. xi. 85 Whalebone, sold by the yard, used for boning waists and girdles.

1939 E. Gardner Short-time Camps 23 Several of the States do not sell candy at all but include it as a part of the dessert two or three times in the week.

1972 H. Heckman Island Year 107 Daffodils by the hundreds spilled golden blossoms in ragged lines.

1973 Times 30 Oct. 4/1 A new three-wheel car..for which an average fuel consumption of 50 miles to the gallon is claimed.

2014 C. Barslund tr. J. Nesbo Son 416 The small hotel..rented out rooms by the hour.

b. Without a preposition (e.g. (so much) the pound, gallon, yard, day, etc.). Cf. a adj. 4, per prep. 1.

ΘΠ

the world > relative properties > kind or sort > individual character or quality > [adjective] > each

eachOE

aa1200

the1426

1426–7 in H. Littlehales Medieval Rec. London City Church (1905) 65 iiij^c hert latthe, pris þe hondrid, vij d..ij^ml traunsum, þe m^l x d.

1489–90 Rolls of Parl.: Henry VII (Electronic ed.) Parl. Jan. 1489 §51. m. 14 Sold for .iij.li. sterling the pack.

1551–2 Act 5 & 6 Edward VI c. 6 §1 in Statutes of Realm (1963) IV. i. 136 That all colored Clothes..shall waye fourscore pounde the pece at the lest.

1597 S. Finche Let. 18 Feb. in A. C. Ducarel Some Acct. Town Croydon (1783) App. 153 Bricklayers..have xv d. apeece the day.

1631 J. Weever Anc. Funerall Monuments 418 Appointing them xii d. the weeke to each person.

1734 Builder's Dict. I. at Bricks These Bricks are sold..at forty Shillings the Thousand, or four Shillings the Hundred.

1797 R. Southey Lett. from Spain viii. 104 They are very dear, two reales the couple.

1827 G. Tibbits Ess. on Home Markets 26 The price of the article fell..to 17 cents the yard.

1856 J. A. Froude Hist. Eng. (1858) I. i. 21 Wheat..averaged in the middle of the fourteenth century tenpence the bushel.

1901 W. Walton Paris Known & Unknown III. 103/1 Lessons in this game may be procured at the rate of five to ten francs the hour.

1958 B. Malamud Magic Barrel 30 A column..inviting contributions in the form of stories at five bucks the thousand-word throw.

2001 M. M. Giugale et al. Mexico ii. vi. 149 Oil prices return to 17 dollars the barrel for the Mexican oil mix.

11. Before a gerund or verbal noun denoting activity.See also for the asking at asking n. 3b, for the taking at taking n. Phrases 1.

a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add. 27944) (1975) II. xviii. xlii. 1192 [The olephant] louteþ eueriche to oþer and tourneþ so aȝein to here owne place. And makeþ þe ȝonge to go tofore in þe turnynge aȝein.

c1405 (c1385) G. Chaucer Knight's Tale (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 1600 Myn is the stranglyng and hangyng by the throte.

c1449 R. Pecock Repressor (1860) 66 The reeding in the Bible..drawith the reders..fro loue and deinte of the world.

1487 (a1380) J. Barbour Bruce (St. John's Cambr.) xi. 351 [Bruce] ordanit his men for the fechting.

?1523 J. Fitzherbert Bk. Husbandry f. xiii Dogfenell..in the commyng vp is lyke fenell and bereth many white floures.

1542 N. Udall tr. Erasmus Apophthegmes ii. f. 267 To the gooyng through with suche matiers, celeritee dooeth veraye great helpe.

1585 T. Bilson True Difference Christian Subiection iv. 635 It is so rotten it will not indure the handling.

a1648 Ld. Herbert Life (1976) 45 Any man thought worthy the looking on.

1669 tr. A. Kircher Vulcano's v. 34 After the happening of all which, I had then a desire..to visit the famous Vesuvius.

1768 H. St. John in J. H. Jesse G. Selwyn & his Contemp. (1843) II. 309 I regret the badness of our climate, and the being obliged to pass the remainder of my life in [it].

1794 A. Radcliffe Myst. of Udolpho I. v. 130 St. Aubert could not repent the having taken this fatiguing road.

1805 Parl. Reg. I. 133 The squadron..has anchored at the mouth of the harbour..which greatly annoys the coming in or going out.

1885 Harper's New Monthly Mag. Apr. 814/1 The story, perhaps unavoidably, sometimes gets confused in the telling.

1947 Living Church 16 Feb. 17/1 It is there for the seeing every day.

2008 M. Stewart Mercy Street vii. 65 She was the one who usually did the asking.

12. spec. Used emphatically, with the often stressed in speech (

Brit.

/ðiː/

U.S.

/ði/

), and printed in italics.

a. Before a person's name, with the sense ‘the one and only’, ‘the well-known’.

1773 F. Burney Early Diary (1889) I. 243 ‘Pray,’ said the Dean, ‘are you talking of the Dr. Burney?’

1837 Bentley's Misc. Oct. 373 He..lives happy in the fame of being the Nicholas Bottom, who, by consent.., is voted to be..the sole support of the drama.

1915 Puck (N.Y.) 30 Jan. 7/2 ‘Oh, are you the John Brown ?’ ‘You mean the one whose soul goes marching along?’

1968 F. Exley Fan's Notes (1985) 203 While the attendant was feeding my car two dollars' worth of Regular, I nonchalantly inquired whether that wasn't the house of the Edmund Wilson.

1985 W. Sheed Frank & Maisie vi. 137 Two young Sheed and Warders, Robert Lowell and his wife Jean Stafford, soon to be the Robert Lowell and Jean Stafford, dropped in.

2005 D. Koontz Velocity (2006) v. 45 ‘The Hitler?’ ‘Well, it wasn't Bob Hitler.’ ‘You're just jerking my chain.’

b. With a common noun, with the sense ‘the pre-eminent’, ‘the typical’, or ‘the only..worth mentioning’ (e.g. Caesar was the general of Rome, i.e. the general par excellence).

1829 T. Carlyle German Playwrights in Foreign Rev. Jan. 97 Dr. Klingemann..so superlative is his vigour..we might even designate him the Playwright.

1863 R. B. Kimball Was he Successful? vi Joel Burns was a rich man, as well as the man of the place.

1865 J. Lubbock Prehist. Times v. 131 The axe was pre-eminently the implement of antiquity.

1904 ‘S. G. Tallentyre’ Life Voltaire II. xxxv. 144 His Commentary remains unrivalled, and is still the text-book on Corneille.

1971 Gourmet Feb. 21/2 It was simply the place in Europe to go in summer.

2010 T. Blair Journey ii. 50 This is now always a major, if not the major factor.

** Marking an item not before mentioned, but now identified by a clause, phrase, or word.

13. Before an item particularized by a relative clause.In modern English more emphatically expressed by that or those: see that adj.¹ 2, those adj. 3. In Old English these were not distinguished: þæt spell may be rendered ‘that story’ or ‘the story’.

OE Blickling Homilies 71 Seo menigo þe þær beforan ferde.

OE tr. Bede Eccl. Hist. (Cambr. Univ. Libr.) Pref. i. 2 Ic ðe sende þæt spell, þæt ic niwan awrat be Angelþeode & Seaxum.

a1200 MS Trin. Cambr. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 3 Ðe holie tid þat me clepeð aduent.

?a1200 (?OE) Peri Didaxeon (1896) 19 Þæt sindon þe teþ, þe þane mete brecaþ.

c1275 Kentish Serm. in J. Hall Select. Early Middle Eng. (1920) I. 214 Te dai ase ure louerd..i bore was.

a1325 Prologue (Corpus Cambr.) l. 1 in C. D'Evelyn & A. J. Mill S. Eng. Legendary (1956) 1 Nou blouweþ þe niwe frut þat late bygan to springe.

c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Matt. ii. 9 Loo! the sterre, the whiche thei sayen in este, wente bifore hem.

a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 14704 Þe werckes þat i werc in his nam.

1472 J. Paston in Paston Lett. & Papers (2004) I. 586 I am not the man I was.

?1530 tr. Compost of Ptholomeus xliv. sig. r.i The iyen that ben whytysshe and flesshely, sygnyfye a persone enclyned to vyce.

1568 T. Howell Arbor of Amitie f. 38^v Vntill the day he die.

1600 W. Shakespeare Merchant of Venice v. i. 83 The man that hath no musique in himselfe..is fit for treasons.

a1704 T. Brown Dispensary in 3rd Vol. Wks. (1708) iii. 67 I have known the Time when I could go out and pick up 10 or 12 l. in a Morning.

1720 A. Pope tr. Homer Iliad VI. xxiv. 256 Let us give To Grief the wretched Days we have to live.

1785 W. Cowper Task iii. 141 The man, of whom His own coevals took but little note.

1807 W. Wordsworth Poems II. 142 The light that never was, on sea or land.

1850 J. H. Newman Lect. Diffic. Anglicans (1891) I. i. ii. 48 But the passage I have quoted suggests a second observation.

1917 F. H. Simonds Hist. World War I. 335 The place where the ship sank was marked by a large oil-spot.

2013 L. Miller Parallel xii. 327 The girl I fell in love with isn't who you really are.

14.

a. Before a noun particularized by a following prepositional phrase (especially a phrase headed by of).Also (in Old English): †before a noun particularized by a genitive.

OE Blickling Homilies 55 Þeh he geornlice gehyre þa word þæs halgan godspelles.

lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough interpolation) anno 1116 On þisum ylcan geare bærnde eall þet mynstre of Burh.

lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1122 On þone lententyde..forbearn se burch on Gleaweceastre.

a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 53 Heo habbeð þe nome of cristene.

a1250 Apostles' Creed (Blickling) in Mod. Lang. Notes (1899) 4 138 Crist..was akenned þurh þe mihte of þan halge gast.

c1300 St. Edmund Rich (Laud) l. 387 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 442 (MED) In þe toun of wyricestre bi-tidde þat selue cas.

a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1869) II. 41 Tweie perilous places in þe see of myddel erþe.

1426–7 in H. Littlehales Medieval Rec. London City Church (1905) 65 Also þe thorisday in þe Whitson weke.

a1464 J. Capgrave Abbreuiacion of Cron. (Cambr. Gg.4.12) (1983) 233 (MED) In þis ȝere, þe nest day aftir Mari Magdalen, was a gret councel at London of all prelates.

1513 G. Douglas in tr. Virgil Æneid ix. Prol. 7 Honeste is the way to worthynes.

a1616 W. Shakespeare Macbeth (1623) i. vii. 45 Like the poore Cat i' th' Addage.

a1734 R. North Examen (1740) i. i. §23 26 In the telling of this Story.

a1771 T. Gray Candidate (?1780) 1 Just like the picture in Rochester's book.

1824 J. Bentham & P. Bingham Bk. Fallacies Introd. vii The Sir Charles Sedley of political morality.

1870 W. Morris Earthly Paradise: Pt. IV 88 Midmost the time 'twixt noon and dusk.

1908 R. Bridges Sel. Poems R. W. Dixon (1909) p. xii The Oxford of 1850 was singularly unsympathetic.

2002 A. Fuller Don't let's go to Dogs Tonight 96 The look on their faces is grim.

b. Before a noun particularized by a following phrase headed by a to-infinitive.the sometimes has the meaning ‘that..needed or proper..’.

OE Wærferð tr. Gregory Dialogues (Hatton) (1900) i. viii. 53 Seo lytle betweoh gesette swigung þære ufan cumenan stefne getacnode þone lyttlan fyrst [OE Corpus Cambr. medmycelne fyrst] to libbanne þam breðer ofer þa oðre.

a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) vii. l. 703 (MED) Therthe, whos condicion Is set to be the foundement To sustiene up the firmament.

a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add. 27944) (1975) II. xvii. 1026 Pulegium..haþ þe vertu to tempre and dissolue..and to stynte and fordruye rewm.

c1450 (c1380) G. Chaucer House of Fame (Fairf. 16) (1878) l. 2056 Alle the folke that ys a lyve Ne han the kunnynge to discryve The thinges that I herde there.

a1500 tr. A. Chartier Traité de l'Esperance (Rawl.) (1974) 9 (MED) If thou haue the corage or power (to speke more propyrly, folish presumpcion of thiself), to wille to putt the in prees vnto the daungerous dongeon.

1590 I. L. True & Perfecte Descr. Straunge Monstar 20 He alone should be the man, to send him to his toome.

1645 J. Milton Sonnet viii, in Poems 50 The power To save th' Athenian Walls from ruine bare.

1687 A. Lovell tr. J. de Thévenot Trav. into Levant i. 225 We had the Comfort to be pittied.

1780 W. Cowper Progress of Error 29 The creature is so sure to kick and bite, A muleteer's the man to set him right.

1813 J. Austen Pride & Prejudice I. xiii. 142 I shall not be the person to discourage him.

1850 J. H. Newman Lect. Diffic. Anglicans (1891) I. i. iii. 80 I am not the person to be jealous of such facts.

1920 Cent. Mag. Aug. 575/1 You 're the one to break her in, Chief.

1967 National Observer (U.S.) 3 July 13 Mr. Reagan must raise the money to pay off that deficit.

2015 A. Z. Khan Unquiet Dead 120 He hadn't had the sense to bring an umbrella.

c. Before a noun particularized by an adverb, especially one of time or place.

1340 Ayenbite (1866) 236 Þe gerdel aboue betocneþ chastete.

?a1400 (a1338) R. Mannyng Chron. (Petyt) (1996) ii. l. 963 Bot in þe ȝere after, obowen Grimsby, eft þei gan aryue.

c1405 (c1390) G. Chaucer Parson's Tale (Ellesmere) (1877) §827 Somtyme a man foryeteth er the morwe what he dide..on the nyght biforn.

1569 R. Grafton Chron. II. 61 Because it was Sunday, nothing was done. So the day after..the Archebishop was cited to apere.

1613 S. Purchas Pilgrimage ii. xviii. 173 The needle must be threeded the day before.

1713 R. Steele Englishman No. 1. 5 The Servants behind..were unable to contain from laughing.

1771 A. Skinn Old Maid II. liii. 189 They had almost made his wife miscarry the week before, by cutting off Essex's head.

1837 F. Marryat Snarleyyow (ed. 2) I. viii. 76 She had..a back-door into the street behind.

1868 Rep. Select Comm. Sci. Instr. 47/2 in Parl. Papers 1867–8 (H.C. 432) XV. 1 If these papers are to be used the day after.

1890 Facts & Figures 4 in 2nd Ann. Rep. Exec. Comm. Citizens' Assoc. Boston About half a million more was spent in the years before 1885 in public improvements than in the years since.

1952 K. Amis Lett. (2000) 298 I sent it off without consulting the man here who knows all that.

1995 F. R. Shivers Walking in Baltimore 187 Sending warm air through a flue to the room above.

2015 N.Y. Times Mag. 29 Nov. 55/3 The 58 pots de Waal made the day before.

d. Before a noun particularized by a participial clause.

1387–8 Petition London Mercers in R. W. Chambers & M. Daunt Bk. London Eng. (1931) 37 The statut ordeigned & made bi parlement.

a1500 (c1410) Dives & Pauper (Hunterian) (1980) ii. 200 (MED) He wil nout takyn it of hym into þe tyme assignyd of þe pay.

1568 W. Turner Herbal (rev. ed.) i. 8 The Wormwod growing in Rome, is no good Wormwod.

1601 P. Holland tr. Pliny Hist. World II. 197 Some bee of opinion that it is the gum or liquor issuing from a certain thornie plant or bush.

1658 E. Phillips New World Eng. Words The 12 Priests of Mars instituted by Numa Pompilius.

1750 S. Scott Hist. Cornelia 146 And thus prevent the unhappiness resulting from her cruelty.

1761 London Mag. Oct. 519/2 The account of the monies granted for the pay and cloathing of the unembodied militia.

1825 Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) 115 187 The heating effect emanating from luminous hot bodies.

1868 J. E. T. Rogers Man. Polit. Econ. ix. 80 The privileges accorded..to the merchants of the Hanse Towns.

1906 W. Virginia School Jrnl. June 36/1 Select some object as the book lying on the table.

1942 Irish Times 29 Apr. 2/7 ‘Here,’ she replied, pointing to the boy dressed in a soldier's uniform.

2012 L. Shepherd Solitary House 143 He looks for a moment at the hand resting on his arm.

15.

a. Preceding a noun followed and identified by another noun (usually a proper name) in apposition.

(a) Where the following noun identifies a person (formerly also a place, a book, etc.) (e.g. the poet Virgil).

eOE tr. Orosius Hist. (BL Add.) (1980) i. i. 11 Sume men secgen þæt hire æwielme sie on westende Affrica neh þam beorge Athlans.

lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Parker) anno 1070 Toforan þam papan Alexandre.

c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) Ded. l. 257 Þatt..boc..Apokalypsis..Vss wrat te posstell sannt iohan.

a1225 MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 73 Of clene liflade spec þe prophete isaias.

c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) l. 7957 Þe king..made..þe bissop ode..vorsuerie engelond.

c1405 (c1385) G. Chaucer Knight's Tale (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 70 Heere in this temple of the goddesse clemence We haue been waytynge al this fourtenyght.

c1449 R. Pecock Repressor (1860) 327 (MED) Sithen fro and bi the greet ricches in which the aungel Lucifer was sett and putt came his synne.

1529 T. Cromwell in R. B. Merriman Life & Lett. T. Cromwell (1902) I. 325 The Jentylwoman your wyff.

1580 J. Lyly Euphues & his Eng. (new ed.) f. 102 You resemble in your sayings the Painter Tamantes.

1637 J. Milton Comus 16 The huntresse Dian.

1729 Madagascar 251 They are silly enough to think the Dæmon Fermonner has done it.

1783 C. M. Graham Treat. Immutability of Moral Truth ii. 31 Explained by the philosopher Plato under the form of everlasting intellectual ideas.

1813 Classical Jrnl. 7 213 Ahmed el Najem..declared himself a descendant of the Prophet Mohammed.

1863 A. K. H. Boyd Graver Thoughts Country Parson 1st Ser. iv. 67 The violent end of the martyr Stephen.

1930 N.Y. Times 2 Nov. iv. 8/4 The Goethe Prize..was conferred upon the psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud this year.

2010 Independent 4 Jan. 33/2 I love the actor David Tennant as much as anyone.

(b) With year followed by a numeral (e.g. the year 1984).

1482 W. Caxton in tr. Higden's Prolicionycion viii. viii. f. ccclxxxxviij^v In the yere 1494 [read 1394] were trewes taken bytwene the kyng of Fraunce, and the kynge of Englonde.

1566 in E. Peacock Eng. Church Furnit. (1866) 81 A crosse crosse [sic] clothe, a pillowe beier, were sold the yeare 1560.

1611 J. Speed Hist. Great Brit. ix. viii. 493/1 That Duke-dome..disbranched from France since the year eight hundred eighty fiue, was againe rent away.

1648 Mercurius Pragmaticus No. 36–7. sig. Ccc3 The members Impeached in the year 1647.

1719 Free-thinker No. 152. 1 I began to Trade for my self in the Year Seventeen Hundred and Four.

1724 D. Waterland Crit. Hist. Athanasian Creed vi. 89 One may..infer, that This Creed was not received into the Roman Offices so early as the year 809.

1859 Harper's Mag. Feb. 322/1 The following graphic account of a fashionable lady's toilet for the year 1759.

1921 Gas Manuf., Distribution & Use (Brit. Commerc. Gas Assoc.) i. 38/1 The invention of a practical gas meter, about the year 1815, was..welcomed by all parties.

1968 C. Wilber & G. L. Coon Space Seed in J. Blish Star Trek 2 106 Probably nobody else on board the Enterprise would have recognized Morse code at all, since it had gone out of use around the year 2000.

2015 N.Y. Times Mag. 23 Aug. 54/5 His slurring of the Latino community is not something that should be going on in the year 2015.

b. Preceding a noun following and identifying another noun (usually a proper name) in apposition.This is the usual construction when the whole phrase is a recognized appellation (e.g. William the Conqueror, John the Baptist).

(a) In general use, with an occupational term or other agent noun denoting a person.

OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 1st Ser. (Royal) (1997) xxxii. 457 Danihel se witega læg seofon niht betwux seofon leonum on anum seaðe ungewemmed.

OE West Saxon Gospels: Matt. (Corpus Cambr.) iii. 1 On þam dagum com Iohannes se Fulluhtere.

a1225 MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 73 And dauid þe prophete spekeð in an salm.

c1350 Apocalypse St. John: A Version (Harl. 874) (1961) 1 (MED) Seint Poule þapostle seiþ þat alle þoo þat willen..leuen in iesu crist shullen suffre persecuciouns.

c1390 (?a1300) Stations of Rome (Vernon) (1867) i. l. 238 Seint Ion þe Ewangelist.

?a1425 (a1400) Brut (Corpus Cambr.) 299 About seint Lukes day þe euangglist.

a1500 Gospel of Nicodemus (Harl. 149) (1974) 120 (MED) Oure Lorde toke Adam..and delyuered hym to Saynt Mychel the archaungel.

1528 Rede me & be nott Wrothe sig. hvi Wenest thou that Peter the fissher, Vnderstode not scripture clearlyer.

1599 T. Nashe Lenten Stuffe 15 Their barronry by William the Conquerour conueyed ouer them.

1639 R. B. tr. Epitome Lives Kings of France 265 Encouraged by Joane the Maid, who miraculously drove the English from before Orleance.

1680 R. L'Estrange Compend. Hist. Last 14 Years 7 An Alehouse in Pudding Lane, adjoyning to Farriner the Baker's.

1726 A. Smith Mem. Jonathan Wild 250 One of the Pistols..most dangerously wounded Jack the Tinman, which deferr'd his Tryal.

1797 R. Southey Poems 164 Yet chearful and happy..Poor Mary the Maniac has been.

1869 Tim Doolan v. 53 They called me ‘Bill the Slasher,’ bekays I was fond o' rollickin', an' fightin'.

1906 Edinb. Rev. Oct. 334 Bourdalone the physician was another favourite.

1942 Los Angeles Times 28 Dec. 1/2 Rosie the Riveter and Joe the Jig-builder yesterday showed the folks how they build dive bombers at Northrop.

2014 L. Moriarty Big Little Lies 177 It was Pete the Plumber. Jane's heart sank.

(b) regional (chiefly Welsh English). With a noun (other than an agent noun) indicating the trade or profession of a person. [Perhaps compare Welsh formations like John y Bara, lit. ‘John of the Bread’, in which the genitive relationship is marked by the position of the definite article y.]

ΚΠ

1894 E. Œ. Somerville & ‘M. Ross’ Real Charlotte I. iv. 40 Norry the Boat, daughter of Shaunapickeen, the ferryman (whence her title).

1951 W. Morum Gabriel ii. vii. 230 He thought Larry the Groan far worse. The effeminate singer..was positively embarrassing.

1974 Times 27 Apr. 15/8 The Welsh tradition of referring to people by the names of their jobs, as Jones the Post or Davis the Bread.

1980 R. H. Lewis Cracking of Spines vii. 113 ‘The prospective client,’..I assumed a Welsh accent. ‘Matt the Book.’

2006 R. Bowen Evanly Bodies i. 3 I'll just pop up to Evans-the-Milk and get an extra pint, just in case.

16.

a. Standing first in a noun phrase consisting of a noun particularized or described by an adjective.The adjective usually precedes the noun, e.g. the good life. An adjective or participle with a modifying addition usually follows the noun (e.g. the grass wet with dew, the tools needed for the work): cf. sense A. 14d.A particularizing adjective may become a conventional or permanent epithet (e.g. the Black Prince, the Good Book, the Great Exhibition, the Princess Royal, the red planet, the Yellow Sea); the adjective and noun may then be treated as the name of a unique person or thing, as in sense A. 3.

eOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Parker) anno 853 Þy ilcan geare sende Ęþelwulf cyning Ęlfred his sunu to Rome.

OE Blickling Homilies 5 Se heofonlica cyning ineode on þone medmycclan innoþ.

OE Laws of Æðelred II (Claud.) vi. xxii. §1. 252 Woroldlicra weorca on þam halgan dæge geswice man georne.

a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 5 Þa oðre men..stiȝen uppeon þe godes cunnes treowe.

a1300 in C. Brown Eng. Lyrics 13th Cent. (1932) 117 (MED) Heuene quene..of þe sprong þeo edi blede.

1340 Ayenbite (1866) 1 Ich bidde þe hit by my sseld auoreye þe wycked uend.

c1400 Brut (Rawl. B. 171) 26 She was þe ryȝt heire of þis lande.

c1405 (c1385) G. Chaucer Knight's Tale (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 1491 Among the goddes hye it is affermed..Thou shalt [etc.].

1483 ( tr. G. Deguileville Pilgrimage of Soul (Caxton) (1859) v. vi. 76 The chirche militant..that laboureth here in erthe.

c1525 J. Rastell New Commodye Propertes of Women sig. Aiv^v The myghty and perdurable god be his gyde.

1575 G. Gascoigne Certayne Notes Instr. in Posies sig. T.iiii^v Vse your verse after thenglishe phrase.

1609 Benet of Canfield Rule of Perfection (new ed.) i. vi. 40 A man trauaileth toward Paradise and discouereth the life eternall.

1662 S. Pepys Diary 20 Oct. (1970) III. 230 Saw the so much by me desired picture of my Lady Castlemayne.

1710 R. Steele Tatler No. 208. ⁋1 They had the quite contrary Effect.

1751 T. Gray Elegy xiv. 8 The dark unfathom'd caves of ocean.

1820 P. B. Shelley Prometheus Unbound iii. iii. 105 The progeny immortal Of Painting, Sculpture, and wrapt Poesy.

1863 H. Cox Inst. Eng. Govt. i. xi. 262 The Long or Pensionary Parliament of Charles II.

1866 S. J. Stone Lyra Fidelium 42 And the great Church victorious Shall be the Church at rest.

1906 G. Matheson Let. 13 June in D. Macmillan Life G. Matheson 346 A creed which will inspire them with the hope everlasting.

1938 Times 5 Feb. 15/6 Where the garden proper is backed by a wood.

2010 N.Y. Times 10 Jan. (Travel section) 6/1 (advt.) A few minutes into our drive, a lioness broke from the tall grass.

b. Before the proper name of a person or place (e.g. the Admirable Crichton, the judicious Hooker).

eOE tr. Orosius Hist. (BL Add.) (1980) i. i. 10 Be westan Capodocia is þæt land þe mon hætt seo læsse Asia.

c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 4756 Follȝhe swa þe gode [altered from laferrd] iob Þatt wass an king onn eorþe.

c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 18 (MED) An-oþer he nom on Latin þe makede Seinte Albin & þe feire Austin, þe fulluht broute hider in.

a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) l. 5261 Whan þe worþi william..hade vnderston þe tidinges to þende, to þe menskful messageres he made glad chere.

a1439 J. Lydgate Fall of Princes (Bodl. 263) i. l. 5758 And as poetis recorden bi scripture, He callid was the faire Adonydes.

1481 W. Caxton tr. Hist. Reynard Fox (1970) 78 Bytwene the grete Inde and erthly paradyse.

c1500 (?a1475) Assembly of Gods (1896) l. 269 Next vnto hyr..Sate the good Iupyter.

1513 G. Douglas tr. Virgil Æneid x. i. 39 The fresch goldyn Venus.

1645 J. Milton L'Allegro in Poems 34 Their savory dinner..Which the neat-handed Phillis dresses.

1743 W. Emerson Doctr. Fluxions Pref. 13 The divine Newton (whose Works will last as long as the Sun and Moon).

1858 Friends' Rev. 27 Feb. 397/1 The proud England is famed far and wide.

1906 F. Thompson Ode Eng. Martyrs 163 That utterance..Of the doomed Leonidas.

1970 R. Davies Fifth Business (1977) v. ii. 205 The beautiful Faustina, who was naked as the dawn, and lovely as the breeze.

2000 Holiday & Leisure Spring 23 Linking these two..regions..runs the mighty Hadrian's Wall.

c. With an adjective, when this is a conventional or permanent epithet, following the noun (e.g. Alfred the Great); similarly with ordinal numerals following names of sovereigns or popes (e.g. Edward the Seventh).

eOE King Ælfred tr. Gregory Pastoral Care (Hatton) (1871) iv. 37 Bi ðam cuæð Salomonn se snottra: Sunu min [etc.].

OE Blickling Homilies 15 Hit is Hælend se Nazarenisca.

OE Battle of Maldon (1942) 273 Þa gyt on orde stod Eadweard se langa, gearo and geornful.

c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1978) l. 12630 (MED) Mete þer is vnimete & men swiðe balde..and him-seolf Arður þe balde.

c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) l. 1861 Seint eleyne þe gode.

a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1879) VII. 443 (MED) For in þat tyme [in] Engelond was robberie under kyng William þe Rede.

c1400 J. Gower Eng. Wks. (1901) II. 481 O worthi noble kyng, Henry the ferthe.

1483 W. Caxton tr. A. Chartier Curial sig. ij For to them whom fortune the variable hath most hyely lyfte vp.

1558 in J. T. Gilbert Cal. Anc. Rec. Dublin (1889) 475 Patrick Fitz Symon, theldor, and William Byrsall, the yonger.

1686 Hist. Diss. i, in W. Hopkins tr. Ratramnus Bertram conc. Body & Blood of Lord (1688) 8 Charles the bald chose to consult him.

1718 J. Ozell tr. J. F. Regnard & C. Dufresny Fair of St. Germain iii. i. 45 In the Days of Richard the Fearless.

1795 Gentleman's Mag. Nov. 901/1 Let it not be said that poor James the Second was a voluntary abdicator.

1816 J. B. Rogers Days of Harold ii. 62 Mercia's heir, he saw, Edgar the valiant, fam'd in war.

1858 Harper's Mag. Mar. 557/1 Grim old Gregory the Seventh, Pope of Rome.

1911 Eng. Hist. Rev. 26 417 At the time of Charles the Bold there were 2,200 households.

1958 Life 17 Nov. 74/2 Our last gracious king, George the Sixth, died from the effects of cigarette smoking.

2014 N.Y. Rev. Bks. 19 June 6/2 These lands..were added to the Russian Empire by Catherine the Great.

d. Preceding a proper name modified by an adjective designating a person, place, etc., in a particular state or condition, at a particular time or age, etc. (e.g. The young Beethoven was influenced by Haydn and Mozart, ‘Beethoven, when he was young, was influenced..’).

a1680 Faithful Lovers Downfal (single sheet) Philander, ah Philander, still the bleeding Phillis cries.

1757 tr. J. G. Keyssler Trav. III. 222 Their country appears to have been situated..at a great distance from the modern Padua.

1768 A. Booth Reign of Grace vii. 106 The soul that..does not in some degree, find a glow of affection to the dying Jesus, must be colder than ice.

1807 C. Lamb Tales from Shakespear I. 33 He touched the eyelids of the sleeping Demetrius with the love-juice, and he instantly awoke.

1861 A. P. Stanley Lect. Eastern Church (1869) xii. 409 They rang a tocsin with the great bell of the ancient Novgorod.

1879 M. Pattison Milton i. 6 The tutor to whom the young Milton was consigned was specially noted for Arminian proclivities.

1896 Harper's Mag. Apr. 761/2 The King..made the seventy-year-old Blücher its commander.

1903 P. W. Joyce Social Hist. Anc. Ireland I. ix. 301 Walking three times in the direction of the sun round the wounded Edward, before beginning his examination of the wound.

1972 N.Y. Times 18 Sept. 20/1 The old Paris is no more.

1999 M. Frayn Headlong (2000) 309 But it's powerfully and mysteriously placed—in the foreground on the right-hand edge of the picture, exactly balancing the sleeping John on the left-hand edge.

2003 Daily Mirror 1 Apr. 4/1 The furious White House said Arnett spoke from ‘a point of complete ignorance’.

2006 Daily Rec. (Nexis) 30 Dec. (Sport section) 44 Only two players..have beaten the dominant Federer in the last year.

e. With an adjective such as occasional or odd and a singular noun, conveying a sense of indefiniteness (frequently equivalent to a or an).

1843 E. Thompson Serm. Future State of Happiness iii. 68 If the occasional tear falls,..it is on account of a passing doubt entertained for the temporal care and prosperity of those, he is about to leave behind.

1918 G. M. Knocker Let. 17 Mar. in Diary & Lett. World War I Fighter Pilot (2008) 170 I then took off & did the odd ‘stunt’, I think they were rather impressed—& probably thought me rather a ‘dog’!

1984 G. Vanderhaeghe My Present Age (1986) ii. 17 On a week night the streets would be deserted except for the occasional carload of drunks tooling around.

2005 F. K. Christensen Stopping Pain vii. 18 In high school there was the rare girl who unexplainably left school.

2016 Church Times 23 Dec. 14/1 Those who are basically vegetarians but who will eat the odd bit of turkey or salmon.

17. Regularly preceding a superlative adjective or an ordinal number.

a. With a noun as head of the noun phrase (see also A. 16c).Formerly sometimes with a periphrastic superlative (formed with most) following the noun (see e.g. quot. 1748).

OE Blickling Homilies 5 Deofol..beswac þone ærestan wifmon.

OE West Saxon Gospels: John (Corpus Cambr.) i. 39 Hit wæs þa seo teoðe [OE Lindisf. Gospels ðio teigða] tid.

OE Acct. Voy. Ohthere & Wulfstan in tr. Orosius Hist. (Tiber.) (1980) i. i. 17 Se man se þæt swift[ost]e hors hafað.

a1225 ( Ælfric's Homily De Duodecim Abusivis (Lamb. 487) in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 103 Þeo fifte sunne is Tristicia.

c1225 (?c1200) Hali Meiðhad (Bodl.) (1940) l. 619 Hire keaste ure feader..from þe heste heouene into helle grunde.

?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 50 Echnen beoð þe forme arewen of lecheries prickes.

c1300 Havelok (Laud) (1868) l. 9 He was þe wicteste man at nede.

a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) l. 1936 (MED) No man..schuld mow deuise men richlier a-raid..þe grete after here degre in þe gaiest wise, & menere men as þei miȝt.

a1400 (c1303) R. Mannyng Handlyng Synne (Harl.) l. 7381 (MED) Þe fourþe synne ys more perylous with man and womman relygyus.

a1425 (c1395) Bible (Wycliffite, L.V.) (Royal) (1850) Luke xvi. 10 He that is trewe in the leeste thing, is trewe also in the more.

c1450 King Ponthus (Digby) in Publ. Mod. Lang. Assoc. Amer. (1897) 12 31 (MED) So itt was gretly spoken of theym that faght the beste and gave the grettest strokes.

1558 T. Phaer tr. Virgil Seuen First Bks. Eneidos vi. sig. R.ii Then comes the foulest feend.

1596 J. Dalrymple tr. J. Leslie Hist. Scotl. (1888) I. 180 The twelfte ȝeir of his regne.

a1616 W. Shakespeare Julius Caesar (1623) iii. ii. 181 This was the most vnkindest cut of all.

1626 C. Potter tr. P. Sarpi Hist. Quarrels 110 The most Potent Princes of Italy.

1691 J. Ray Wisdom of God 46 To the hundredth part of a Minute.

1748 T. Smollett Roderick Random II. l. 148 In terms the most hyperbolical.

1759 S. Fielding Hist. Countess of Dellwyn I. 149 Ready to take fire at every the least Provocation.

1830 Edinb. Rev. Jan. 517 The millionth part of a grain of many substances is an ordinary dose; but the reduction proceeds to the billionth, trillionth, nay to the decillionth, portion of a grain!

1848 E. C. Gaskell Mary Barton I. ix. 166 Th'longest lane will have a turning.

1880 E. Ryerson Loyalists Amer. & their Times (ed. 2) II. v. 178 The King..addressed them in terms the most conciliatory.

1937 Amer. Home Apr. 102/1 (advt.) Not the slightest draft will disturb you.

1988 J. Frame Carpathians ix. 56 We want the whole of the country to be computer-literate by the twenty-first century.

2016 J. Chang Wangs vs. World vii. 35 This was the fifth time she'd called Saina today.

b. With the superlative or ordinal as head of the noun phrase.In North American usage, the is normally omitted before an ordinal signifying a date when following the name of a month (e.g. July fourth).

OE Cynewulf Elene 536 Him þa togenes þa gleawestan on wera þreate wordum mældon.

OE Ælfric 2nd Let. to Wulfstan (Corpus Cambr.) in B. Fehr Die Hirtenbriefe Ælfrics (1914) 208 Se sixta is accidia, þæt is asolcennyss.

a1225 MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 69 Þet ðridde is þes monnes wil.

c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 6183 Þat writ wes irad imæ[n]g þan Rom-leden Þa speken sone þæ wisseste of Rome.

1340 Ayenbite (1866) 33 Þer byeþ zix poyns kueade huerby sleuþe brengeþ man to his ende. Þe uerste is onboȝsamnesse... Þe þridde is grochynge.

a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1865) I. 79 (MED) Among alle þe londes of þis worlde Ynde is þe grettest and most richest.

c1450 (?c1400) tr. Honorius Augustodunensis Elucidarium (1909) 8 (MED) Where firste he was þe moost faireste was maide anoon þe moost fouleste.

a1470 T. Malory Morte Darthur (Winch. Coll. 13) (1990) III. 1178 Amonge the thyckyste of the prees.

1526 Bible (Tyndale) Matt. xviii. f. xxiiij^v Who is the greatest in the kyngdom off heven?

1622 in G. Seton Life Earl of Dunfermline (1882) vi. 141 (note) [He] took sickness the first of June 1622.

1667 in D. H. S. Cranage Archit. Acct. Churches of Shropshire (1897) 192 He died lamented in the great septenary or 49 year of his age march the 29 anno dom 1648.

1779 Mirror No. 27. (1781) I. 215 With the best and most affectionate of husbands.

1779 J. Warner in J. H. Jesse G. Selwyn & his Contemp. (1844) IV. 14 Your letter of Tuesday the 19th, was brought to me on Monday.

1799 R. Southey Let. 5 Jan. in C. C. Southey Life & Corr. R. Southey (1850) II. 3 These vile taxes will take twenty pounds from me, at the least.

1852 M. Arnold Youth of Nature 71 Too deep for the most to discern.

1911 Eugenics Rev. 3 219 In respect to intellect the third appears to be the best when judged by the standard we have adopted.

1923 S. O. Siang 100 Years' Hist. Chinese in Singapore v. 76 He was the second of three sons.

1968 C. Chaundler Everyman's Bk. Anc. Customs ii. 180 December the sixth is the feast day of St. Nicholas.

2010 Irish Times 8 Sept. 9/1 He had evidently been conditioned by past experience to expect the worst.

18. Before higher titles of rank identified by a following personal name, place name, or title of office (e.g. the Emperor Napoleon, the Grand Duke Michael, the Empress Josephine, the Queen of the Netherlands, the Duchess of Windsor, the Lord Privy Seal, etc.); also with some courtesy titles (e.g. the Right Honourable, the Honourable, the Reverend, etc.).In the United Kingdom, except in formal use, the is not now usual with higher titles when followed by the personal name, as King George, Prince Edward, Duke Humphrey, Earl Grey, Earl Simon, etc. In formal use, the is now used before a title which is not a courtesy title; before Prince and Princess only for the children of the Sovereign.See further lady n. 3a, lord n. 8a, and the other titles; see also honourable adj. 5a, reverend adj. 1c.

lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) anno 1117 Þa..com se cyng of France & se eorl of Flandra mid him.

c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 1546 Þe Duc of Cornwaile scal habbe Gornoille & þe Scottene king Regau þat scone.

c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 6563 (MED) Sone gon of-ærne þe eorl Uortigerne.

1340 Ayenbite (1866) 76 (MED) Þe leuedy fortune went hare hueȝel eche daye.

1399 in Rec. Parl. Scotl. to 1707 (2007) 1399/1/3 The duc of Rothesay be the kyngis lieutenande..for the terme of thre yhere.

?1435 in C. L. Kingsford Chrons. London (1905) 60 (MED) And affterwarde kome the Erle off Salysbury and prayed that he myht have his protestacion entred ayens the Lorde Morle.

1472 J. Paston in Paston Lett. & Papers (2004) I. 448 Robert off Racclyff weddyd the Lady Dymmok.

1553 in W. Jerdan Rutland Papers (1842) 119 Therle of Oxford claymeth thoffice of great chamberlayne of England.

1603 R. Wilbraham Jrnl. (1902) 60 The lord Thomas Howard made erle of Suffolk.

1623 W. Shakespeare & J. Fletcher Henry VIII ii. iii. 95 The Marchionesse of Pembrooke.

1707 J. Chamberlayne Angliæ Notitia (ed. 22) ii. xv. 188 The Lord Chief Justice.

1794 A. Radcliffe Myst. of Udolpho IV. xi. 220 ‘The Chevalier Valancourt!’ said Emily, trembling extremely.

1827 Edinb. Weekly Jrnl. 28 Feb. The absence of the Right Hon. the Lord Provost.

1878 Observer 19 May 6/2 The Earl Fitzwilliam arrived in town yesterday.

1935 C. Hamilton Pillion 25 He was the third son of Colonel the Hon. Almeric Sounds Sharnal Piers Clement Piers, late of the Rifle Brigade.

1943 H. Saunders Combined Operations vii. 52 Admiral of the Fleet Sir Roger Keyes was succeeded as Director of Combined Operations by Captain the Lord Louis Mountbatten.

1981 Daily Tel. 5 Nov. 16/2 Her Majesty's Body Guard of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms under the command of the Lord Denham.

2011 Daily Tel. 20 July 26/5 The Duchess of Cambridge again stole the show in a white chiffon dress.

II. Referring to a term used generically or universally.

* With a singular noun or an adjective.

19.

a. Before a noun denoting an animal, plant, or precious stone, used generically.Not now used with man or woman, except as opposed to child, boy, girl, or the like: contrast the view that man is the norm, and woman is the opposite but better with the child is father of the man and you can see the woman in the little girl.

eOE tr. Orosius Hist. (BL Add.) (1980) iii. xi. 77 Seo leo bringð his hungregum hwelpum hwæt to etanne.

lOE King Ælfred tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. (Bodl.) (2009) I. xli. 380 Ac se mann ana gæþ uprihte.

a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 53 Þe tadde..ne mei itimien to eten hire fulle.

c1225 (?c1200) St. Juliana (Royal) l. 142 Hire leofliche leor..rudi as þe rose.

c1300 (?c1225) King Horn (Cambr.) (1901) l. 14 (MED) He was whit so þe flur.

a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) l. 820 Þei founde..briddes þat bliþeliche song, boþe þe þrusch & þe þrustele bi xxxti of boþe.

c1400 (?a1300) Kyng Alisaunder (Laud) (1952) l. 1820 Men dreden hym..So chalf þe bere and shep þe wolf.

c1475 Court of Sapience (Trin. Cambr.) (1927) l. 1282 The roose, the lyly, the vyolet, Refleiring, shynyng, and the peyntyng [read peyntyng the] ground.

a1500 (?c1440) J. Lydgate Horse, Goose & Sheep (Lansd.) l. 344 in Minor Poems (1934) ii. 553 The Goos may gagle, the Hors may prike & praunce..A-geyn the Lamb.

1553 R. Eden tr. S. Münster Treat. Newe India sig. Biiij^v The Diamande is engendred in the mynes of India, Ethiopia,..and Cyprus.

1597 A. Montgomerie Cherrie & Slae 21 The Hairt the Hynd, the Dae the Rae, The Fulmarte and the Fox.

1622 M. Drayton 2nd Pt. Poly-olbion xx. 12 The Colewort, Colifloure, and Cabidge in their season.

1727 J. Thomson Summer 19 At Thee the Ruby lights his deepening Glow.

1797 T. Holcroft tr. F. L. Stolberg Trav. II. xliv. 93 They sell the heifer to the butcher.

1832 T. B. Macaulay Burleigh & his Times in Ess. (1887) 236 Burleigh..was of the willow, and not of the oak.

1854 J. S. Bushnan in Orr's Circle Sci.: Org. Nature I. 142 It [sc. voice of the tiger] purrs like the Cat.

1955 Country Life 13 Oct. 780/2 (caption) Each bulb flowers only once, and the lily needs much space.

2011 S. Otfinoski Jaguars iii. 23 The jaguar is a solitary animal.

b. Generally, before a noun denoting anything used as the type of its class (e.g. with the names of musical instruments, tools, modes of transport, etc.).Frequently in prepositional phrases (especially headed by on) with nouns of action derived from verb stems, as on the go, on the make, on the rebound, on the run, on the take, etc.: see the nouns.

ΚΠ

OE West Saxon Gospels: Matt. (Corpus Cambr.) iii. 10 Eallunga ys seo [c1200 Hatton syo] æx to ðæra treowa wurtrumum asett.

a1225 (c1200) Vices & Virtues (1888) 69 (MED) Ne mai na more..ðe riche mann cumen in to heuene riche, ðanne mai ðe oluende cumen ðurh ðe nædle eiȝen.

c1300 Havelok (Laud) (1868) l. 2329 Þer mouthe men here..Þe gleymen on þe tabour dinge.

a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add. 27944) (1975) II. xix. cxxxix. 1391 The harpe hatte cithara, and was first yfounde of Appolyn.

a1439 J. Lydgate Fall of Princes (Bodl. 263) i. l. 295 (MED) He made a tretis..Vpon thastlabre.

1481 W. Caxton tr. Myrrour of Worlde i. xiv. sig. d. 1 The axe doeth nothynge but cutte, And he that holdeth it addressith it to what parte he wylle.

a1525 (c1448) R. Holland Bk. Howlat l. 759 in W. A. Craigie Asloan MS (1925) II. 118 The rote and ye recordour..The trumpe and ye talburn.

1589 G. Puttenham Arte Eng. Poesie i. xix. 33 To be..song to the harpe.

1593 W. Shakespeare Venus & Adonis sig. D^v A red morne that..betokend, Wracke to the sea-man, tempest to the field.

1631 B. Jonson Bartholmew Fayre iii. ii. 33 in Wks. II A notable hot Baker 'twas, when hee ply'd the peele.

1711 R. Steele Spectator No. 52. ⁋3 The renowned British Hippocrates of the pestle and mortar.

1746 P. Francis tr. Horace in P. Francis & W. Dunkin tr. Horace Epistles i. x. 7 You keep the Nest, I love the rural Mead, The Brook, the mossy Rock and woody Glade.

1785 W. Cowper Task ii. 629 The rout is folly's circle.

1815 W. Scott Lord of Isles iii. xxiii. 115 The lad can deftly touch the lute, And on the rote and viol play.

1839 E. Bulwer-Lytton Richelieu ii. ii. 308 The pen is mightier than the sword.

1841 Derbyshire Journey-bk. Eng. vii. 115/1 The tourist will proceed to the Amber Gate Station, 6 miles from Matlock,..and take the train to the Winfield Station.

1868 London Society Nov. 411 The tricycle..is easier to guide and safer to use than the bicycle.

1906 Edinb. Rev. Oct. 448 Zola has democratised the novel in another fashion.

1959 G. E. Ladd Gospel of Kingdom i. 13 The automobile has freed man to explore..sights which to his grandparents were contained only in story-books.

2015 Film & Hist. 45 74 While she was a master of the stage, Tucker did not fare so well in films.

c. Before body, mind, soul, or parts, functions, and attributes of these (as the eye, the heart, etc.). See also body n. 1, mind n.¹ 19. Cf. sense A. 8a.

OE West Saxon Gospels: Matt. (Corpus Cambr.) vi. 25 Hu nys seo sawl selre þonne mete.

lOE King Ælfred tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. (Bodl.) (2009) I. xxiv. 291 Seo fægernes þonne and seo [eOE Otho sio] hwætnes þæs lichoman geblissað ðone mon.

a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 153 Ine þe eren.

?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 2 Þeo oðer is alwið vten & riwleð þe licome.

?a1300 Iacob & Iosep (Bodl.) (1916) l. 9 (MED) Þat is þe soule ful loþ, & lef þe licame.

a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add. 27944) (1975) I. v. lxvi. 289 By þat yuel þe nurtur of heer is corrupt and faileþ, and þe heer falleþ, and þe ferþe partye of þe heed is bare.

c1400 (?a1300) Kyng Alisaunder (Laud) (1952) l. 6251 A folk..rouȝ as bere to þe honde.

a1425 J. Wyclif Sel. Eng. Wks. (1869) I. 103 (MED) Rychesse..ryven þe soule.

a1500 (?a1425) tr. Secreta Secret. (Lamb.) 85 His effect is properly to comforte þe brayn, þe herte, and þe stomak.

a1513 W. Dunbar Poems (1998) I. 130 Trew lufe rysis fro the splene.

1594 R. Ashley tr. L. le Roy Interchangeable Course ii. f. 24 Nothing offending, or displeasing the eare.

1692 R. South 12 Serm. I. 407 How accidentally oftentimes does the thing..offer it self to the mind.

1736 Bp. J. Butler Analogy of Relig. i. i. 20 To think the Eye itself a Percipient.

1841 W. M. Thackeray Men & Pictures 109 [They] pall on the palate.

1938 Manch. Guardian 5 Mar. 9/1 Green lands are rich, soft to the foot.

2014 M. A. Monroe Summer Wind 155 Isn't gardening supposed to be good for the soul?

d. Before names of days of the week (e.g. on the Monday, i.e. on Monday of any or every week, on Mondays generally).

OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 1st Ser. (Royal) (1997) xii. 531 Scolde gehwa freolsian þone sunnandæg mid arwyrðnysse.

c1230 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Corpus Cambr.) (1962) 211 Ȝe schulen eoten..euche dei twien bute þe fridahes.

c1300 Vision St. Paul (Laud) in Archiv f. das Studium der Neueren Sprachen (1874) 52 35 (MED) Seue dawes aren þat men callez þe sonenday is best of alle.

1340 Ayenbite (1866) 213 (MED) Þe zonday is more holy þanne þe zeterday.

a1438 Bk. Margery Kempe (1940) i. 21 Þow must fastyn þe Fryday boþen fro mete & drynke.

c1450 J. Capgrave Life St. Augustine (1910) 16 Þat sche used to fast þe Satirday.

c1500 Melusine (1895) 15 That he wil promytte to the that neuer on the Satirday he shall see the.

?c1510 tr. Newe Landes & People founde by Kynge of Portyngale sig. Dvi Noman ther ouer can passe, excepte y^e saterdaye.

1659 T. Pecke Parnassi Puerperium 161 Augustus wil'd the Publicans to stay, From grudg'd Collections, on the Saturday.

1671 R. McWard True Non-conformist 119 That the Churches meeting recorded to have been on the first day of the week, sayeth not that they antiquated the Saturnday.

1797 R. Townson Trav. Hungary xiii. 304 They are not such strict observers of the Sabbath, as not to frequent balls and routes on the Sunday.

1854 T. B. Macaulay Speeches 553 He returns to his labours on the Monday.

1860 J. Gardner Faiths World II. 467/2 In the mosque on the Friday, which may be termed the Mohammedan Sabbath, the Khotbeh..is regularly recited.

1904 N. Munro Erchie Droll Friend xiv. 86 There's nae Fair holidays for puir auld Erchie, no' even on the Sunday.

1993 C. MacDougall Lights Below 30 Sunday morning's the only peace I get. He's as sick as a barrel of tripe, full of drink and party tunes on Saturday night and full of remorse on the Sunday.

2013 Y. Zhekov Conscience in Recovery from Alcohol Addiction 174 On the Saturday we would clean the chapel.

†e. Used before the scientific name of a species of plant. Obsolete.

1777 W. Curtis Flora Londinensis I. Pl. 31 The Farmer also distinguishes theAlopecurus agrestis..by the name of Black Grass.

1804 J. L. Knapp Gramina Britannica pl. cxii An observer not sufficiently attentive would conclude the awned variety of the T[riticum] repens to be the true T. caninum, but they are perfectly distinct; the T. caninum is a much less common, and a sylvan plant.

1831 W. J. Hooker Brit. Flora (ed. 2) 10 This [sc. Utricularia intermedia] has probably often been passed by as the U. vulgaris.

20.

a. Before a noun normally having individual personal reference used as the type of a class of persons.to act the man, to act the soldier, etc.: see act v. 3c; to play the man, to play the fool, etc.: see play v. 28a.

eOE King Ælfred tr. Gregory Pastoral Care (Hatton) (1871) xii. 75 Þæs biscepes weorc sceolon bion..sua micle beteran sua hit micel bið betwux ðæs hirdes life & ðære heorde.

OE tr. Bede Eccl. Hist. (Cambr. Univ. Libr.) Pref. ii. 6 Þone leornere ic nu eadmodlice bidde & halsige.., þæt he me þæt ne otwite.

a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 27 Ah þenne þe preost hit deð in his muþe.

?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 67 Þe fikelere blent mon.

c1350 Psalter (BL Add. 17376) in K. D. Bülbring Earliest Compl. Eng. Prose Psalter (1891) vii. 15 (MED) Lo, þe sinner doþ vnryȝt-fulnesse; he conceiued sorow and childed wickednesse.

a1425 (c1395) Bible (Wycliffite, L.V.) (Royal) (1850) Psalms xxxi. 10 Many betyngis ben of the synnere.

c1449 R. Pecock Repressor (1860) 273 Therfore chese the reder..whether this or thilk or bothe he wole holde.

1535 Bible (Coverdale) Isa. xliv. C The carpenter (or ymage caruer) taketh me the tymbre, and spredeth forth his lyne.

1602 W. Watson Decacordon Ten Quodlibeticall Questions 334 I..craue patience of the catholike Reader.

1647 H. Hexham Copious Eng. & Netherduytch Dict. (title page) A compendious Grammar for the Instruction of the Learner.

1681 J. Dryden Absalom & Achitophel 20 But, where the witness faild, the Prophet Spoke.

1720 I. Watts Divine & Moral Songs i. i 'Tis the voice of the Sluggard.

1748 S. Richardson Clarissa VI. lxxvii. 283 I will contrive to be the man.

1787 ‘G. Gambado’ Acad. Horsemen 21 To ride with a lash whip; it shews the sportsman.

1843 T. B. Macaulay Addison in Ess. (1887) 791 Steele..was much of the rake and a little of the swindler.

1859 Ld. Tennyson Enid in Idylls of King 68 As careful robins eye the delver's toil.

1930 Spectator 16 Aug. 229/1 Only the cynic will say that Ivan is altogether too good to be true.

2014 M. Bagshaw & C. Mills North Yorks. Moors & Wolds iii. 77 This is possibly the best area in the country for the cyclist.

2015 J. Whittemore Colonial Madness 162 I, once again, had to be the grown-up and fix everything.

b. In predicative use: before a noun or noun phrase of this kind used to indicate that a person is a notable example of the class.

1761 T. Smollett et al. tr. Voltaire Wks. V. 82 In reading the history of Henry IV. by father Daniel, we are surprised at not finding him the great man.

1767 A. Young Adventures Emmera I. iv. 13 I am often surprized you should have treated so coldly a man so much the gentleman.

1838 M. M. Sherwood Henry Milner iii. ix. 175 He is a genteel young man—no snob—quite the gentleman.

1897 A. R. Marshall ‘Pomes’ from Pink 'Un 8 She was quite the lady In deportment and dress.

1925 L. H. Myers Clio i. 8 Marie, golden-haired, short-skirted, very much the soubrette, began tripping about the room.

1934 P. Lynch Turf-cutter's Donkey xiii. 101 Isn't he the clever lad!

1955 ‘P. Dennis’ Auntie Mame iv. 62 In the process of coaching the kid, the old girl became quite the athlete herself.

2000 K. Charles Cruel Habitations (2001) xv. 283 ‘Oh, bully for you,’ she sneered. ‘Aren't you the noble one?’

21. Before an adjective used as the head of a noun phrase (and now frequently treated as a noun), usually denoting an abstract notion (e.g. the beautiful, that which is beautiful).In phrases headed by the preposition on, as on the cheap, on the loose, on the quiet, on the sly, etc.: see the main word.

eOE King Ælfred tr. Gregory Pastoral Care (Hatton) (1871) xi. 65 Ðurh ða gesceadwisnesse we tocnawað good & yfel, & geceosað ðæt god, & aweorpað ðæt yfel.

OE Beowulf (2008) 1739 Him eal worold wendeð on willan; he þæt wyrse ne con.

c1390 (?c1350) St. Paula l. 90 in C. Horstmann Sammlung Altengl. Legenden (1878) 5 Þe bettre heo chose and toke Þat þe wombe raþur þen þe þouht oke.

a1460 tr. Dicts & Sayings Philosophers (Helm.) (1999) 89 He is a beest that discerneth nat betwene the good & the euel.

1498 Interpr. Names Goddis & Goddesses (de Worde) sig. Bi/2 In stede of better the worse there they ches [c1500 Trin. Cambr. In stede of the bettyr the worse ther they ches].

1560 J. Knox Answer Great Nomber Blasphemous Cauillations 194 The hole scope of oure doctrine tend to the contrarie.

a1616 W. Shakespeare Taming of Shrew (1623) iv. iii. 80 I will be free, Euen to the vttermost.

1650 Exercitation conc. Usurped Powers v. 69 He hath begun his Argument ab hypothesi, ad thesin, or from the particular to the generall.

1748 T. Smollett Roderick Random I. xxii. 188 A nose inclining to the aquiline.

1757 E. Burke (title) A philosophical enquiry into the origin of our ideas of the sublime and beautiful.

1850 Ld. Tennyson In Memoriam civ. 162 Ring out the false, ring in the true.

1878 T. Hardy Return of Native III. vi. iii. 292 There is too much reason why we should do the little we can to respect it now.

1940 J. Power Shelley in Amer. vii. 121 A taste for the sentimental and a desire to cultivate art for art's sake.

1991 Today 13 June 13/4 An interesting mixture of the elegant, the intellectual, the off-beat and the naff.

2015 Irish Times 18 Apr. (Weekend Review section) 11/4 The chapter..verges on the ridiculous.

** With a noun or adjective with plural reference used universally.

22. Before a noun in the plural, chiefly the name of a nation, class, or group of people, where the has the sense ‘those who are’; ‘the —— taken as a whole’. Also with family surnames (e.g. the Joneses, the Smiths, the Robinsons).

eOE tr. Orosius Hist. (BL Add.) (1980) v. xii. 126 He for on Bretanie þæt iglond, & wið þa Brettas gefeaht.

c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 188 He shall turrnenn þurrh hiss spell Þe trowwþelæse leode.

c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) l. 87 Þe saxons..Seve kynges made in engelond.

a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1879) VII. 57 Þe Danes spoylede and robbede al Northumberlond.

?a1425 (c1400) Mandeville's Trav. (Titus C.xvi) (1919) 90 (MED) The sarazines ben gode & feythfull, for þei kepen entierly the commandement of..Alkaron.

1477 W. Caxton tr. R. Le Fèvre Hist. Jason (1913) 91 Salathiel whiche was of the lignye of the Hebrews.

1548 W. Patten Exped. Scotl. Pref. sig. c ij^v Neyther the Grekes [nor] the Ruthens.

1570 T. Blundeville tr. F. Furio Ceriol Very Briefe Profitable Treat. sig. A.3^v As the Phisitians doe deuide mannes lyfe into seauen ages or times.

1613 S. Purchas Pilgrimage 246 The bodie..was afflicted on the East by the Persians, on the West by the Gothes.

1783 J. O. Justamond tr. G. T. F. Raynal Philos. Hist. Europeans in Indies (new ed.) III. 380 The Rima..is not yet well know'n to the botanists.

1816 G. Crabb Eng. Synonymes 139/2 The Tarquins were banished from Rome.

1817 New Monthly Mag. Sept. 102/1 The tremendous rioters.., including the Watsons and the small fry who accompanied the flags through the city.

1865 Catholic World Sept. 788/2 It was what the lawyers would call a ‘leading question’.

1906 Edinb. Rev. Oct. 429 These laws of sight the Greeks made it their business to analyse.

1956 Country Life 3 May 951/1 Certainly the Saddlebacks are good mothers and produce thriving litters.

2014 Epoch Times (N.Y.) 26 Sept. a16/4 Why should the Scots have a say in English affairs?

23.

a. Before an adjective or participle used as the head of a noun phrase and having plural reference, usually to all members of a group or class of people (e.g. the poor, those who or such as are poor).Where they become conventional such uses may be regarded as giving rise to new nouns (by conversion), e.g. poor n.¹ 1.

eOE King Ælfred tr. Gregory Pastoral Care (Hatton) (1871) xxiii. 175 On oðre wisan [mon sceal manian] ða woroldwisan, on oðre ða dysegan.

c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 15498 Þe blinde ȝaff he wel to sen.

c1275 Doomsday (Calig.) in C. Brown Eng. Lyrics 13th Cent. (1932) 45 (MED) Þer stondeþ þe riȝtwise on his riȝt honde.

a1300 in C. Brown Eng. Lyrics 13th Cent. (1932) 2 (MED) Ȝieue þe hungrie mete & te nakede iwede.

c1390 (a1376) W. Langland Piers Plowman (Vernon) (1867) A. Prol. l. 18 Alle maner of men, þe mene and þe riche.

c1426 J. Audelay Poems (1931) 7 Vysyte þe seke.

c1450 tr. G. Deguileville Pilgrimage Lyfe Manhode (Cambr.) (1869) 35 (MED) J make him yiue and departe that that he hath to the needy and to mendivauns.

1526 Bible (Tyndale) John xii. f. cxxxix The povre all wayes shall ye have with you.

1535 Bible (Coverdale) Psalms lxviii. D Let them be wyped out of ye boke of the lyuinge, & not be written amonge the rightuous.

1587 A. Fleming et al. Holinshed's Chron. (new ed.) III. 449/2 To fetch awaie the dead and the wounded.

1622 H. Peacham Compl. Gentleman xvi. 200 If it be the common Law of Nature, that the learned should..instruct the ignorant, the experienced, the vnexperienced.

1671 J. Milton Paradise Regain'd iv. 157 Nothing will please the difficult and nice.

1718 M. Prior Solomon on Vanity i, in Poems Several Occasions (new ed.) 420 All the living that four-footed move Along the shore, the meadow, or the grove.

1748 T. Gray Ode in R. Dodsley Coll. Poems II. 265 How low, how indigent the proud, How little are the great!

1812 Ld. Byron Childe Harold: Cantos I & II i. xxxiv. 25 Here ceas'd the swift their race, here sunk the strong.

1819 P. B. Shelley Rosalind & Helen 16 He was a coward to the strong: He was a tyrant to the weak.

1876 Japan Mail 11 Feb. 112/1 A cask of the sound and one of the damaged were opened.

1931 Amer. Mercury Feb. 139/2 The stertorous breathing of the dying.

1953 Living Church 5 Feb. 12/1 Other hospitals to which the injured were rushed.

2012 Observer 22 Jan. 41/2 The rich should pay their fair share.

b. Before a past participle of this kind, with complementary adverb clause. †Formerly also before a present participle, with adverb clause or object (obsolete).In this construction those is now more usual.

OE West Saxon Gospels: Matt. (Corpus Cambr.) xxii. 3 He..clypode þa gelaðodan to þam gyftum.

a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Bodl. 959) (1965) Job xxiv. 10 To þe nakide & to þe goyng wiþoute cloþing..þei tooken awei erys.

c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Nahum i. 11 Of thee shal go out the thynkynge malice aȝeinus the Lord.

c1450 tr. G. Deguileville Pilgrimage Lyfe Manhode (Cambr.) (1869) 56 (MED) Bi the which beth reised the fallen doun and the ouerthrowen.

1590 R. Hitchcock tr. F. Sansovino Quintesence of Wit f. 88 The aflicted with labour, with him that hath neuer tasted of any trauaile.

1602 W. Watson Decacordon Ten Quodlibeticall Questions 49 Dignities which intitle the inuested with them, with a preheminence aboue all other persons.

1633 D. Rogers Treat. Two Sacraments Gospell ii. ii. 49 Even the decayed in faith, yea the fallen into sinne, if recover'd by faith, are not to be debarred from the Sacrament.

1741 Chambers's Cycl. (ed. 5) at Jesuit The professed of this order renounce..all preferment.

1787 A. O'Leary Def. Conduct & Writings 61 Such is the number of the wounded by the white-boys in the counties of Cork and Kerry.

1819 P. B. Shelley Rosalind & Helen 27 Thou knowest what a thing is Poverty Among the fallen on evil days.

1881 Gospel in all Lands Jan. 4/1 The slain in battle living in another house by themselves [in the afterlife].

1901 S. Suzuki tr. Surg. & Med. Hist. Naval War Japan & China 1894–5 410 The proportions above enumerated between the numbers of the killed in action, and those who died from sickness all refer to armies.

2000 G. L. Ramsey Care-full Preaching i. 9 The broken in spirit, the perplexed, the bored, the desperate.

2005 H. Barker Death, One & Art of Theatre 59 This adieu of the loved to the stricken-with-grief.

B. pron.² As demonstrative pronoun. Obsolete except as that pron.¹In Old English use as demonstrative pronoun is found for forms of all cases and genders. In modern standard English only the reflex of the nominative and accusative singular neuter þæt that pron.¹ is current in this use (see discussion at that entry). The occasional survival in use as demonstrative pronoun in Middle English is illustrated below for reflexes of case forms that are not otherwise covered at that pron.¹, tho pron.¹, than pron., thon pron.¹, thy pron.

1. The person or thing contextually indicated, that person or thing. Cf. that pron.¹ I.In some uses approaching use as personal pronoun; cf. quot. OE¹Rare in later Middle English and some of the apparent examples may represent transmission errors. Forms that do not show the reflex of the neuter singular nominative or accusative (i.e. that pron.¹) are more frequently attested as antecedents of a relative clause (see sense B. 2).

OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Matt. xv. 24 Ipse autem respondens : ðe uel he soðlice onduearde.

OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 2nd Ser. (Cambr. Gg.3.28) xxxii. 278 Hwæt ða drihten arærde micelne wind, and se gelæhte ealne ðone lig.

a1200 (?c1175) Poema Morale (Trin. Cambr.) l. 379 in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 231 Þar me drihte self isien swo se is mid iwisse.

a1225 (?OE) MS Vesp. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 235 Þer efter arerde god þas lage..and si ȝeleste sume wile.

c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 4216 (MED) An of þon he weolden him don, oðer slan oðer an-hon.

c1275 (?c1250) Owl & Nightingale (Calig.) (1935) 800 Þe oþer ne can sweng but anne, An þe is god wiþ eche manne.

c1275 (?c1250) Owl & Nightingale (Calig.) (1935) l. 1525 Þe were gulte Þat leof is over wummon to pulte, An speneþ on þare al þat he haueþ, An siueþ þare þat noriht naueþ.

c1350 Ayenbite (1866) App. 263 (MED) Þe uader of þe house..zette sleȝþe to by doreward..Nixt þan [L. hanc] ha zette strengþe.

c1400 (?a1300) Kyng Alisaunder (Laud) (1952) 489 And settleþ sone after þas On stede þere þe quene was.

c1460 (?c1400) Tale of Beryn 885 Ioy þat ffawnes made was dobil tho to-fore.

2. In use as antecedent pronoun before a relative clause. Cf. that pron.¹ II.In Old English frequently in the phrase se þe, sēo þe, etc. (where the second element shows the pron.¹ b). This sometimes follows a personal pronoun, as e.g. he se þe (see he pron. 5a), suggesting that the phrase was perceived as a unit with relative function. Where generalized nominative forms in þ- rather than s- occur for the demonstrative (see Forms 3aα. ), the phrase appears as þe þe (as similarly in þe þat, where the second element shows that pron.²).

OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Matt. iii. 3 Hic est enim qui dictus est per esaiam : ðes is forðon ðe ðe [OE Rushw. Gospels seþe] gecuoeden wæs ðerh esaias.

OE Seafarer 47 A hafað longunge se þe on lagu fundað.

OE Beowulf (2008) 506 Eart þu se Beowulf, se þe wið Brecan wunne?

a1225 ( Ælfric's Homily De Duodecim Abusivis (Lamb. 487) in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 109 Eft þe ðe [OE Corpus Cambr. 178 se þe] deleð elmessan for his drihtnes luuan, þe bihut his gold hord on heouene riche.

a1225 ( Ælfric's Homily In Die Sancto Pentecosten (Lamb. 487) in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 95 Alswa scal þe larðeu don þe ðet bið mid þet [perhaps read þen] halia gast itend.

?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 69 Ase þe þet seide to þe cnicht þe robbeð [etc.].

?c1225 Ancrene Riwle (Cleo.: Scribe B) (1972) 42 Me sire. þeo deð aswa þet is betere þenne ich am.

?c1250 (?c1175) Poema Morale (Egerton) l. 217 in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 294 Þe ðe [a1300 Jesus Oxf. þe þat] godes milce sechð, iwis he mai is [a1225 Lamb. ha] finde.

?c1250 (?c1175) Poema Morale (Egerton) l. 219 in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 294 Þe ðe [a1300 Jesus Oxf. Þe þat] deð his wille mest, he haueð wurst mede.

a1325 (?c1300) Northern Passion (Cambr. Gg.1.1) l. 596 (MED) Þe is vnwis þat þis ne dredes.

1340 Ayenbite (1866) 30 (MED) Þe þridde werre þet þe wreþuolle heþ is to þan þet byeþ onder him, þet is, to his wyue and to his mayne.

c1350 (a1333) William of Shoreham Poems (1902) 95 (MED) Þe þat seggeþ hyt nys nauȝt so, hare wyȝt hys al to þenne.

c1450 C. d'Orleans Poems (1941) 93 Neuyr more he chesen shalle princes Nor maystres, The who his hert consentid to hit has.

?c1450 Life St. Cuthbert (1891) 5626 Þe þat toke þe belt him fra, In his eyen he had..wa.

C. n.¹

With plural the's or thes. An instance of the word ‘the’.

1758 R. Dodsley Let. 2 Feb. (1988) 335 I thought there were too many the's.

1835 A. Symonds Mech. Law-making 393 The table must be read as if many ‘the's’ and short words were there.

1882 ‘M. Twain’ Stolen White Elephant 269 You [English] say ‘out of window’; we always put in a the.

1926 H. W. Fowler Dict. Mod. Eng. Usage 643/2 How common these superfluous thes are becoming in the newspapers.

1959 Amer. Speech 34 111 The Syrian student tends to put in the's where they are not needed.

1977 Guardian Weekly 4 Dec. 4/1 If you are really serious about something and want to be taken seriously yourself, never, ever, under any circumstances, sully its name by putting a ‘the’ in front of it.

2015 E. Gorokhova Russ. Tattoo 188 My doctoral dissertation about how non-native speakers acquire English articles, all those silly a's and the's.

This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2018; most recently modified version published online September 2022).

单词	the
释义	theadj.pron.²n.¹ (weak form, before consonants)Brit. /ðə/, U.S. /ðə/ (weak form, before vowels)Brit. /ði/, U.S. /ði/ (strong form, used to emphasize a contrast)Brit. /ðiː/, U.S. /ði/ Forms: 1. Inflected forms: singular. a. Nominative masculine. α. Old English (rare)–early Middle English sa, Old English (Northumbrian, rare)–early Middle English sæ, Old English–early Middle English se, Old English (rare and chiefly late)–early Middle English seo, early Middle English ze (south-eastern). eOE (Kentish) Will of Æðelnoð & Gænburg (Sawyer 1500) in A. J. Robertson Anglo-Saxon Charters (1956) 4 Æðelnoð se gerefa to Eastorege.eOE (Mercian) Vespasian Psalter (1965) ix. 23 (4) Irritauit dominum peccator : bismerað dryhten se synfulla.OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Mark x. 24 Iesus rursus respondens : sæ [OE Rushw. Gospels ðe] hælend eftersona ond[u]earde.OE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Tiber. B.iv) anno 755 Gehyrdon þæt þæs cyninges þægnas..þæt seo cyning ofslægen wæs.?a1160 Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1135 On þis gære for se king Henri ouer sæ.?a1200 (?OE) Peri Didaxeon (1896) 3 Sa ruwa ȝealle byð wexenda on þan innoþe.a1225 (?OE) MS Vesp. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 235 Þis is seo king.c1275 Kentish Serm. in J. Hall Select. Early Middle Eng. (1920) I. 214 Se king of gyus.1340 Ayenbite (1866) 117 Ze þet ne heþ þise uondinges. β. Old English (Northumbrian)–early Middle English ðe, Old English (Anglian, rare)–Middle English þe, late Old English þæ. For use in functions other than nominative singular masculine, as well as for nominative singular masculine instances in texts where this form type had become to a large extent generalized, see Forms 3aα. .OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Matt. ii. 3 Herodes rex : Herodes ðe cynig.OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Matt. ix. 15 Ait illis Iesus : cueð to him ðe hælend.OE (Mercian) Rushw. Gospels: Matt. ii. 9 Stella quam uiderant in oriente antecedebat eos : þe steorra þe hiae ær gesægon in eastdæle foreeade hię.lOE Let. of Bp. Denewulf to King Edward the Elder (Sawyer 1444) in W. de G. Birch Cartularium Saxonicum (1887) II. 282 Þonne biddæð þæ bisceop & þa hiwan on Wintanceastræ.a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 3 Hu þe helend nehlechede to-ward ierusalem. b. Nominative feminine. α. Old English sia (Kentish), Old English sio, Old English siu, Old English–early Middle English seo, Old English (Mercian)–early Middle English sie, late Old English–early Middle English se, early Middle English si (south-eastern), early Middle English syo, early Middle English zy (south-eastern). eOE tr. Orosius Hist. (BL Add.) (1980) ii. iv. 43 Seo ilce burg Babylonia, seo ðe mæst wæs & ærest ealra burga, seo is nu læst.eOE King Ælfred tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. (Otho) (2009) I. xxix. 520 Sio godcunde gesceadwisnes.OE (Mercian) Rushw. Gospels: Matt. xii. 13 Sicut altera [manus] : swa siu oþeru.OE West Saxon Gospels: Mark (Corpus Cambr.) xv. 40 Seo [c1200 Hatton sie] Magdalenisce Maria.lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1122 On þone lententyde..forbearn se burch.c1200 ( West Saxon Gospels: John (Hatton) xii. 17 Syo menio þe wæs mid him.a1225 (?OE) MS Vesp. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 233 Hwat deð si moder hire bearn.c1275 Kentish Serm. in J. Hall Select. Early Middle Eng. (1920) I. 216 Si Mirre signefiet uastinge.a1300 in Englische Studien (1900) 31 16 Si stille suge fret there grunninde mete.1340 Ayenbite (1866) 102 Zy þet ne serueþ bote to onlepy manne. β. Old English ðio (Northumbrian), Old English ðiu (Northumbrian), Old English ðy (Northumbrian), Old English–early Middle English þeo, Old English–early Middle English ðeo, late Old English þio, early Middle English þie (East Anglian), early Middle English þo (south-west midlands and south-western). In Middle English also found for the accusative (compare quot. a1200).OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: John ii. 1 Erat mater iesu ibi : uæs ðiu [OE Rushw. Gospels ðio] moder & ðe hælend ðer.OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: John v. 25 Uenit hora et nunc est : cymmes ðio tid & nu is.OE Blickling Homilies 65 Þeo deaþberende uncyst us is eallum to onscunienne.OE West Saxon Gospels: John (Corpus Cambr.) xix. 20 Þeo stow wæs gehende þære ceastre.a1200 MS Trin. Cambr. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 107 Þe giuenesse of sinne is þe beste giue, and þie giue he giueð ech man in þe fulluht; þe giue of eche [lif] on blisse is te fulle giue, and þeo giue he giueð mid þe holi husel.?a1200 ( tr. Pseudo-Apuleius Herbarium (Harl. 6258B) xliii. 89 Syyðe raðe sceal þeo sceonesse [read seocnesse] beon ut atoȝen þur micȝþan.a1225 ( Ælfric's Homily In Die Sancto Pentecosten (Lamb. 487) in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 87 Þa wes þon folce iset þo tid to estertide.a1250 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Nero) (1952) 126 Þeo heorte ne ethalt none wete of godes grace.c1275 (?c1250) Owl & Nightingale (Calig.) (1935) l. 26 Þo vle song hire tide.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 2001 Þeo uniseli moder. c. Nominative and accusative neuter Old English ðæt, Old English ðet (chielfy non-West Saxon and late), Old English þęt, Old English–Middle English þæt, Old English (chiefly late)–Middle English þat, Old English (rare)–Middle English þet, late Old English þad, Middle English that, Middle English þut (south-western). eOE tr. Orosius Hist. (BL Add.) (1980) i. i. 10 Is þæt land Cilia.eOE tr. Orosius Hist. (BL Add.) (1980) i. i. 11 Þæt hire æwielme..sie east irnende on þæt sond & þonne besince eft on þæt sand.OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 1st Ser. (Royal) (1997) xix. 328 Þæt ðridde gebed is.a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 7 Þat ebreisce folc sungen heore leof song.c1275 (?c1250) Owl & Nightingale (Calig.) (1935) l. 1259 Þah ich hi warni al þat ȝer.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 151 Þat child was ihaten Brutus.c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) l. 12014 Þo was þut lond in pes.1340 Ayenbite (1866) 2 Þet oþer heaued of þe beste of helle. d. Accusative masculine Old English (early Middle English in copy of Old English charter) ðæne, Old English–early Middle English þæne, Old English–early Middle English þene, Old English–early Middle English þone, Old English–early Middle English ðane, Old English–early Middle English ðene, Old English–early Middle English ðone, Old English–Middle English þane, late Old English (early Middle English in copy of Old English charter) thone, early Middle English tane (after d), early Middle English þage (transmission error), early Middle English þana, early Middle English þanne, early Middle English þænne, early Middle English þenne, early Middle English þeone, early Middle English þonne, early Middle English ðanne, early Middle English ðonne, early Middle English yene. In later use also found with indirect objects (compare Forms 1h), reflecting loss of distinction between the accusative and dative cases and perhaps also scribal uncertainty about final -e.eOE (Mercian) Vespasian Psalter (1965) iv. 4 Quoniam magnificauit dominus sanctum suum : ðætte gemiclað dryhten ðone halgan his.OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 1st Ser. (Royal) (1997) xxii. 362 Crist ableow þone [a1225 Lamb. þana] halgan gast uppon þam apostolon.lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) anno 1016 Eadric ealdormann gewende þa ðæne cyng ongean.lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1122 Þa com se fir on ufenweard þone stepel.a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 7 Þurh þene halie gast.a1225 ( Ælfric's Homily De Initio Creaturae (Vesp. A.xxii) in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 223 He worhte þa þane man mid his handen.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 1674 Mid Leir þanne kinge.c1300 Holy Cross (Laud) l. 252 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 8 Þene Nynþe day hom he cam.1340 Ayenbite (1866) 187 He ne may naȝt þolye þane guode smel..namore þanne þe boterel þanne smel of þe vine.c1350 (a1333) William of Shoreham Poems (1902) 4 Hit þorwe wasscheþ þane man Of senne. e. Accusative feminine Old English ða, Old English ðy (Northumbrian), Old English–early Middle English þa, late Old English tha, late Old English–early Middle English þæ, early Middle English þo. In Middle English also found for the nominative (compare quots. ?a1200 and a1225²). For later use as a generalized form see Forms 3aγ. .eOE tr. Bede Eccl. Hist. (Tanner) iii. xii. 196 Se biscop þa geseah þa eaðmodnesse þæs cyninges.OE West Saxon Gospels: John (Corpus Cambr.) xix. 17 On þa stowe.?a1200 (?OE) Peri Didaxeon (1896) 33 Þur þane wæten þa breorst [perhaps read breost] beoþ ȝeheafuȝede and þa heorte ȝe sydu byð ȝefullede mid yfele blode.a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 9 On þa ealde laȝe.a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 15 Hit wes þa laȝe.c1275 Kentish Serm. in J. Hall Select. Early Middle Eng. (1920) I. 216 We mowe habbe þo blisce of heueriche.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 16 He nom þa [c1300 Otho þe] Englisca boc þa [Otho þat] makede Seint Beda.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 2301 And nomen Godlac þene king & Delgan þæ quene.1340 Ayenbite (1866) 130 Þise byeþ..þe uour cornardyes þet amerreþ þo contraye þet god ssewede to zakarie þe profete. f. Genitive masculine and neuter. α. Old English þęs, Old English ðaes, Old English ðęs, Old English–early Middle English þæs, Old English (rare)–early Middle English þeos, Old English (chiefly non-West Saxon)–early Middle English þes, Old English–early Middle English ðas, Old English–early Middle English ðæs, Old English (chiefly Mercian)–early Middle English ðes, Old English–Middle English þas, late Old English thæs, late Old English (early Middle English in copy of Old English charter) þaes, early Middle English tes (after t, d), early Middle English thaes (in copy of Old English charter), early Middle English þæd (transmission error), early Middle English þegs (probably transmission error), early Middle English þese (in copy of Old English charter), early Middle English þess ( Ormulum), early Middle English þis (probably transmission error), early Middle English þos (south-west midlands, perhaps transmission error). OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 1st Ser. (Royal) (1997) xvii. 314 For ðæs folces hreddinge.OE tr. Orosius Hist. (Tiber.) (1980) i. iv. 24 On þæs cyninges dagum on Egyptum.lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1122 Þet wes þes dæies viii idus Martii.a1200 MS Trin. Cambr. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 23 He..sit on rihthalf þes almihtie faderes.c1200 ( West Saxon Gospels: Luke (Hatton) Luke i. 10 Eall wered þas folkes.c1275 (?c1250) Owl & Nightingale (Calig.) (1935) l. 338 Þu a dunest Þas monnes earen þar þu wunest.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 3769 Þurh þeos [c1300 Otho þes] sweordes wunde.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 405 To telde þæs [c1300 Otho þis] kinges.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 358 To þas [c1300 Otho þis] kinges ferde.a1300 Vision St. Paul (Jesus Oxf.) l. 210 in R. Morris Old Eng. Misc. (1872) 153 Þat wes þes feondes red.c1400 (?a1300) Kyng Alisaunder (Laud) (1952) l. 489 And settleþ sone after þas On stede þere þe quene was. β. early Middle English sæs, early Middle English ses. ?a1200 ( tr. Pseudo-Apuleius Herbarium (Harl. 6258B) clxxxi. 227 Wið þan yfele wæte sæs [OE Vitell. þæs] lichamæs.a1225 (?OE) MS Vesp. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 235 Ures hlafordes to-cyme ses helendes ihesu cristes. g. Genitive feminine Old English ðaere (Northumbrian), Old English ðere, Old English–early Middle English þare, Old English–early Middle English þære, Old English–early Middle English þere, Old English–early Middle English ðare, Old English–early Middle English ðære, late Old English þęre, early Middle English þara, early Middle English þaræ, early Middle English þarre, early Middle English ðer (before a vowel), Middle English þer (chiefly before a vowel). eOE tr. Orosius Hist. (BL Add.) (1980) i. i. 14 On oþre healfe þære eas.eOE tr. Bede Eccl. Hist. (Tanner) v. xii. 422 Bisscopseðl in his þere meran byrig, sio alde worde þere þiode his nemded [read is nemned] Wiltaburg.a1250 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Nero) (1952) 59 Iob cleopeð þer ancre hus nest.c1275 (?c1250) Owl & Nightingale (Calig.) (1935) l. 28 Hit was þare hule eardingstowe.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 168 Þere [c1300 Otho þe] quene cun Heleine.c1350 (a1333) William of Shoreham Poems (1902) 3 Mannys blod Hys ryȝt þer saule giste. h. Dative masculine and neuter. α. Old English thæm, Old English ðaem, Old English ðæm, Old English–early Middle English þam, Old English–early Middle English þæm, Old English–early Middle English þæn, Old English–early Middle English þem, Old English–early Middle English ðam, Old English (early Middle English in copy of Old English charter) ðæn, Old English–early Middle English ðem, early Middle English dan, early Middle English tan (after t, d), early Middle English ten (after t, d), early Middle English þaem (in copy of Old English charter), early Middle English þann, early Middle English þeon (south-west midlands), early Middle English þoen (in copy of Old English charter), early Middle English ðan, early Middle English ðen, early Middle English ðon, early Middle English yen, Middle English þan, Middle English þen (chiefly before a vowel in later use), Middle English þon, Middle English þun (south-western); N.E.D. (1912) also records a form Middle English thon. In later use also found with direct objects (compare Forms 1d), reflecting loss of distinction between the dative and accusative cases and perhaps also scribal uncertainty about final -e.OE (Mercian) Rushw. Gospels: Matt. viii. 24 In mari : on þæm sæ.OE Beowulf (2008) 143 Se þæm feonde ætwand.OE Ælfric Old Eng. Hexateuch: Gen. (Claud.) vi. 16 Binnan ðam arce.lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) anno 1087 Innan þam castele.a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 41 On þon deie.a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 121 Ibuhsum þan heuenliche federe to þa deðe.?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 54 Al þe lecun..of þen appel.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 4622 He redde þæn [c1300 Otho þan] kæisere.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 4068 Þu me smite bi þon [c1300 Otho þan] rugge.a1333 in C. Brown Relig. Lyrics 14th Cent. (1924) 25 Mon shal..deȝen at þen ende.c1350 (a1333) William of Shoreham Poems (1902) 121 Fram þan tyme he was ybore.c1380 Sir Ferumbras (1879) l. 2419 Ate laste þan gurdel he fond. β. early Middle English san. ?a1200 ( tr. Pseudo-Apuleius Herbarium (Harl. 6258B) cxxxii. 173 Seo wirt swa some san [OE Vitell. þam] silfan ȝeme[te] þane heafodece ȝeliþeȝað. i. Dative feminine Old English þęre, Old English ðara, Old English (early Middle English in copy of Old English charter) þaere, Old English–early Middle English þære, Old English–early Middle English þere, Old English (early Middle English in copy of Old English charter) ðaere, Old English–early Middle English ðare, Old English–early Middle English ðære, Old English–early Middle English ðere, Old English–Middle English þare, late Old English thære, late Old English þær (perhaps transmission error), early Middle English tare (after t, d), early Middle English ter (after t, d), early Middle English tere (after t, d), early Middle English þar, early Middle English þara, early Middle English þera, early Middle English þerere (transmission error), early Middle English þreo (transmission error), early Middle English ðer (before a vowel), Middle English þer (chiefly before a vowel). eOE King Ælfred tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. (Otho) (2009) I. xxxii. 535 Mid ðære ilcan spræce.OE West Saxon Gospels: John (Corpus Cambr.) xvii. 11 On ðære tide.?a1200 (?OE) Peri Didaxeon (1896) 5 By[n]d hy to þare wunda.a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 3 He com to þere dune.a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 31 Cume þenne to þer ilke chirche.a1225 (?OE) MS Vesp. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 235 To þar sawle.a1225 ( Ælfric's Homily De Initio Creaturae (Vesp. A.xxii) in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 225 Binnan þara birie.a1225 (c1200) Vices & Virtues (1888) 83 Spræng me mid tare ysope.c1275 (?c1250) Owl & Nightingale (Calig.) (1935) l. 31 [Þ]e niȝtingale..þuȝte wel wl of þare hule.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 2260 To þere [c1300 Otho þare] sæ.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 619 Mid þære [c1300 Otho þare] sæ.c1350 (a1333) William of Shoreham Poems (1902) 83 Þe sonne dym By-come in þare tyde. j. Instrumental (originally masculine and neuter) α. Old English þi, Old English þy, Old English ði, Old English ðy. Compare thy adv. (and also the adv.).OE Daniel 684 Wiste he ealdormen in unrihtum, ða ðe ðy rice rædan sceoldon.OE Waldere i. 24 Ne murn ðu for ði mece.OE Wærferð tr. Gregory Dialogues (Corpus Cambr.) (1900) iv. xxxvii. 318 Þa þy dæge ne mihte nan læce beon funden, ac þy æfterfylgendan nihte þæt lic læg unbebyrged. β. Old English þan, Old English þon, Old English ðan, Old English ðon. Already in Old English merged with the dative masculine and neuter (Forms 1h). Compare thon adv. (and also than pron.).eOE Bald's Leechbk. (Royal) (1865) i. xxxix. 100 Wiþ þon ilcan genim safinan.OE Exodus 134 Be þan readan sæ. 2. Inflected forms: plural. a. Nominative and accusative. α. Old English tha, Old English þæ (chiefly late), Old English ðæ (chiefly late), Old English–Middle English þa, Old English–Middle English ða, early Middle English ta (after t, d, s), early Middle English þea, early Middle English þeo, early Middle English tho, early Middle English þoa, early Middle English ðoa, early Middle English to (after t, d, s), early Middle English za (transmission error), Middle English þo, Middle English ðo. For later use as a generalized form see Forms 3aγ. .eOE Épinal Gloss. (1974) 24 Funestissima, tha deatlicostan.eOE Corpus Gloss. (1890) 58/2 Funestissima, ða deadlicustan.eOE (Mercian) Vespasian Psalter (1965) v. 4 (6) Neque permanebunt iniusti : ne ðorhwuniað ða unrehtwisan.a1200 MS Trin. Cambr. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 35 On þa wurhliche weden.a1225 (?c1175) Poema Morale (Lamb.) l. 103 in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 165 Þa swicen and ta forsworene.?c1250 (?c1175) Poema Morale (Egerton) l. 192 in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 293 He scal deme þo quike and to dede.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 2820 Þeo [c1300 Otho þe] cnihtes weoren vnwepned.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 1163 Þa [c1300 Otho þe] hehste of þan hirde.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 1011 He..scæwede þea [c1300 Otho þe] leoden. β. early Middle English sa. Also found with indirect objects (compare quot. ?a1200²).?a1200 (?OE) Peri Didaxeon (1896) 3 Þæt syndon sa ysene, þa mann mid curf unhæle [printed cnifun hæle] menn.?a1200 (?OE) Peri Didaxeon (1896) 11 To ðan sare þe abutan sa earan wycst.?a1200 (?OE) Peri Didaxeon (1896) 27 Wurm þanna sa handa & smyra þar mið. b. Genitive. α. Old English þeara, Old English ðaera (Northumbrian), Old English ðaere, Old English ðara, Old English ðæra, Old English ðære, Old English ðeara (chiefly Mercian), Old English ðęra (Northumbrian), Old English–early Middle English þara, Old English–early Middle English þæra, Old English–early Middle English þera, Old English–early Middle English þere, late Old English–early Middle English þære, early Middle English þaera (in copy of Old English charter), early Middle English þæræ, early Middle English þar, early Middle English þaræ, early Middle English þare, early Middle English þer, early Middle English þeræ, early Middle English þeren, early Middle English þeyre, early Middle English ðare, early Middle English ðæræ, early Middle English ðeræ, early Middle English ðere. OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 1st Ser. (Royal) (1997) i. 181 Ealra þæra þinga [a1225 Vesp. A.xxii þara þinge].OE Blickling Homilies 35 Ne bið þara fæstendaga na ma þonne syx & þritig.a1200 MS Trin. Cambr. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 129 Nan þere prophete þe ge wenen.a1200 MS Trin. Cambr. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 121 Þer apostlene lore.a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 133 Þurh ðere clerkene muðe.a1225 ( Ælfric's Homily De Initio Creaturae (Vesp. A.xxii) in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 229 An þera twelf Christes þeigne.a1291 in Anglia (1988) 106 412 Her lis arfaxat fader brandan ant kolmkilne ant cowhel þer halewe ant dame coroune moder þeyre halewe.a1300 Passion our Lord l. 372 in R. Morris Old Eng. Misc. (1872) 47 Schal ich þere gywene kyng lete gon al skere. β. early Middle English sara. ?a1200 ( tr. Pseudo-Apuleius Herbarium (Harl. 6258B) cxxxii. 173 Ac eac sara [OE Vitell. þæra] sina toȝunge to hæle ȝelædeð. c. Dative Old English þæm, Old English þem (Kentish), Old English ðaem, Old English ðæm, Old English–early Middle English þam, Old English–early Middle English þan, Old English–early Middle English ðam, Old English–early Middle English ðan, Old English–early Middle English ðem, late Old English–early Middle English þen, early Middle English pan (transmission error), early Middle English þæn, early Middle English þeon (south-west midlands), early Middle English þon, early Middle English ðen, early Middle English ðon, Middle English þane. OE tr. Orosius Hist. (Tiber.) (1980) i. i. 21 Be þæm gesetenessum [read gesetenum] iglandum.OE West Saxon Gospels: Mark (Corpus Cambr.) v. 2 Of þam byrgenum.a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 27 For þan deoflan.a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 139 To alle ðon monnen.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 376 Cuð he wes þen cnihten [c1300 Otho þeos cniþtes].c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 359 To þon cnihten [c1300 Otho to þe cniþtes].a1300 (c1250) Floris & Blauncheflur (Vitell.) (1966) l. 213 Seue hundred tures, witouten þan tuo, Þ[er] beþ.c1350 (a1333) William of Shoreham Poems (1902) 78 So holyche[rche], spouse of god, Sprang of þane wonden wyde. 3. Uninflected (generalized) forms. a. α. (a) Old English (rare)–1500s þe, early Middle English dhe, early Middle English se (transmission error), early Middle English þae, early Middle English þæ, early Middle English þea, early Middle English ðæ, early Middle English ðe, early Middle English we (transmission error), Middle English ȝe, Middle English he (transmission error), Middle English thee, Middle English thy, Middle English þee, Middle English þei, Middle English þey, Middle English þhe, Middle English þi, Middle English yee, Middle English yhe, Middle English ze, Middle English–1500s they, Middle English–1600s (1700s– archaic) ye, Middle English– the, 1900s ther (in representations of regional and nonstandard speech); English regional 1800s thee (Cheshire), 1800s thi (Northumberland); U.S. regional 1900s– thay, 1900s– they; Scottish pre-1700 ȝe, pre-1700 ȝhe, pre-1700 he, pre-1700 thee, pre-1700 thei, pre-1700 thie, pre-1700 thy, pre-1700 þe, pre-1700 ye (now archaic), pre-1700 yee, pre-1700 yhe, pre-1700 yi, pre-1700 1700s– the, 1800s thi', 1900s– tha, 1900s– thi; Irish English (northern) 1900s– tha; (b) (chiefly after t, d, s in early use) Middle English de, Middle English te; English regional 1700s–1800s te, 1700s–1800s teh, 1800s de, 1800s ta, 1800s tay, 1800s to (East Anglian); U.S. regional 1800s– de, 1900s– da, 1900s– duh; Scottish pre-1700 1700s– de, pre-1700 1800s te, 1700s– ta, 1800s– da (Shetland); Welsh English 1600s te; Caribbean 1900s– da, 1900s– de, 1900s– deh, 1900s– dey, 1900s– dhe, 1900s– di. Early Middle English þæ may sometimes alternatively show the reflex of Old English þā (accusative singular feminine, or nominative and accusative plural: compare Forms 1e, 2a).OE (Mercian) Rushw. Gospels: Matt. i. 22 Per essaiam prophetam dicentem : þurh esaiam þe witgu cweþende.OE Arundel Psalter cxvii. 27 Constituite diem solemnem : gesettaþ þe dæg symbelne.lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) anno 1020 Æðelnoð munuc..wæs þe ilcan geare þarto gehadod to biscop.lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1122 Se fir weax..up to þe heouene.?a1160 Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1132 Henri abbot..uureide þe muneces..to þe king..; þurh þe biscop of Seresbyri & te biscop of Lincol & te oþre rice men.., þa wiste þe king ðat he feorde mid suicdom.?a1160 Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1137 Martin..heold mycel carited in the hus & þoþwethere wrohte on þe circe.c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 1485 & gaddresst swa þe clene corn All fra þe chaff to geddre.a1225 (c1200) Vices & Virtues (1888) 41 Ðe dieule..ararð upp ðe wraððhes and þe cheastes and te bitere wordes.a1325 (c1250) Gen. & Exod. (1968) l. 2949 But if it were in ðe lond gersen, Ðor-inne woree [read woren] ðe ebrisse men.1389 in J. T. Smith & L. T. Smith Eng. Gilds (1870) 19 It is ordeynede yat alle ye bretheren and sisteren..shul comen to-geder..on ye day of seynt Katerine.a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 6859 Suilk was þi lessun and þi lare [Fairf. þe lessoun & þe lare].a1425 Rule St. Benet (Lansd.) (1902) 12 Sua sais te prophete.?c1450 Life St. Cuthbert (1891) 1491 It es vnstabill as ȝe se.a1525 ( Coventry Leet Bk. (1907) I. 185 Þat þey prior be not suffered to make no more off þe Stan wall vndur þey priory.1548 Hall's Vnion: Richard III f. xxvij^v Lo y^e honorable courage of a kyng.1657 in J. Stuart Sel. Rec. Kirk Aberdeen (1846) 234 Thie Provincial Assemblie laying to ther..consideration thie sadd..effectes.1744 E. Young Complaint: Night the Sixth 24 The almighty Fiat, and the Trumpet's sound.1814 W. Scott Waverley II. vi. 99 It was either ta mickle Sunday..or ta little government Sunday that they ca'd ta fast.a1825 R. Forby Vocab. E. Anglia (1830) Ta, te, to, art. or pron. the, this, that, it.1887 T. Darlington Folk-speech S. Cheshire 53 Go i' thee cellar an' fatch thee beer for thee men.1986 N.Y. Times 7 May a10/4 We reaffirm the continued importance of the case-by-case approach.2007 Leaflet (Health Promotion Agency for Northern Ireland) Gin yersel or anither bodie in tha hoose is no weel.2011 T. Bryan in A. Bissett & C. MacDougall New Writing Scotl. 29 10 Thit's hoo tae restore thi forest tae oor native reid [squirrel].2014 V. Bergin Rain xiv. 178 I..snatched the bottle from him. β. late Old English seo, late Old English–early Middle English se, early Middle English si (south-eastern). lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough interpolation) anno 656 Swa ðet nan man na haue þær nan onsting buton seo abbot & se muneces.lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough interpolation) anno 1114 Þet dugeð þet wæs on Englalande forð mid se cyng.lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1123 Se prior & se munecas of Cantwarabyrig..hit wiðcwæðen.lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1124 Þet wes for se miccle unfrið þet he heafde wið se king Loðewis of France & wið se eorl of Angeow & wið his agene men alremest.a1200 MS Trin. Cambr. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 31 Lusteð nu..hwu he se tiðinge teald[e].?a1200 (?OE) Peri Didaxeon (1896) 17 Nim ðanne se sealfe and smire mid þa lippa.a1225 (?OE) MS Vesp. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 239 Si hali rode tacne..þurh angles beoð forð ibrocht. γ. (a) late Old English–early Middle English ða, late Old English–Middle English þa, early Middle English ðeo (south-west midlands), early Middle English ðo, Middle English tha, Middle English theo (west midlands), Middle English tho, Middle English thoe, Middle English thoo, Middle English þaa, Middle English þeo (chiefly south-west midlands and south-western), Middle English þo, Middle English þoȝ, Middle English þoo, Middle English þowȝ, Middle English þu (East Anglian), Middle English ya (chiefly northern), Middle English yo (chiefly north midlands); Scottish pre-1700 tha, pre-1700 ya, pre-1700 yo; (b) chiefly after t, d, s early Middle English teo (south-west midlands), Middle English ta, Middle English to, Middle English too. lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough interpolation) anno 656 Ða þa kyning heorda þæt gesecgon, þa wærð he swiðe glæd.lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1131 On þa tun þa wæs tenn ploges oðer twelfe gangende, ne belæf þær noht an.a1225 (c1200) Vices & Virtues (1888) 47 Se..is ilich ðo manne ðe berð dust amidewarde ðe winde.c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 665 Ne beo þa dai na swa long.c1275 Kentish Serm. in J. Hall Select. Early Middle Eng. (1920) I. 216 So us defendet þo ileke þinges..fram þe amonestement of þo dieule.c1350 (a1333) William of Shoreham Poems (1902) 50 And water in ta bacyn.c1400 J. Wyclif On the Seven Deadly Sins (Bodl. 647) in Sel. Eng. Wks. (1871) III. 120 If a mon synne ageyne þo Holy Gost, hit may not be forgyven, more þen synne of þo fende.1447 O. Bokenham Lives of Saints (Arun.) (1938) 1710 His scep..in too dayes were his most cure.c1450 (c1415) in W. O. Ross Middle Eng. Serm. (1940) 46 Þe grace of almyghty God thorowght þoȝ besechyng of ys blessed modur..be with vs now.c1450 (c1415) in W. O. Ross Middle Eng. Serm. (1940) 113 Oure Ladie and all þowȝ seyntes þat been in heven.a1475 Liber Cocorum (Sloane) (1862) 19 Take þo kelkes of fysshe anon, And þo lyver of þo fysshe.a1500 tr. Lanfranc Sci. Cirurgie (Wellcome) f. 23 Abowe þe wounde of the fell lay a mundificatiue..that it over go þo wounde an vnche. δ. English regional (Surrey) 1800s 'ee; U.S. regional 1900s– 'ee (rare); Scottish (chiefly north-east central and northern) 1800s ey, 1800s– 'e, 1800s– ee, 2000s– i; Irish English (Wexford) 1700s ee, 1800s eee. 1789 C. Vallancey Vocab. Lang. Forth & Bargie in Trans. Royal Irish Acad. 1788 2 38 Up came ee ball.1873 J. A. H. Murray Dial. S. Counties Scotl. 26 In the West of Forfar and Fife, South of Perth, in Kinross, Clackmannan, etc., the article is regularly abbreviated into ee: ee haid ŏ ee toon,..pyt ee braid i' ee prêss.1890 A. C. Bickley Midst Surrey Hills II. xv Let 'ee words as did vor vather do vor son.1944 in H. Wentworth Amer. Dial. Dict. 632/2 When 'ee moon comes over 'ee mountain.1987 A. Fenton (title) Wirds an' wark 'e seasons roon, on an Aberdeenshire farm.2021 A. Lawrie in Lallans 99 48 Bit at’s i verra Thing I’m tryin tae tell ye. b. Combined (in contracted form) with a preceding or following word. α. (chiefly before a vowel in early use) Middle English tth-, Middle English þ-, Middle English y-, Middle English–1500s t-, Middle English– th- (now regional and poetic), 1600s t'-, 1600s– th' (now regional and poetic), 1600s– th'- (now regional and poetic); English regional (chiefly northern) 1700s–1800s d', 1800s 't, 1800s– t, 1800s– t', 1800s– th'; U.S. regional 1900s– th'; also Scottish pre-1700 th', pre-1700 th-, pre-1700 y. ?a1160 Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1140 Henri..s[pa]c wid Rodbert eorl & wyd þemperice.c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 5937 Tatt himm ummbeshorenn wass. hiss shapp o þalde wise.c1400 (?c1380) Patience l. 325 Þacces [emended in ed. to þ'acces] of anguych watȝ hid in my sawle.a1450 (a1338) R. Mannyng Chron. (Lamb.) (1887) i. l. 5734 Þapostles holy lyf.1485 Malory's Morte Darthur (Caxton) ii. xiii. sig. dv No thyng but thold custome of the castel.1485 in M. Oppenheim Naval Accts. & Inventories Henry VII (1896) 8 To be levied by thands of Thomas Combes.c1515 Ld. Berners tr. Bk. Duke Huon of Burdeux (1882–7) vi. 13 Out of temperours fauore.1529 Will of Thomas Cromwell in R. B. Merriman Life & Lett. T. Cromwell (1902) I. 58 Kept to thuse of my saide Soonne.1529 in Vicary's Anat. Bodie of Man (1888) App. ii. 100 M^r Whittington, scolmaster to thenxmen [i.e. henchmen].1533 T. More Apologye 283 More old than thage of eyght hundred yere.a1616 W. Shakespeare All's Well that ends Well (1623) v. iii. 245 Come, come, to' th' purpose.c1616 ( in T. Stapleton Plumpton Corr. (1839) p. cxx Sir Marmaduke Constable thelder, knight,..on thone partie, and Sir Robert Plompton..on thother partie.c1616 ( in T. Stapleton Plumpton Corr. (1839) p. ci The said lands..and t'ofice of the Steward.1645 J. Milton Il Penseroso in Poems 39 Gently o're th'accustom'd Oke.1699 in Shropshire Parish Reg.: Diocese of Lichfield (1901) II. 590 July 8. Peter Price, thelder..bur[ied].1763 ‘T. Bobbin’ Toy-shop (new ed.) To Rdr. p. xiii By th' Miss, th' owd story ogen.1883 T. Lees Easther's Gloss. Dial. Almondbury & Huddersfield at T Th' man i'th' mooin.1888 S. O. Addy Gloss. Words Sheffield 13 T' beeas has got into t' corn.1892 M. C. F. Morris Yorks. Folk-talk ii. 19 Gan inti d' hoos.1933 ‘B. Ross’ Trag. of Z vii. 109 I don't know what th' real stuff tastes like.2003 Picture (Sydney) 8 Jan. 40/1 I'm in th' mood for some ol' fashioned En-Zed lovin'!2007 J. McCourt Now Voyagers ix. 444 You done with that, an' yew tron it on th' floor? β. (after t) early Middle English e. c1225 (?c1200) Sawles Warde (Royal) (1938) 42 Wið þe feder ant e sune ant e [a1250 Titus te] hali gast. Origin: A word inherited from Germanic. Etymology: Use as definite article of the reduced and uninflected stem of the Old English demonstrative adjective and pronoun and definite determiner se (masculine, nominative; later þe ), sēo (feminine, nominative; later þēo ), þæt (neuter, nominative and accusative; compare that pron.¹, that adj.¹); the forms of this paradigm are cognate with: (masculine, feminine, and neuter nominative singular forms are cited for each language) Old Frisian thī , thiū (also thiō ), thet , Old Dutch thē , thiu (Middle Dutch (masculine and feminine) de , also die ; Dutch de ), that (Middle Dutch dat ; in modern Dutch replaced by het ), Old Saxon thē (also thie , se ), thiu , that (Middle Low German dē , dǖ , dat ), Old High German der , diu , daz (Middle High German der , diu , daz , German der , die , das ), (in all West Germanic languages showing a range of functions broadly similar to those in Old English), and also Old Icelandic sá , sú , þat (and cognate forms in other North Germanic languages, used as demonstrative pronoun), and Gothic sa , so , þata (used as demonstrative pronoun). For use in relative constructions in Germanic see discussion at that pron.² For other later English words based on forms from this paradigm see that pron.¹, adj.¹, adv., and n., that pron.², that conj., and (now obsolete or only in regional use) , that adj.², tho adv., thes adv., than pron., thy adv. and pron., thon adv. and pron.¹, tho pron.¹ and adj., tho pron.², thae adj. and pron.; see also (ultimately derived from forms from this paradigm) this pron., adj., and n., those pron. and adj., and these pron. and adj. The English and other Germanic forms parallel and are cognate with Greek ὁ , ἡ , τό (definite determiner), Avestan hō , hā , tat̰ , and Sanskrit saḥ , sā , tat . In each of these languages, all the inflectional parts except the nominative singular masculine and feminine reflect an Indo-European stem to- (Germanic þa- ). For other English words showing this stem see the adv., the conj. and pron.¹, than conj., then adv., thenne adv. (and thence adv.), there adv., n., and int., thither adv. and adj., and (via early Scandinavian) the personal pronoun they pron. The nominative singular masculine in Old English (as also in North Germanic, East Germanic, Sanskrit, Avestan, and Greek), belongs to another demonstrative stem, Indo-European so- (Germanic sa-), found also in Early Irish -so, clitic demonstrative particle. In all of these languages except Old English, the nominative singular feminine is formed on this same stem. In Old English, it shows a distinct stem si-. In English, the masculine and feminine nominative singular forms show remodelling in þ-, by analogy with all of the other forms in the paradigm. This is found already in the 10th cent. in the Northumbrian dialect of Old English, but the replacement was very gradual across different dialects (see below), although it is likely that spoken colloquial use differed from the conservative practice of scribes. Similar remodelling (at a date preceding the earliest surviving records) is probably shown by the equivalent forms in all other West Germanic languages, with the exception of some dialects of Old Saxon.The paradigm of the definite article and simple demonstrative in Old English. The pattern in Old English can be summarized as follows: Singular, masculine: nominative sē (unstressed se ; also, in Anglian, ðe ), accusative þone* (also þane ), genitive þæs , dative þǣm (also þām ), instrumental þȳ , þon (also þan ). Singular, feminine: nominative sēo (also, in Northumbrian ðīu ), accusative þā , genitive þǣre , dative þǣre . Singular, neuter: nominative þæt , accusative þæt , genitive þæs , dative þǣm (also þām ), instrumental þȳ , þon (also þan ). Plural: nominative þā , accusative þā , genitive þāra (also þǣra ), dative þǣm (also þām ). See further A. Campbell Old Eng. Gram. (1959) §708, R. M. Hogg & R. D. Fulk Gram. Old Eng. (2011) II. §§5.4–8, D. Ringe & A. Taylor Devel. Old Eng. (2014) 389–90. For discussion of functions of individual forms see further that pron.¹, adj.¹, adv., and n., that pron.², tho pron.¹ and adj., than pron., thy adv. and pron., and thon adv. and pron.¹ Compare also the adv. Note on Old English usage. In Old English texts it can be difficult to tell in some contexts whether the word is being used as a determiner to indicate definiteness or as a demonstrative, a distinction which may rest only on the degree of stress on the word, which is not reflected in writing; instances of such ambiguity persist into early Middle English. In Old English verse, the word is not obligatory in definite use, apparently reflecting an earlier stage when use as definite article was not yet grammaticalized. Specific forms. For assimilatory change of initial þ to t after a word ending in a dental or s see T n. 7. The form ye in modern use as an archaism (see Forms 3aα. ) is frequently pronounced (either facetiously or through lack of awareness of its origin) as /jiː/, especially in the collocation ye olde adj. Development of the modern uninflected form. The initial þ- was occasionally extended to nominative singular masculine already in Old English, especially in Northumbrian (see Forms 1aβ. ). The resulting form þe was then extended beyond nominative singular masculine to other genders and cases both singular and plural, with rare examples attested already in Old English (see Forms 3aα. ). The spread of this form becomes pronounced in the latest Old English and earliest Middle English sources. Frequency of generalized þe at the expense of the reflexes of the historically expected forms increases over time (with north-east midland and East Anglian texts normally showing a more advanced state of replacement), with these forms disappearing almost entirely after the first quarter of the 14th cent. The last major texts where traces of the historical paradigms are found with any frequency are the Ayenbite of Inwit and the poems of William of Shoreham (both Kentish). After the mid 14th cent., reflexes of the historically expected forms survive only in set phrases and adverbial uses (compare, for example, thes adv., than pron., or variants of at the ale at ale n. Phrases 2). Alternative generalizations of forms other than þe are also found: compare the occasional levelling of Old English sē , sēo (originally forms of the nominative singular masculine and feminine: see Forms 1aα. and 1bα. ), which leaves no trace after the early 13th cent. (see Forms 3aβ. ); and the more extensive levelling of þā , the original Old English form of the nominative and accusative plural and accusative singular feminine (Middle English þa , þo : see Forms 3aγ. ). In Middle English, generalized forms of the þa , þo type are rarer than those of the þe type, with both types often occurring in the same texts. Such forms become very rare in the second half of the 15th cent., and disappear by the end of that century. The forms at Forms 3aδ. reflect loss of initial th- in low-stress positions, and are especially characteristic of northern and north-eastern varieties of Scots (compare ζ. forms at they pron., adj., adv., and n., δ. forms at their adj. and pron., etc.). Specific senses. In sense A. 2b apparently showing substitution of the for to prep. in today , etc. With use preceding names of ships (see sense A. 5e) compare earlier examples with the Anglo-Norman definite article (preceding post-classical Latin, Anglo-Norman, Middle English, and ambiguous names), sometimes with a noun denoting a ship type, in e.g. le Hulc Sancte Marie (1225), but also independently, in e.g. la Planet (1242), la Christemasse (1253). Compare also the use of the Old Icelandic definite article -inn with the names of some medieval Scandinavian ships, e.g. Krosssúðinn , Mariusúðinn (both early 14th cent.; compare súð ship's board, ship). With use in Irish English and Scots preceding a language name (see sense A. 6) compare note at Gaelic n. on similar usage in Celtic languages. A. adj. Definite article (determiner). I. Referring to an individual item (or items). * Marking an item as having been mentioned before or as already known, or as contextually particularized (e.g. They escaped in a car. The car was later found abandoned or I had some in a jar but it all leaked out through the lid). 1. a. Before a noun in ordinary general use. Π OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Matt. ii. 9 Supra ubi erat puer : ofer ðer uel hwer wæs ðe cnæht [OE Rushw. Gospels se cneht]. OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 1st Ser. (Royal) (1997) xxv. 382 Ða magas setton þam cilde naman Zacharias, ac seo modor him wiðcwæð. OE West Saxon Gospels: John (Corpus Cambr.) ii. 7 Þæt hig þa fatu mid wætere gefyldon. lOE St. Margaret (Corpus Cambr.) (1994) 166 Se gerefa het þæt me him þæt mæden toforen brohte. c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 1082 He toc þe recless & te blod & ȝede upp to þatt allterr. a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 133 Sum of þe sede feol an uppe þe stane..sum bi þe weie. c1300 (c1250) Floris & Blauncheflur (Cambr.) (1966) l. 152 Bi þat hit was middai hiȝ, Floriz was þe brigge niȝ. 1340 Ayenbite (1866) 186 Wel ssolle we habbe reuþe..þe on of þe oþre. c1405 (c1387–95) G. Chaucer Canterbury Tales Prol. (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 845 The sothe is this, the Cut fil to the knyght. a1450 Seven Sages (Cambr. Dd.1.17) (1845) l. 10 The emperour and is wif Lovenden the child as hare lyf. 1530 Myroure Oure Ladye (Fawkes) (1873) ii. 140 There ys a dyfference bytwypte [read bytwyxte] an hyghe waye, and a bypathe, for the hyghe waye ys large and commune to all. 1566 W. Adlington tr. Apuleius .XI. Bks. Golden Asse vii. xxxi. She toke a great barre..and neuer ceased beatinge of me till she was so weary y^t the barre fell out of her handes. 1603 R. Knolles Gen. Hist. Turkes 120 In strugling with him for the knife,..hee hurt himselfe therewith. 1695 W. Congreve Love for Love iv. i. 65 What's the matter now? 1740 D. Hume Treat. Human Nature III. iii. 277 Means to an end are only valued so far as the end is valued. 1767 ‘A. Barton’ Disappointment i. i. 13 He brought up the wine. 1818 W. Cruise Digest Laws Eng. Real Prop. (ed. 2) V. 494 That the recovery enured to the uses of the settlement, and therefore that the purchaser had no title. 1857 Househ. Words 18 Apr. 372/1 A cat is in a cart, and the wind blows over the cat. 1902 J. Gairdner Eng. Church 16th Cent. (1903) viii. 149 He re-considered the matter. 2014 V. Bergin Rain xiv. 178 I..snatched the bottle from him. b. Placed before pronouns and determiners. the which: see which adj. and pron. the one: see one adj., n., and pron. (cf. also tone pron. and adj.). the other: see other adj., pron., n., and adv.² (cf. also tother pron. and adj.).Pronominal the one also frequently occurs before a particularizing relative clause: cf. sense A. 13. 2. a. Used before a word denoting time, as the day, hour, moment: the day, hour, moment, etc., in question or under consideration; the time (now or then) present. Also (Irish English) the Christmas.In later use chiefly in idiomatic uses.the time: see time n. 5c. the while: see while n. 2. ΚΠ OE Wærferð tr. Gregory Dialogues (Corpus Cambr.) (1900) iv. xxxvii. 318 Þa þy dæge ne mihte nan læce beon funden, ac þy æfterfylgendan nihte þæt lic læg unbebyrged. a1275 Doomsday (Trin. Cambr.) in C. Brown Eng. Lyrics 13th Cent. (1932) 43 Foure engles in þe dairet blouit here bemen. c1300 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Otho) (1963) l. 843 (MED) Alle dai hii..resden to þan castle Fort him com þe niþte..In þan castle..at þe midniþt [c1275 Calig. a þa mid-niht] inomen to rede. a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Trin. Cambr.) l. 3889 Þe while holde lya in bedde þenne shal þou rachel wedde. c1405 (c1390) G. Chaucer Reeve's Tale (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 314 Aleyn wax wery in the dawenynge For he hadde swonken al the longe nyght. c1540 J. Bellenden tr. Livy Hist. Rome (1903) II. v. xxiii. 227 Þe said voce was contempnit and necleckit in þe tyme. 1616 J. Lane Contin. Squire's Tale viii. 213 And, iust at thinstant, all the canons plaien From towne to Campe, from Camp to towne againe. 1780 Mirror No. 76. ⁋3 He comes there only as he does to the coffee-house, to enquire after the news of the day. 1848 C. Dickens Dombey & Son liv. 543 At the moment, the bell rang loudly in the hall. 1864 Ld. Tennyson Aylmer's Field in Enoch Arden, etc. 61 A tongue that ruled the hour. 1866 J. H. Newman Dream of Gerontius (ad fin.) And I will come and wake thee on the morrow. 1922 D. H. Lawrence Aaron's Rod (N.Y. ed.) xii. 137 Having no job for the autumn, Aaron fidgetted in London. 1927 Amer. Mercury Nov. 351/2 These things are mere fads of the hour. 1949 K. Ferrier Let. 18 May (2004) iii. 79 I pointed out they hadn't put up my fee..and got it put up on the instant! 1995 J. Murphy Brothers of Brush i. ii, in Two Plays (2001) 97 I'll give him a bit of work for the Christmas. 2015 J. Colgan Summer at Little Beach Street Bakery xx. 299 He could start at Polly's at five, do his rounds and be finished with his two jobs for the day by nine. b. Chiefly Scottish, Irish English, and English regional (northern), and U.S. regional. Before day, morn, morrow, night used adverbially, with the force of to- in today, tomorrow, tonight: see day n. Phrases 9e, morn n. 3d, morrow n. 2c, night n. and int. Phrases 1a(c)(a). the year: this year.the streen: see β. forms at yestreen adv. and n. ΚΠ a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 702 Þe sun was þat time..Seuen sith brighter þen þe dai [Gött. to-day]. 1572 (a1500) Taill of Rauf Coilȝear (1882) 301 Cum the morne to the Court. 1597 A. Montgomerie Cherrie & Slae sig. C^v Defferrand of the day, may not be mend the morne. 1669 Hist. Sir Eger 45 The streen to chamber I him led. 1692 ‘J. Curate’ Sc. Presbyterian Eloquence iii. 106 I have brought him to you the day. 1725 A. Ramsay Gentle Shepherd iii. iii. 48 Lets steal frae ither now and meet the Morn. 1768 A. Ross Fortunate Shepherdess i. 52 Tell me gin ye saw twa men the day, The tane wi' yellow hair, the tither gray? 1776 D. Herd Anc. & Mod. Sc. Songs (ed. 2) II. 189 I winna be married the year. 1808 W. Watson Misc. Sc. Poetry 17 A Chryston weaver canna buy Himsel' a marte the year. 1814 W. Scott Waverley II. xix. 289 But we maun a' live the day, and have our dinner. View more context for this quotation 1851 J. J. Hooper Widow Rugby's Husband 159 No, sir, I'm with me House, sir; and if any man gits more'n that out ov me the night, he'll rise betimes in the mornin'. 1895 Dial. Notes 1 394 The year, for this year. Springdale, Pa. 1896 Cosmopolitan Aug. 376/2 I'll gie him twa or three lines o' my mind the morn. 1914 Dial. Notes 4 112 The, used for to, in the day, the night, the morrow. 1945 A. Fraser Second Crop viii And my turnips, Mr Thomson, will you be seeking them the year? 1949 Scots Mag. July 287 We'll get tea the morn off the van. 1974 People's Jrnl. 29 June (Inverness & Northern Counties ed.) 9/4 Where's everybody the night, Joe? 1978 B. T. Hiser Quare Do's in Appalachia v. 27 Tell that John Bill what you've seed me do the day. 1978 B. T. Hiser Quare Do's in Appalachia viii. 43 I'm a goin to the trustees the morrow and lay a complaint. 1987 C. Reid Joyriders ii. i, in Plays: One (1997) 144 She'll be day dreamin' all day the morra. 2002 I. Welsh Porno (2003) ix. 110 Ali's been tae the hairdresser's the day and hud her hair cut shorter. c. Used before numerals denoting years.Now only (often with ellipsis of the hundreds of a century) either in reference to certain historical events (e.g. fifteen adj. 2, forty-five n.), or in expressions denoting a particular decade of a century, or of a person's life.See further eighty adj. 2b, fifty n. 2b, forty n. 1b, nineties n., etc. Π 1576 A. Golding tr. Lyfe Shatilion sig. Av^v The next yeere following which was the .1554. the Emperor of Germanie Charles the fifth, & Marie Queene of England ioyning their forces togither, made sore and sharp warre vppon Henrye King of Fraunce. 1651 Remonstr. Presbyterie of Sterling 9 We remember in the 1646. or thereabouts, albeit necessitie was pleaded by the Committee of Estates, for the Capitulation with James Graham and his Adherents. 1704 Vindic. Episcopal Addr. Gen. Assembly, 1692 6 The Government of the Established Church is the very same as it was in the Nintie Two. 1724 R. Wodrow Life J. Wodrow (1828) 60 Elizabeth died..about the 1684 of a consumption. a1776 Ld. Auchinleck in Scotch Acts (1844) I. Pref. 188 I take this Manuscript to have been wrote before the 1500, and it is clear it was not wrote before the 1455. a1797 H. Walpole Mem. George II (1846) I. 266 A man engaged in the former rebellion or as the Scotch call it in the Fifteen. 1824 W. Scott Redgauntlet II. xi. 247 Ye have heard of a year they call the forty-five. 1880 R. Broughton Second Thoughts II. iii. iv. 157 I know that I am somewhere in the fifties, and that I was born on a Monday. 1889 R. B. Anderson tr. V. Rydberg Teutonic Mythol. 9 A series of works published in the fifties and sixties. 1904 Hist. Ottawa Collegiate Inst. 1843–1903 vi. 75 In the earliest printed constitution, undated, but evidently in the early eighties. 1953 Manch. Guardian 25 May 2/3 Until he was well into the seventies, Lord Ebbisham played cricket regularly. 1999 K. Hart Samuel Johnson & Culture of Prop. i. 11 A grisly reminder of the Forty-Five. 2013 L. Edwards In Kingdom of Sick (2014) iii. 63 Working in the corporate world in the 1980s and '90s, she witnessed an evolution in understanding of disability. 3. a. Before a noun denoting a thing or person that is unique or considered to be unique, or of which there is only one at a time (e.g. the sun, the earth, the sea, the sky, the air, the world, the universe, the Almighty, the Lord, the Saviour, the Devil, the Emperor, the Pope, the Net, the Web, etc.). Π eOE Metres of Boethius (2009) xxvi. 6 Aulixes under hæfde ðæm casere cynericu twa. OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: John iv. 6 Iesus ergo fatigatus ex itinere sedebat : se hælend [OE Rushw. Gospels ðe hælend] forðon uoerig uæs..of geong sittende uæs uel gesætt. OE Ælfric De Temporibus Anni (Cambr. Gg.3.28) (2009) viii. 90 Seo sæ & se mona geðwærlæcað him betweonan. ?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 67 Þe deouel..is leas & leasunge fader. a1250 Ureisun ure Louerde (Lamb.) in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 185 Iwend me from the worlde. a1350 (a1250) Harrowing of Hell (Harl.) (1907) l. 228 (MED) Ich am moyses..þat hueld þe lawes þat þou byhete, þat þou ihesu..woldest to þe helle come. a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) v. l. 1773 (MED) For be that cause the godhede Assembled was to the manhede In the virgine. c1400 Brut (Rawl. B. 171) 33 Þe Emperoure..he..ordeynede a stronge power. c1475 (?c1400) Apol. Lollard Doctr. (1842) 28 Bi lawe..of þe kirk,..ilk prest haþ þe same power to vse þe key in to ani man in þo poynt of deþ, as þe pope. a1500 (?c1440) J. Lydgate Horse, Goose & Sheep (Lansd.) l. 171 in Minor Poems (1934) ii. 546 (MED) Whan wilde gees hihe in the ayer vp fleen, A pronostik o[f] snow & wedris colde. 1549 Bk. Common Prayer (STC 16270) Communion f. xxvii^v Who wyll geue thee thankes in the pyt? 1580 in Publ. Catholic Rec. Soc. (1905) 1 69 To the Tuission of Thallmightie. 1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene i. i. sig. A7^v The Sunne that measures heauen all day long. 1611 Bible (King James) Psalms xxiv. 1 The earth is the Lords, and the fulnesse thereof. View more context for this quotation 1654 R. Flecknoe Ariadne deserted by Theseus 3 Any Pow'rs Beyond this Sphere of ours, In Heav'n, or the Abyss, To punish crimes like this. 1709 J. Addison Tatler No. 119. ⁋2 While you are admiring the Sky in a Starry Night. 1757 J. H. Grose Voy. E.-Indies ii. 318 An act which..the Romish priests in those parts..attribute to the power and craft of the Devil. 1842 Ld. Tennyson Beggar Maid ii As shines the moon in clouded skies. 1931 Pittsburgh Courier 12 Dec. 6/3 We wondered why the Almighty would suffer such to be. 1995 Newsweek 31 July 8/4 For those who can't make it to the exhibits, a selection of the photos is available on the Web. 2015 BBC Focus Aug. 26/3 It seems the Universe may not end with a bang or a whimper. b. Before a noun denoting a natural phenomenon, a season, etc. (e.g. the spring, the summer, the autumn, the winter, the day, the night; the wind, the cold, the clouds, the rain, the fog, etc.). Also: before a noun denoting any of the points of the compass (e.g. the north, the east). Π OE Old Eng. Martyrol. (Julius) 7 Nov. (2013) 212 Se winter hafað tu ond hundnigontig daga. OE Ælfric De Temporibus Anni (Cambr. Gg.3.28) (2009) x. 94 Se wind hæfð mislice naman on bocum. a1200 MS Trin. Cambr. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 9 (MED) Ðe niht is forðgon and dai neihlecheð. a1300 Vision St. Paul (Jesus Oxf.) l. 74 in R. Morris Old Eng. Misc. (1872) 149 (MED) Mo saulen þolieþ þer sucche wowe Þane be floþre in þe snowe. c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Matt. ii. 2 We han seyn his sterre in the este. a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) v. l. 5945 (MED) A nyhtingale..Which in the wynter is noght sene. a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 3384 Þai held..þe landes þat war til-ward þe est. c1400 (?c1380) Cleanness (1920) l. 953 Þe rayn rueled adoun, ridlande þikke. c1450 Alphabet of Tales (1904) I. 106 Vppon a fayr day, whar þe wynde blew. a1500 ( J. Yonge tr. Secreta Secret. (Rawl.) (1898) 142 (MED) The coldis and the hetis of the Somer and the wyntyr helpyth to the Spryngynge and the bourgynge of naturall thyngis. ?1566 W. P. tr. C. S. Curio Pasquine in Traunce f. 77^v He..is brought forth..into the sunne shyne. 1653 H. Holcroft tr. Procopius Gothick Warre iv. 135 in tr. Procopius Hist. Warres Justinian He staid till the winter was past. 1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Georgics iii, in tr. Virgil Wks. 107 They That wing the liquid Air; or swim the Sea, Or haunt the Desart. View more context for this quotation 1785 W. Cowper Task i. 749 God made the country, and man made the town. 1791 W. Cowper tr. Homer Odyssey in Iliad & Odyssey II. ix. 194 The rosy-finger'd daughter of the dawn. 1820 J. Hogg Winter Evening Tales II. 328 When the gloaming came, I began to weary. 1867 J. R. Browne Land of Thor xlli. 408 Frequent and terrible gales from the north. 1949 V. Bell Sel. Lett. (1993) 521 At first the heat was terrific and one could only walk a few yards and collapse from exhaustion. 2015 A. Jordan Edible Memory iv. 113 That summer morning, the fog was so thick I had the windshield wipers on. †c. Before an abstract noun. See also death n. 2, life n. 7, Phrases 5a. Obsolete. Π eOE King Ælfred tr. Gregory Pastoral Care (Hatton) (1871) iii. 35 On ðære gesundfulnesse mon forgiett his selfes. OE Ælfric Lives of Saints (Julius) (1881) I. 306 Se wisdom is selra þone scinende gold. c1225 (?c1200) St. Juliana (Royal) l. 569 (MED) Leaueð þe lease ant luuieð þe soðe. c1330 (?a1300) Kyng Alisaunder (Auch.) (1952) l. 185 Amiramis..wan þe cite wiþ al þe honour And XV. kingriches tut entour. a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) iv. l. 1915 (MED) The destine it hath so schape, That he schal noght the deth ascape. a1400 in F. J. Furnivall Polit., Relig., & Love Poems (1903) 257 Ase..roust on þe knife, and ase deþ to þe life. 1490 Caxton's Blanchardyn & Eglantine (1962) xxiii. 74 So cam he toward blanchardyn..And gaff hym the goode nyght. 1490 Caxton's Blanchardyn & Eglantine (1962) xxi. 70 The prouost..cam sone toward the proude mayden in amours, and made to her the reuerence. a1500 tr. Thomas à Kempis De Imitatione Christi (Trin. Dublin) (1893) 146 Þe pes stondiþ more in very mekenes þan in propre exaltacion. 1525 Ld. Berners tr. J. Froissart Cronycles II. ccxxiii. [ccxix.] 695 If Lamorabaquy wolde gyue them the herynge. 1588 W. Allen Admon. to Nobility & People 11 A verie fable to the posterite. 1676 M.D. tr. F. Bacon Novum Organon 6 He rejects difficult things, through impatiency of inquiry; sober things, because they confine the hope. 1848 P. Boyd tr. Bk. Ballads from German 45 How they fought for ‘the Freedom—the Right!’ 4. Before a noun denoting one of a class of persons, things, events, etc., used to indicate a particular instance that is most relevant in the context.When the word denotes a person, thing, event, etc., of public importance it assumes something of the character of a proper name, and is often written with a capital letter, e.g. the Queen, the Lord Mayor, the Town, the House, the Court, the Tower, the Abbey, the River, the Channel, the Flood, the Reformation, the Revolution, the Enlightenment.In quots. OE¹, a1225² with reference to the gospel of the day at gospel n. 3. Π OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 2nd Ser. (Cambr. Gg.3.28) iv. 31 Nis gecweden on ðam godspelle þæt ða wæterfatu sume heoldon twyfealde gemetu. OE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Tiber. B.i) anno 986 Her se cyning fordyde þæt bisceoprice æt Hrofeceastre. ?a1160 Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1140 Sume helden mid te king & sume mid þemperice. a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 3 Segged þet þe lauerd haued þar-of neode. a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 5 Ȝe iherden er on þe godspel hu ure drihten sende his .ii. apostles. c1300 St. Edward Elder (Laud) l. 193 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 52 Go..to Schafteburi to þe Abbesse of þe house. c1390 King of Tars (Vernon) l. 884 in Englische Studien (1889) 11 56 Forþ wente sire Cleophas To þe court þorw godes gras. 1485 Device Coronation Henry VII in W. Jerdan Rutland Papers (1842) 22 The King and the Quene..shall retourne to their seages roiall and of estate, in the said pulpitt. 1525 Ld. Berners tr. J. Froissart Cronycles II. f. xxxiv/1 Without any busynesse or reencounter we came to the captall. a1568 R. Ascham Scholemaster (1570) i. f. 21^v Ye great ones in y^e Court. 1621 H. Elsynge Notes Deb. House of Lords (1870) 16 To make his answere here at the barre. a1684 J. Evelyn Diary anno 1666 (1955) III. 463 The Queene was..in her Cavaliers riding habite. 1689 N. Luttrell Diary in Brief Hist. Relation State Affairs (1857) I. 557 The house of commons..ordered..that the then judges should attend the house. 1751 Impartial Relation Late Parish Trans. ix. 98 A Scotch Highland Bag-piper was procur'd..on Easter-Monday, the Day before the Election. 1779 Lady's Mag. Oct. 507/2 After tea she asked me if I liked a walk to the wood, to which I very readily assented. 1837 F. Palgrave Merchant & Friar (1844) Ded. 1 Any bibliopolist, in or out of the Row. 1845 B. Disraeli Sybil II. iv. i. 145 ‘Are you going down to the house, Egerton?’ inquired Mr. Berners at Brookes' of a brother M.P. 1875 Ld. Tennyson Queen Mary i. i. 4 He swears by the Rood. 1904 V. Bell Sel. Lett. (1993) 12 It does seem ages since I saw you off at the station. 1959 Irish Times 3 Nov. 1/3 Wendy..was turned away by the headmaster because she was wearing high-heeled shoes. 1991 Shooting Times 18 Apr. 6/1 The government has encouraged Britain's farmers to consider shooting and other fieldsports as a potential source of income. 2013 L. Moriarty Husband's Secret 326 Just go to the shop, Mum, and get some butter. 5. Before proper names. a. Before the names of geographical entities, frequently with ellipsis of a word modified by the name (as river, mountains, islands, etc.): (a) rivers (e.g. the Missouri, the Nile, the Severn); (b) mountain ranges (e.g. the Andes, the Drakensberg, the Hindu Kush); (c) groups of islands (in the plural) (e.g. the Azores, the Hebrides); (d) certain countries (e.g. the Argentine (now archaic), The Gambia); (e) regions (e.g. the Camargue, the Tyrol, the Sahara); (f) (Irish English) counties (e.g. the County Cavan); (g) certain topographical features, especially some mountains (e.g. the Jungfrau, the Matterhorn, the Lizard); (h) streets (e.g. the High Street, the Banbury Road, or with ellipsis the High); (i) numbers denoting major roads (e.g. (North American) the 401, (British) the M1, the A34).Many proper names occur in variants with and without the, and practice has varied considerably over time. In particular, use with country names has declined considerably; for instance, the Ukraine was once common but is now widely considered nonstandard.Some particular names in these categories occur rarely if at all with the (e.g. mountain names with the are today confined largely to the names of major mountains in the Alps). Π OE Acct. Voy. Ohthere & Wulfstan in tr. Orosius Hist. (Tiber.) (1980) i. i. 16 Seo Wisle is swyðe mycel ea, & hio tolið Witland & Weonodland..; & seo Wisle lið ut of Weonodlande. lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) anno 1099 Willelm..ofer sæ for & þone eorl Elias of þære Manige [i.e. Maine] adraf. a1250 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Nero) (1952) 149 (MED) Tet folc of israel wende þuruhut þe reade see. c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) l. 4740 Wippe was king of þe march & adelfred of humberlond. a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1872) IV. 207 (MED) Iulius come to þe Capitoil, and was i-stiked þoruȝ, and hadde þre and twenty woundes, and deyde. a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 4778 Iacob yode walcand be þe nile. a1439 J. Lydgate Fall of Princes (Bodl. 263) vi. l. 2880 (MED) This marcial prince..Passyng the Alpies rood thoruh Germanye. a1500 in C. Brown Relig. Lyrics 15th Cent. (1939) 201 Prynce of knythode throwoute the grete breteyne..Holy seynt Albon, thou settest but in veyne Al worldly pomp. 1555 R. Eden Two Viages into Guinea in tr. Peter Martyr of Angleria Decades of Newe Worlde f. 350^v We had syght of Teneriffa and of the Canaries. 1573 H. W. in G. Gascoigne Hundreth Sundrie Flowres 202 From my lodging nere the Strande the xx. of Ianuary. 1632 P. Massinger & N. Field Fatall Dowry ii. sig. D3^v I would they were the Burmudas. 1653 H. Holcroft tr. Procopius Gothick Warre ii. 43 in tr. Procopius Hist. Warres Justinian When the Vesuvius casts out cynders. 1762 Ann. Reg. 1761 Characters 52/1 The Devizes. 1785 W. Cowper Task iii. 583 Th' Azores send Their jessamine. 1814 W. Scott Waverley II. xvii. 250 The travellers now..reached the Torwood. View more context for this quotation 1822 W. Scott Fortunes of Nigel I. x. 265 I should like to see the broad Tay once more before I die—not even the Thames can match it, in my mind. 1845 J. C. Prichard Nat. Hist. Man (ed. 2) 467 The Tupi, or native inhabitants of the Brazils. 1853 ‘C. Bede’ Adventures Mr. Verdant Green x. 88 He at once sallied forth to ‘do the High’, and display his new purchases. 1855 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. IV. xviii. 119 From the Land's End to the Straits of Dover. 1863 R. Young Poet. Wks. 120 (note) Thomas White, ancestor of the Redhill family in the County Cavan. 1920 G. Bell Let. 14 Mar. (1927) II. xviii. 484 The afternoon's news..that Faisal had been crowned King of Syria and Abdullah King of the Iraq. 1951 Duke of Windsor King's Story xii. 209 Britain had an investment of £400,000,000 in the Argentine. 1959 Chambers's Encycl. VIII. 431/2 In internal affairs the Lebanon had to face considerable economic and financial difficulties after the end of the 1939–45 war. 1971 Globe & Mail (Toronto) 24 July 18/2 Sunday afternoon on the 401. 1974 J. I. M. Stewart Gaudy xii. 228 I had crossed Broad Street and was walking down the Turl. 1981 Church Times 6 Nov. 14/5 The Hoopoo had nested in his walls when he was in the Yemen. 1984 Times 18 Feb. 1/2 Princess Anne's four-day visit to The Gambia brings an extra air of festivity and importance to a tiny African country. 1987 B. MacLaverty Great Profundo (1989) 137 Mr Keogh from the County Mayo sounds better. 1987 A. Fugard Master Harold & Boys in Port Elizabeth Plays (2000) 19 Repeat after me, Sam: Gold in the Transvaal, mealies in the Free State, sugar in Natal and grapes in the Cape. 2012 S. T. Rosenblum Herself when she's Missing 92 Andrea glides from the 405 to the 101 before she grasps where she's going. 2013 T. Cope On Trail of Genghis Khan xvi. 277 I spent a week riding from Astrakhan south along the banks of the Volga. b. Before the names of literary or musical compositions, such as plays, poems, anthems, etc., works of art, such as paintings and sculptures, and newspapers and periodicals. ΚΠ OE Ælfric Let. to Wulfsige (Corpus Cambr.) in B. Fehr Die Hirtenbriefe Ælfrics (1914) 15 Se mæssepreost sceal secgan..þæs godspelles angyt on englisc þam folce. And be þam pater nostre and be þam credan eac. OE Wærferð tr. Gregory Dialogues (Corpus Cambr.) (1900) i. Pref. 8 Marcus & Lucas writon þæt godspel nalæs þæt hi hit gesawon, ac hi hit geleornodon. ?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 19 Þus..ed þe beginnunge of þe venite. ?a1400 (a1338) R. Mannyng Chron. (Petyt) (1996) i. l. 58 One mayster Wace þe ffrankes telles þe Brute, alle þat þe Latyn spelles. a1450 (c1405) On translating Bible (Trin. Cambr.) in Medium Ævum (1938) 7 174 (MED) Venerabile Bede..translatid þe Bibel or a grete parte of þe Bibile, wos originals ben in many abbeis in Englond. 1587 A. Golding tr. Solinus Worthie Work xxviii. sig. O.ii^v Y^e Ile of the Apollonits..from whence Marcus Lucullus brought vnto vs the Apollo of the Capitoll. 1667 Answer Company of Royal Adventurers of Eng. 18 They had taken care to make the Dutch rejoyce at the Ruine of the Royal Company, which is expressed in the Harlem Gazett of the 30th. of October. 1693 J. Evelyn Diary (1955) V. 147 I..saw & indeede admired the Venus of Coreggio. 1705 J. Addison Remarks Italy 349 I have seen on coins..the Hercules Farnese, the Venus of Medicis, the Apollo in the Belvidere, and the famous Marcus Aurelius on Horseback. 1780 Mirror No. 99. (1781) III. 232 The Orestes of the Greek poet. a1831 Encycl. Metrop. (1845) IX. 408 The Apollo Belvidere, the Venus de Medicis, and the Laocoon, have for ages been regarded as the highest possible models of excellence. 1845 P. H. Gosse Ocean (1849) iv. 159 Plato, in the Timæus, gives the fullest account. 1925 Irish Times 2 Jan. 9/4 The Marseillaise alone was played when the teams came on the ground. 1984 Times 13 Sept. 13/4 Difficult to think of an art theft with greater sex appeal than that of the Mona Lisa. 2001 M. Billingham Sleepyhead 167 I wouldn't like to see myself splashed across the front page of the Sun. c. Before personal names and titles. (a) Before surnames (e.g. the Bruce, the Mortimer). Frequently following a first name (cf. sense A. 15b(a)). Now archaic except when following a first name.the Magdalene: see Magdalene n. 1a. [In some instances apparently a substitution for Anglo-Norman and Old French, Middle French de de prep. in names (compare de prep. 8). Compare occasional similar use of le in Anglo-Norman (in some cases perhaps intended to denote specifically the head of a particular family).] ΚΠ c1300 St. Mary Magdalen (Laud) l. 18 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 462 Heo was icleoped in propre name ‘þe Maudeleyne’. c1300 St. Thomas Becket (Laud) l. 1797 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 158 At douere were kniȝtes ȝare..Sire Reinaud of wareygne and sire Randolf þe brok. c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) l. 11134 Sir Roger þe Mortimer. a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1882) VIII. 311 Among alle þese two lordes þe [a1425 Harl. de] Mortymer took hastiliche citees in þe marches. c1450 (c1430) Brut (Galba) (1908) 427 The Erle of Somersette and his brothir, and the Fytz-Watir. 1489 (a1380) J. Barbour Bruce (Adv.) i. 67 That..Robert the Brwys erle of Carryk Aucht to succeid to the kynryk. 1570 G. Fenton tr. J. de Serres Disc. Ciuile Warres Fraunce ii. 69 The Montgomery..sommoned the sayd ten Cornets of horsemen to bee before him at Pons. a1616 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 1 (1623) iii. vii. 37 Charles. A Parley with the Duke of Burgonie. Burg. Who craues a Parley with the Burgonie? View more context for this quotation 1793 C. Reeve Mem. Sir Roger de Clarendon II. 236 Glory for us; honour for the Montfort; Bretagne for the Montfort. 1815 W. Scott Lord of Isles iii. xxvii. 110 As heroes think, so thought the Bruce. 1888 E. S. Holt In Convent Walls i. ii. 52 Was it—Sir Roger the Mortimer of Ludlow? 1991 J. Kirkup Poet could not but be Gay (BNC) 199 Titian's Christ Appearing to the Magdalen. 2013 L. Porter Tudors versus Stewarts p. ix Mary Queen of Scots is the only Scottish ruler they have heard of, with the possible exception of Robert the Bruce. (b) Before the surnames of some Irish and Scottish chiefs of clans (e.g. the Chisholm, the MacNab, the O'Gorman Mahon).Probably a local use of sense A. 5c(a). According to Sc. Hist. Rev. (1913) 10 46: ‘In early times, and down to the close of the seventeenth century, the heads of Scottish families bearing Lowland or at least territorial surnames were occasionally, if not frequently, distinguished from others of their kindred by the distinctive epithet “the”... In the nineteenth century the form was imitated by the Highland Chiefs,.. and in the present day “the” has come to be regarded, popularly at least, as the normal epithet to apply to the surname of a Scottish or Irish chieftain which happens to be a patronymic beginning with Mac or O'.’ Π 1488 (c1478) Hary Actis & Deidis Schir William Wallace (Adv.) (1968–9) viii. l. 750 With him the Boid that gud Iornays had maid. c1540 J. Bellenden tr. H. Boece Hyst. & Cron. Scotl. xv. i. f. ccxviii^v/2 The Dowglas to make his manheid..patent in all partis quhare he come, went to the kyng of Aragon, and faucht in his support at sindry ieoperdyis. 1561 Inverness Sheriff Court Rec. II. 15 Apr. (MS.) [Sederunt] the Dollace of Cantray. 1562 Inverness Sheriff Court Rec. II. 7 Apr. The jugis hes consignit hir to produce the samyn and to wairne the Dollace upon ane xv dayis warning. 1690 T. S. Hist. Affaires Scotl. 213 Several Partys of the Rebels designed to Rendevouze about the Castle of Erchless, belonging to the Chisholm of Strathglass. 1767 F. Warner Hist. Rebellion & Civil-war Ireland ii. 106 He caused his proclamations to be made in the name of the O Neil. 1847 W. M. Thackeray Mrs. Perkins's Ball i. 4 I became acquainted with the Mulligan through a distinguished countryman..who..did not know the chieftain himself. 1880 A. M. Shaw Mackintoshes p. xxvii Moy Hall, the residence of The Mackintosh. 1910 Daily Chron. 1 Feb. 4/6 Three ‘Thes’ have sat in the House of Commons in our time—The O'Conor Don, The O'Donoghue of the Glens, and The O'Gorman Mahon. The MacDermott, K.C.,..was an Irish law officer in Liberal Governments. 1938 W. B. Yeats New Poems 27 Sing of the O'Rahilly,..Sing a ‘the’ before his name. 2007 T. Waters Persistence of Subsistence Agric. iii. 86 The clan leader, the MacLeod of MacLeod..bankrupted himself in the late 1830s and left the island. (c) Originally: before the names of well-known singers, actors, etc., in imitation of French and Italian usage. Later also more generally (slang and sometimes derogatory) before a woman's surname or nickname. Cf. La adj. ΘΚΠ society > society and the community > social class > nobility > title > title or form of address for persons of rank > [noun] > for woman of rank > prefixed to name dam1297 damec1305 madama1375 madame1617 the1730 La1869 1730 O. Swiny Let. 29 July in R. B. Peake Mem. Colman Family (1841) I. 18 If he does not, then we must provide a soprano man, and a contr' alto woman, (though the Merighi stays). 1786 A. M. Bennett Juvenile Indiscretions V. 32 The Siddons. 1796 Publ. Advert. 18 Nov. in T. Campbell Life Mrs. Siddons (1834) II. viii. 201 Last night the Siddons and the Kemble, at Drury Lane, acted to vacancy. 1822 in Byron's Wks. (1846) 585/1 The Guiccioli was present. 1845 B. Disraeli Sybil III. v. vii. 92 Well, what do you think of the Dashville, Fitz? 1922 Dial. Notes 5 143 [At] Somerville..‘The Pen’ is the Lady Principal, Miss Penrose, ‘The Darb’, Miss Derbyshire, etc. 1930 P. G. Wodehouse Very Good, Jeeves iv. 96 The Bellinger..had sung us a few songs before digging in at the trough. 1973 P. G. Wodehouse Bachelors Anonymous xii. 155 The Fitch was at the hair stylist's having a permanent. 2016 Student Printz (Univ. Southern Mississippi) (Nexis) 5 May 1 The look..was truly something only the Madge herself could pull off. d. Before the names of taverns, theatres, and other prominent or well-known buildings. ΚΠ c1405 (c1387–95) G. Chaucer Canterbury Tales Prol. (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 20 In Southwerk at the Tabard as I lay Redy to weenden on my pilgrymage. a1500 Warkworth's Chron. (1839) 13 Casten in presone in the Marchalse at Londone. 1509 Sale of Rights in Inn (Brasenose Coll. Oxf. Archives) (Hurst Cal. of Munim. 29, Wycombe 9) One Tenement or Mansion called the Lyon. a1616 F. Beaumont Let. to B. Jonson in F. Beaumont & J. Fletcher Comedies & Trag. (1647) sig. Xxx4 What things have we seen Done at the Mermaid! 1710 J. Swift Jrnl. to Stella 15 Oct. (1948) I. 60 Prior and I..sat at the Smyrna till eleven. 1779 Mirror No. 32. ⁋5 Stopping at the George on his way home. 1838 Actors by Daylight 20 Oct. 271 Miss Julian, who has been successfully playing at Astley's during the present season, will immediately on its closing join the Garrick. 1905 Daily Chron. 24 Oct. 3/4 (heading) Playlet at the Coliseum. 1943 Observer 7 Mar. 2/5 An interesting exhibition of works by modern painters at the Ashmolean in Oxford. 2014 C. Bramley Conditional Love ii. 18 Lunch was two pints in the Nag's Head. e. Before the names of ships. Π 1450 W. Lomnor in Paston Lett. & Papers (2004) II. 35 He was yn the Nicolas tyl Saturday next folwyng. a1509 in Hist. MSS Comm.: Rep. MSS Var. Coll. (1907) IV. 87 in Parl. Papers 1906 (Cd. 3218) LXIV. 1 A vessaill called the Mighell of Brykelsey. 1521 Will of John Berryff in Essex Rev. (1904) 13 221 Out of the Barbara and the Mayflower, if God send them well home. 1652 Faithful Scout No. 64. 499 The Royal Soveraign is taken one Deck lower, and is now putting forth to Sea. 1779 Scots Mag. Feb. 92/1 The signal for coming into the Victory's wake was flying from three o' clock in the afternoon till eight in the evening unobeyed. 1805 in Ld. Nelson Dispatches & Lett. (1846) VII. 168 (note) The Santa Anna rolled over all her lower masts. 1872 G. W. Rusden Discov. Port Phillip 43 Fawkner put off from George Town in the Enterprise, intending to go to Western Port. 1938 N.Y. Times 1 May 32/5 Britain's new super-carrier, the Ark Royal, which is starting her trials next week. 2000 C. Hibbert Queen Victoria (new ed.) i. v. 37 The royal party..were sailing in the Emerald, tender of the royal yacht, the Royal George. 6. With names of languages. Now chiefly Scottish and Irish English, except in elliptical use (e.g. from the German = ‘from the German language or from the German original’) or in the construction the—for—is ‘the equivalent for—in the—language is’ (e.g. the French for house is maison). ΚΠ OE Ælfric Lives of Saints (Julius) (1900) II. 220 Sulpicius..wrat þa be him [sc. Martinus] þa ðing þe he ofaxode..and we þæt englisc nimað of þære ylcan gesetnysse. c1330 Lai le Freine in Smith Coll. Stud. Mod. Langs. (1929) 10 iii. 7 (MED) Þe Freyns of ‘þe asche’ is a freyn after þe language of Breteyn. a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add. 27944) (1975) II. xvii. clxxvii. 1069 Þe latyne for picchynge of sowiles for traylynge is paxillare. a1400 (c1303) R. Mannyng Handlyng Synne (Harl.) l. 1365 Of holy wryt, þe englysh y toke. a1464 J. Capgrave Abbreuiacion of Cron. (Cambr. Gg.4.12) (1983) 123 Trecente marce..This is þe Englisch: Thre hundred mark. 1593 T. Nashe Strange Newes in Wks. (Grosart) II. 263 To borrowe some lesser quarry of elocution from the Latine. 1600 W. Shakespeare Merchant of Venice i. ii. 68 You will..sweare that I haue a poore pennie-worth in the English. View more context for this quotation 1728 E. Chambers Cycl. (at cited word) Their publick officers, as Notaries, Lawyers, Judges, and chief Magistrates, write and speak the Mandarin. 1760 C. Allen Polite Lady xi. 28 Let not your studying the French make you neglect the English. 1782 W. Shaw Enquiry Authenticity Poems Ossian 14 The Earse dialect of the Gaelic was never written nor printed until Mr. Macfarlane..published, in 1754, a translation of Baxter's Call to the Unconverted. 1797 R. Southey Lett. from Spain xxii. 369 Every advantage that..a complete knowledge of the Arabic could afford. 1818 W. Cobbett Gram. Eng. Lang. xix. § 255 It is the same word, you see, in both instances; but you will see it different in the French. 1835 Belfast News Let. 23 Jan. There will be an evening class in the Irish for those whose occupations may not admit of their attending during the day. 1865 Dublin Rev. July 73 It admits of no doubt that the Gaelic is withering away. 1877 Month Nov. 302 A new translation directly from the Hebrew. 1922 G. K. Chesterton Eugenics & Other Evils i. i. 11 I am content to answer that ‘chivalrous’ is not the French for ‘horsy’. 1934 Webster's New Internat. Dict. Eng. Lang. p. lxxxii/1 The modern descendants of the Latin are called the Romance languages. They include the Italian, the Spanish, the Portuguese [etc.]. 1962 S. Ennis tr. P. Sayers Old Woman's Refl. xv. 109 Don't be surprised..at the Gaelic being so fluent with me, because my mother had it and she never hid it from me. a1965 B. Higgins Northern Fiddler (1966) 34 ‘I'm corrupt’ he said to me in the French, ‘I think I live in corruption's stench.’ 1985 J. McGahern in D. Bolger Picador Bk. Contemp. Irish Fiction (1994) 77 I was never much good at the Irish, but I was a terror at the maths, especially the Euclid. 2012 N.Y. Times 13 Dec. a35/2 This essay was translated from the Chinese by Yaxue Cao. 7. a. With terms for diseases, ailments, etc.Now less common than forms without the definite article except with colloquial and slang terms (e.g. the flu, the clap) and in regional use. Π eOE Bald's Leechbk. (Royal) (1865) ii. lvi. 278 Sio utsihtadl cymð manegum ærest of to miclum utgange. c1300 St. James Great (Laud) l. 118 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 37 Ane Man he helde of þe palasie. a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add. 27944) (1975) II. xvii. cxxxiii. 1027 Smylle of leek..heleþ the kynges yuel and þe dropesye. a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 11819 In his heued he has þe scall, þe scab ouer-gas his bodi all. c1475 ( Surg. Treat. in MS Wellcome 564 f. 113 (MED) Þe poudre maad of stercus humani & brent salt mortifieþ þe Cankre and Noli me tangere. a1513 W. Dunbar Poems (1998) I. 117 Quhill that thai gatt the Spanȝie pockis. 1520 Chron. Eng. vii. f. 127^v/1 Also that tyme a sekenes that men call the pockes slewe bothe men and women thrugh theyr infectynge. 1660 J. Gauden Mem. Bp. Brounrigg 225 Sharp fits of the stone. a1678 Countess of Warwick Autobiogr. (1848) 9 I..fell..ill of the measles. 1709 Tatler No. 82. The old Man..was laid up with the Gout at London. 1743 H. Mann Let 12 Feb. in J. Doran ‘Mann’ & Manners at Court of Florence (1876) I. vi. 144 Everybody [in Rome] is ill of the Influenza, and many die. 1787 J. Beattie Scoticisms 91 He has got the cold, the fever. 1801 Ld. Nelson Let. 5 June in Dispatches & Lett. (1845) IV. 403 Sir Thomas Graves is still very ill..In the St. George we have got the Influenza. 1809 R. Southey Let. 23 Apr. in C. C. Southey Life & Corr. R. Southey (1850) III. 228 I instantly recognised the sound of the croup. 1883 G. W. Peck Mirth for Million 360 You have got to be darn careful when you have the mumps,..or you will have your neck swell up biggern a milk pail. 1908 Lone Hand (Sydney) Mar. 571/2 It was the first and last time I had the earache. Next day I was noticeably deaf. 1951 J. Jones From Here to Eternity xlii. 644 As a deepsea sailor Jack Malloy had had the clap six times—‘The syph never, knock on wood.’ 1972 Time 17 Apr. 41/2 Shortly before he was scheduled to make his first space flight aboard Apollo 13 two years ago, the longtime bachelor..was accidentally exposed to the German measles. 1996 F. McCourt Angela's Ashes i. 61 This is the capital city of the weak chest and the weak chest leads to the consumption. 2015 S. G. Browne Less than Hero xiii. 108 His lips look thin and colorless, and he appears to have come down with the flu. b. With plural nouns used as colloquial or humorous names of afflictions.the blues, the collywobbles, the creeps, the D.T.'s, the gapes, the giggles, the habdabs, the heebie-jeebies, the hyps, the jitters, the runs, the shakes, the slows, the willies, etc.: see the noun. ΚΠ 1664 C. Cotton Scarronides 15 It bounces, foams, and froths, and flitters, As it were troubled with the squitters. 1710 J. Swift in J. Swift & R. Steele Tatler No. 230 Will Hazzard has got the Hipps, having lost to the Tune of Five Hundr'd Pound. 1881 Academy 15 Oct. 289/3 There is much humour—here and there, however, tending to degenerate into ‘a fit of the giggles’. 1885 Punch 3 Jan. 4/1 You'll be thinking I've got the blue-mouldies, old man. 1928 J. Galsworthy Swan Song ii. iv, in Mod. Comedy (1929) 633 She makes very good coffee, Michael—nothing like it for the grumps. 1976 Publishers Weekly 11 Oct. 90/3 The case of the ‘cutes’ infecting text and pictures. 1991 Hair Flair Jan. 56/2 Dry hair: what to do if you've got the frizzies. 2004 C. Bouchez Your Perfectly Pampered Pregnancy iv. 111 Your first trimester can find you battling a severe case of the ‘greasies,’ as hair suddenly gets oilier than ever before. 8. a. With the effect of a possessive adjective, before a noun denoting any part of the body of a person previously named or indicated (e.g. she took him by the hand, i.e. ‘by his hand’). Similarly with heart, soul, used figuratively (cf. sense A. 19c), and with articles of dress. Π OE tr. Vindicta Salvatoris (Cambr. Univ. Libr.) in J. E. Cross Two Old Eng. Apocrypha (1996) 291 Titus and Vespasianus..þa Iudeas ahengon, þa fet up and þæt heafod adun. ?a1160 Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1137 Me henged up bi the fet... Me henged bi the þumbes other bi the hefed. a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 41 (MED) He him sceawede þe wrecche saulen a-honge, summe bi þa fet..summe bi þe eȝen. a1250 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Nero) (1952) 8 (MED) Makieð..a large creoiz mit þe þreo vingres vrom abuue þe vorheaued dun to þe breoste. c1300 St. Edmund Rich (Harl.) l. 212 in C. D'Evelyn & A. J. Mill S. Eng. Legendary (1956) 499 Seint Edmund he nom bi þe hond & his pameri drouȝ. a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) v. l. 2575 That love..Ne schal noght take hem be the slieve. c1400 (?a1300) Kyng Alisaunder (Laud) (1952) l. 2277 Fulbor he smoot vpon þe rygge. a1470 T. Malory Morte Darthur (Winch. Coll. 13) (1990) I. 283 Launcelot..toke hym on the hede, that downe he felle in a sowghe to the grounde. a1500 (a1460) Towneley Plays (1994) I. xxiv. 313 I shall knap hym on the crowne That standys in my gate. 1540 J. Palsgrave tr. G. Gnapheus Comedye of Acolastus ii. iii. sig. M From the hed to the ankles thou art faire. a1592 R. Greene Mamillia (1593) ii. sig. H^v Ruffes of a Syse, stiffe starcht to the necke. 1615 G. Markham Countrey Contentments i. i. 31 The Hare..though the beast be little, yet are the members worth inioyment, as the flesh, which is good for all manner of fluxes, the braines [etc.]. a1616 W. Shakespeare Comedy of Errors (1623) ii. ii. 207 To put the finger in the eie and weepe. View more context for this quotation 1669 S. Lee Contempl. Mortality 33 'Twill gawl him to the heart. 1782 F. Burney Cecilia II. iv. i. 134 He says something so sorrowful that it cuts us to the soul! 1789 H. L. Piozzi Observ. Journey France I. 306 Heavy lace robbins ending at the elbow. 1838 C. Dickens Oliver Twist III. l. 295 To be hanged by the neck till he was dead. 1847 Ld. Tennyson Princess vii. 153 Pale was the perfect face;..And the voice trembled and the hand. 1932 Manch. Guardian 10 Mar. 16/5 Reynolds..caught him by the shirt collar and threatened to kill him. 1972 Oxf. Bk. Vertebr. 152/1 Shetland Pony... In winter the coat is of long hair. 2015 L. Chapman Accidentally Evil ii. 11 The door..swings open and smacks me right in the face. b. colloquial. With a noun denoting a person in a familiar (esp. family or working) relationship with the speaker or person addressed (e.g. the wife, the boss), equivalent to ‘my’ or ‘your’. ΚΠ 1816 W. Scott Antiquary I. xv. 326 It's like we maun wait then till the gudeman comes hame. 1838 J. M. Wilson Hist. Tales Borders No. 210 (1839) V. 9/1 What shall I say to the wife? 1843 Bentley's Misc. Feb. 122 Wouldn't the guv'nor swear neither if he know'd it! 1846 W. Cross Disruption ii. 12 Everybody aboot the hoose kens o' the muirburn that the mistress raised on you yestreen for takin' up wi' Miss Migummery. 1853 ‘C. Bede’ Adventures Mr. Verdant Green vii. 62 ‘It's a long while since the governor was here..,’ remarked Mr. Charles Larkyns, very unfilially. 1888 J. Payn Myst. Mirbridge xxvii The Mater will do anything for me. 1891 S. J. Duncan Amer. Girl in London 82 The mother and sisters would like to call upon you. 1900 G. Swift Somerley 126 The pater will say I'm a fool, the mater'll say the girl isn't good enough for me. 1901 W. Churchill Richard Carvel xliv [I] sent off an express to Patty and the Mother last night. 1913 Sat. Evening Post (Philadelphia) 22 Feb. 13/1 I'd tried to touch the old man—the boss—for an advance. 1941 Manch. Guardian 29 Jan. 10/1 Me and the missis had a proper row. 1995 C. Bateman Divorcing Jack vi. 61 ‘That's some fuckin' crap you write in the paper.’ ‘Thanks.’ ‘Mind you, the husband loves it.’ 1998 T. P. Dolan Dict. Hiberno-Eng. (1999) 270/1 The grandfather (i.e. my grandfather) will be expecting me for my tea. 2001 D. Marcus Oughtobiography xvii. 136 Anyway, the wife would have had my balls for buttons. 2015 Kwani? 8 236 Yeah man, it's Friday. I waited for the boss to go to the toilet and whoosh I was gone. c. Before own adj. 2b and self n. 1a. 9. With terms for branches of learning, arts, crafts, games, and pursuits. Now regional. ΚΠ OE Byrhtferð Enchiridion (Ashm.) (1995) iii. iii. 162 On þam boccræfte fela hiw synd amearcode, þa synd on Lyden figure geciged. c1330 (?a1300) Richard Coer de Lyon (Auch.) l. 2184 in Medium Ævum (1949) 18 6 Þai..fond king richard pleye At þe ches in his galaye. c1390 (?c1350) St. Augustine l. 706 in C. Horstmann Sammlung Altengl. Legenden (1878) 73 (MED) Þere he accuseþ him self at al Hou he pleyed at þe bal. c1400 (?a1300) Kyng Alisaunder (Laud) (1952) l. 3293 (MED) Þe ribaude plaieþ at þe dys; Swiþe selde þe fole is wys. a1470 T. Malory Morte Darthur (Winch. Coll. 13) (1990) II. 493 On a day kynge Marke played at the chesse. a1500 (a1460) Towneley Plays (1994) I. xxiv. 319 That is a gam all the best, bi hym that me boght, For at the dysyng he dos vs no wrang. 1561 H. Bennet tr. P. Melanchthon Hyst. Lyfe & Actes M. Luther in Famous & Godly Hist. Three Reformers sig. B.ii^v He studied foure yeares vnder one Scholemayster, who taught hym the Grammer more promptly and luckely, then any other. 1598 F. Meres Palladis Tamia f. 273^v Manie think themselues so ingenious, that they neither regard philosophy, nor Logicke, nor the phisickes. a1616 W. Shakespeare Taming of Shrew (1623) i. i. 37 The Mathematickes, and the Metaphysickes Fall to them. View more context for this quotation 1653 T. Urquhart tr. F. Rabelais 1st Bk. Wks. xi. 80 It would make us play the better at the tennis and the baloon. 1739 Ld. Chesterfield Let. 20 Nov. (1932) (modernized text) II. 396 As you are now reading the Roman history. 1786 J. Pinkerton Anc. Sc. Poems II. 428 Shooting at buts, and the football, were..the genteel diversions of the time. 1824 L. L. Cameron Pink Tippet iv. 22 What was the use of my getting you taught the dress-making? 1834 N.-Y. Mirror 1 Mar. 276/1 Their familiarity with the arithmetic may have the effect of expanding the imaginative faculty. 1887 Wellington (Somerset) Weekly News 3 Feb. in Eng. Dial. Dict. Apprentices and improvers wanted to the millinery, to the dressmaking, to the currying. 1901 Union Mag. Apr. 150/1 I wad raither hae seen ye at the joinerin' like masel'. 1930 N. Shepherd Weatherhouse (2010) iv. 43 His heart was never in the joinering. 1955 W. P. Milne Eppie Elrick v. 52 He lecters upo fat 'ey caa the Mathematicks. 1985 J. McGahern in D. Bolger Picador Bk. Contemp. Irish Fiction (1994) 77 I was never much good at the Irish, but I was a terror at the maths, especially the Euclid. 1998 I. Welsh Filth 4 It's like the fitba, you have to time your runs. 2016 S. Connolly Turn for Bad vii. 62 Those young men decided to give up the fishin' and go another way, after seein' what was comin'. 10. Before terms for weights and measures, in stating a rate. a. With prepositions by, in, †on, to. Now especially with reference to time, e.g. (so much) by the day ‘(so much) each day’. Π c1350 Nominale (Cambr. Ee.4.20) in Trans. Philol. Soc. (1906) 7* M. selluth wax by the pounde. a1399 in W. G. Benham Oath Bk. Colchester (1907) 8 (MED) A bale of Pepyr and..merchandyse of sotit [read sotil] were that is sold by the li. 1439 in F. B. Bickley Little Red Bk. Bristol (1900) II. 154 Whanne a strange man of the seid Crafte schal come to the toune for to go vpon his passage for to wirche by the day or by the weke with eny maister. 1477–9 in H. Littlehales Medieval Rec. London City Church (1905) 79 Paid to Sir Iohn Colyns..at viij s. iiij d. by the quarter. a1500 Tracts Eng. Weights & Meas. 17 in Camden Misc. (1929) XV Elys be sold by the stike, that ys xxv elys. 1531 W. Tyndale Answere Mores Dialoge f. lxxxv I finde in all ages that men..haue sofred deeth by the hundred thousandes in resistynge their doctrine. 1533 in J. B. Paul Accts. Treasurer Scotl. (1905) VI. 151 To Thomas Scott passing in Ingland with writtingis and credence to the King..to him on the day iij li. 1569 R. Grafton Chron. II. 373 A hundreth thousande Frankes, thirtie tymes tolde..which of English money was CCC.xxxiij. thousand .CCC.xxxiij. pounde .vj. shillinges .viij. pence, after ix. Franckes to the pound. 1623 W. Shakespeare & J. Fletcher Henry VIII v. iii. 31 What should you doe, But knock 'em downe by th' dozens? View more context for this quotation 1632 W. Lithgow Totall Disc. Trav. vi. 298 The Dromidory..will ride aboue 80 miles in the day. 1687 A. Lovell tr. J. de Thévenot Trav. into Levant ii. i. iv. 17 Cloath is sold there by the Pick. 1727 A. Pope et al. Περι Βαθους: Art of Sinking 75 in J. Swift et al. Misc.: Last Vol. It may be..let out by the Day. 1730 A. Bedford Script. Chronol. v. iv. 564/2 The Value hereof, at four Pounds to the Ounce, or 48 l. to the Pound, will be as followeth. 1847 C. Dickens Dombey & Son (1848) xxxix. 386 He would sit and avail himself of its accommodations..by the half-hour together. 1851 H. Mayhew London Labour II. 284/2 The sherds run about 250 pieces to the bushel. 1884 Law Rep.: Queen's Bench Div. 12 206 Etymologically considered, a journeyman is one who is employed by the day. 1922 M. A. Souder Notions Merchandise Manual Ser. xi. 85 Whalebone, sold by the yard, used for boning waists and girdles. 1939 E. Gardner Short-time Camps 23 Several of the States do not sell candy at all but include it as a part of the dessert two or three times in the week. 1972 H. Heckman Island Year 107 Daffodils by the hundreds spilled golden blossoms in ragged lines. 1973 Times 30 Oct. 4/1 A new three-wheel car..for which an average fuel consumption of 50 miles to the gallon is claimed. 2014 C. Barslund tr. J. Nesbo Son 416 The small hotel..rented out rooms by the hour. b. Without a preposition (e.g. (so much) the pound, gallon, yard, day, etc.). Cf. a adj. 4, per prep. 1. ΘΠ the world > relative properties > kind or sort > individual character or quality > [adjective] > each eachOE aa1200 the1426 1426–7 in H. Littlehales Medieval Rec. London City Church (1905) 65 iiij^c hert latthe, pris þe hondrid, vij d..ij^ml traunsum, þe m^l x d. 1489–90 Rolls of Parl.: Henry VII (Electronic ed.) Parl. Jan. 1489 §51. m. 14 Sold for .iij.li. sterling the pack. 1551–2 Act 5 & 6 Edward VI c. 6 §1 in Statutes of Realm (1963) IV. i. 136 That all colored Clothes..shall waye fourscore pounde the pece at the lest. 1597 S. Finche Let. 18 Feb. in A. C. Ducarel Some Acct. Town Croydon (1783) App. 153 Bricklayers..have xv d. apeece the day. 1631 J. Weever Anc. Funerall Monuments 418 Appointing them xii d. the weeke to each person. 1734 Builder's Dict. I. at Bricks These Bricks are sold..at forty Shillings the Thousand, or four Shillings the Hundred. 1797 R. Southey Lett. from Spain viii. 104 They are very dear, two reales the couple. 1827 G. Tibbits Ess. on Home Markets 26 The price of the article fell..to 17 cents the yard. 1856 J. A. Froude Hist. Eng. (1858) I. i. 21 Wheat..averaged in the middle of the fourteenth century tenpence the bushel. 1901 W. Walton Paris Known & Unknown III. 103/1 Lessons in this game may be procured at the rate of five to ten francs the hour. 1958 B. Malamud Magic Barrel 30 A column..inviting contributions in the form of stories at five bucks the thousand-word throw. 2001 M. M. Giugale et al. Mexico ii. vi. 149 Oil prices return to 17 dollars the barrel for the Mexican oil mix. 11. Before a gerund or verbal noun denoting activity.See also for the asking at asking n. 3b, for the taking at taking n. Phrases 1. Π a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add. 27944) (1975) II. xviii. xlii. 1192 [The olephant] louteþ eueriche to oþer and tourneþ so aȝein to here owne place. And makeþ þe ȝonge to go tofore in þe turnynge aȝein. c1405 (c1385) G. Chaucer Knight's Tale (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 1600 Myn is the stranglyng and hangyng by the throte. c1449 R. Pecock Repressor (1860) 66 The reeding in the Bible..drawith the reders..fro loue and deinte of the world. 1487 (a1380) J. Barbour Bruce (St. John's Cambr.) xi. 351 [Bruce] ordanit his men for the fechting. ?1523 J. Fitzherbert Bk. Husbandry f. xiii Dogfenell..in the commyng vp is lyke fenell and bereth many white floures. 1542 N. Udall tr. Erasmus Apophthegmes ii. f. 267 To the gooyng through with suche matiers, celeritee dooeth veraye great helpe. 1585 T. Bilson True Difference Christian Subiection iv. 635 It is so rotten it will not indure the handling. a1648 Ld. Herbert Life (1976) 45 Any man thought worthy the looking on. 1669 tr. A. Kircher Vulcano's v. 34 After the happening of all which, I had then a desire..to visit the famous Vesuvius. 1768 H. St. John in J. H. Jesse G. Selwyn & his Contemp. (1843) II. 309 I regret the badness of our climate, and the being obliged to pass the remainder of my life in [it]. 1794 A. Radcliffe Myst. of Udolpho I. v. 130 St. Aubert could not repent the having taken this fatiguing road. 1805 Parl. Reg. I. 133 The squadron..has anchored at the mouth of the harbour..which greatly annoys the coming in or going out. 1885 Harper's New Monthly Mag. Apr. 814/1 The story, perhaps unavoidably, sometimes gets confused in the telling. 1947 Living Church 16 Feb. 17/1 It is there for the seeing every day. 2008 M. Stewart Mercy Street vii. 65 She was the one who usually did the asking. 12. spec. Used emphatically, with the often stressed in speech ( Brit. /ðiː/ , U.S. /ði/ ), and printed in italics. a. Before a person's name, with the sense ‘the one and only’, ‘the well-known’. Π 1773 F. Burney Early Diary (1889) I. 243 ‘Pray,’ said the Dean, ‘are you talking of the Dr. Burney?’ 1837 Bentley's Misc. Oct. 373 He..lives happy in the fame of being the Nicholas Bottom, who, by consent.., is voted to be..the sole support of the drama. 1915 Puck (N.Y.) 30 Jan. 7/2 ‘Oh, are you the John Brown ?’ ‘You mean the one whose soul goes marching along?’ 1968 F. Exley Fan's Notes (1985) 203 While the attendant was feeding my car two dollars' worth of Regular, I nonchalantly inquired whether that wasn't the house of the Edmund Wilson. 1985 W. Sheed Frank & Maisie vi. 137 Two young Sheed and Warders, Robert Lowell and his wife Jean Stafford, soon to be the Robert Lowell and Jean Stafford, dropped in. 2005 D. Koontz Velocity (2006) v. 45 ‘The Hitler?’ ‘Well, it wasn't Bob Hitler.’ ‘You're just jerking my chain.’ b. With a common noun, with the sense ‘the pre-eminent’, ‘the typical’, or ‘the only..worth mentioning’ (e.g. Caesar was the general of Rome, i.e. the general par excellence). Π 1829 T. Carlyle German Playwrights in Foreign Rev. Jan. 97 Dr. Klingemann..so superlative is his vigour..we might even designate him the Playwright. 1863 R. B. Kimball Was he Successful? vi Joel Burns was a rich man, as well as the man of the place. 1865 J. Lubbock Prehist. Times v. 131 The axe was pre-eminently the implement of antiquity. 1904 ‘S. G. Tallentyre’ Life Voltaire II. xxxv. 144 His Commentary remains unrivalled, and is still the text-book on Corneille. 1971 Gourmet Feb. 21/2 It was simply the place in Europe to go in summer. 2010 T. Blair Journey ii. 50 This is now always a major, if not the major factor. Marking an item not before mentioned, but now identified by a clause, phrase, or word. 13.** Before an item particularized by a relative clause.In modern English more emphatically expressed by that or those: see that adj.¹ 2, those adj. 3. In Old English these were not distinguished: þæt spell may be rendered ‘that story’ or ‘the story’. Π OE Blickling Homilies 71 Seo menigo þe þær beforan ferde. OE tr. Bede Eccl. Hist. (Cambr. Univ. Libr.) Pref. i. 2 Ic ðe sende þæt spell, þæt ic niwan awrat be Angelþeode & Seaxum. a1200 MS Trin. Cambr. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 3 Ðe holie tid þat me clepeð aduent. ?a1200 (?OE) Peri Didaxeon (1896) 19 Þæt sindon þe teþ, þe þane mete brecaþ. c1275 Kentish Serm. in J. Hall Select. Early Middle Eng. (1920) I. 214 Te dai ase ure louerd..i bore was. a1325 Prologue (Corpus Cambr.) l. 1 in C. D'Evelyn & A. J. Mill S. Eng. Legendary (1956) 1 Nou blouweþ þe niwe frut þat late bygan to springe. c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Matt. ii. 9 Loo! the sterre, the whiche thei sayen in este, wente bifore hem. a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 14704 Þe werckes þat i werc in his nam. 1472 J. Paston in Paston Lett. & Papers (2004) I. 586 I am not the man I was. ?1530 tr. Compost of Ptholomeus xliv. sig. r.i The iyen that ben whytysshe and flesshely, sygnyfye a persone enclyned to vyce. 1568 T. Howell Arbor of Amitie f. 38^v Vntill the day he die. 1600 W. Shakespeare Merchant of Venice v. i. 83 The man that hath no musique in himselfe..is fit for treasons. View more context for this quotation a1704 T. Brown Dispensary in 3rd Vol. Wks. (1708) iii. 67 I have known the Time when I could go out and pick up 10 or 12 l. in a Morning. 1720 A. Pope tr. Homer Iliad VI. xxiv. 256 Let us give To Grief the wretched Days we have to live. 1785 W. Cowper Task iii. 141 The man, of whom His own coevals took but little note. 1807 W. Wordsworth Poems II. 142 The light that never was, on sea or land. 1850 J. H. Newman Lect. Diffic. Anglicans (1891) I. i. ii. 48 But the passage I have quoted suggests a second observation. 1917 F. H. Simonds Hist. World War I. 335 The place where the ship sank was marked by a large oil-spot. 2013 L. Miller Parallel xii. 327 The girl I fell in love with isn't who you really are. 14. a. Before a noun particularized by a following prepositional phrase (especially a phrase headed by of).Also (in Old English): †before a noun particularized by a genitive. Π OE Blickling Homilies 55 Þeh he geornlice gehyre þa word þæs halgan godspelles. lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough interpolation) anno 1116 On þisum ylcan geare bærnde eall þet mynstre of Burh. lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1122 On þone lententyde..forbearn se burch on Gleaweceastre. a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 53 Heo habbeð þe nome of cristene. a1250 Apostles' Creed (Blickling) in Mod. Lang. Notes (1899) 4 138 Crist..was akenned þurh þe mihte of þan halge gast. c1300 St. Edmund Rich (Laud) l. 387 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 442 (MED) In þe toun of wyricestre bi-tidde þat selue cas. a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1869) II. 41 Tweie perilous places in þe see of myddel erþe. 1426–7 in H. Littlehales Medieval Rec. London City Church (1905) 65 Also þe thorisday in þe Whitson weke. a1464 J. Capgrave Abbreuiacion of Cron. (Cambr. Gg.4.12) (1983) 233 (MED) In þis ȝere, þe nest day aftir Mari Magdalen, was a gret councel at London of all prelates. 1513 G. Douglas in tr. Virgil Æneid ix. Prol. 7 Honeste is the way to worthynes. a1616 W. Shakespeare Macbeth (1623) i. vii. 45 Like the poore Cat i' th' Addage. View more context for this quotation a1734 R. North Examen (1740) i. i. §23 26 In the telling of this Story. a1771 T. Gray Candidate (?1780) 1 Just like the picture in Rochester's book. 1824 J. Bentham & P. Bingham Bk. Fallacies Introd. vii The Sir Charles Sedley of political morality. 1870 W. Morris Earthly Paradise: Pt. IV 88 Midmost the time 'twixt noon and dusk. 1908 R. Bridges Sel. Poems R. W. Dixon (1909) p. xii The Oxford of 1850 was singularly unsympathetic. 2002 A. Fuller Don't let's go to Dogs Tonight 96 The look on their faces is grim. b. Before a noun particularized by a following phrase headed by a to-infinitive.the sometimes has the meaning ‘that..needed or proper..’. Π OE Wærferð tr. Gregory Dialogues (Hatton) (1900) i. viii. 53 Seo lytle betweoh gesette swigung þære ufan cumenan stefne getacnode þone lyttlan fyrst [OE Corpus Cambr. medmycelne fyrst] to libbanne þam breðer ofer þa oðre. a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) vii. l. 703 (MED) Therthe, whos condicion Is set to be the foundement To sustiene up the firmament. a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add. 27944) (1975) II. xvii. 1026 Pulegium..haþ þe vertu to tempre and dissolue..and to stynte and fordruye rewm. c1450 (c1380) G. Chaucer House of Fame (Fairf. 16) (1878) l. 2056 Alle the folke that ys a lyve Ne han the kunnynge to discryve The thinges that I herde there. a1500 tr. A. Chartier Traité de l'Esperance (Rawl.) (1974) 9 (MED) If thou haue the corage or power (to speke more propyrly, folish presumpcion of thiself), to wille to putt the in prees vnto the daungerous dongeon. 1590 I. L. True & Perfecte Descr. Straunge Monstar 20 He alone should be the man, to send him to his toome. 1645 J. Milton Sonnet viii, in Poems 50 The power To save th' Athenian Walls from ruine bare. 1687 A. Lovell tr. J. de Thévenot Trav. into Levant i. 225 We had the Comfort to be pittied. 1780 W. Cowper Progress of Error 29 The creature is so sure to kick and bite, A muleteer's the man to set him right. 1813 J. Austen Pride & Prejudice I. xiii. 142 I shall not be the person to discourage him. View more context for this quotation 1850 J. H. Newman Lect. Diffic. Anglicans (1891) I. i. iii. 80 I am not the person to be jealous of such facts. 1920 Cent. Mag. Aug. 575/1 You 're the one to break her in, Chief. 1967 National Observer (U.S.) 3 July 13 Mr. Reagan must raise the money to pay off that deficit. 2015 A. Z. Khan Unquiet Dead 120 He hadn't had the sense to bring an umbrella. c. Before a noun particularized by an adverb, especially one of time or place. Π 1340 Ayenbite (1866) 236 Þe gerdel aboue betocneþ chastete. ?a1400 (a1338) R. Mannyng Chron. (Petyt) (1996) ii. l. 963 Bot in þe ȝere after, obowen Grimsby, eft þei gan aryue. c1405 (c1390) G. Chaucer Parson's Tale (Ellesmere) (1877) §827 Somtyme a man foryeteth er the morwe what he dide..on the nyght biforn. 1569 R. Grafton Chron. II. 61 Because it was Sunday, nothing was done. So the day after..the Archebishop was cited to apere. 1613 S. Purchas Pilgrimage ii. xviii. 173 The needle must be threeded the day before. 1713 R. Steele Englishman No. 1. 5 The Servants behind..were unable to contain from laughing. 1771 A. Skinn Old Maid II. liii. 189 They had almost made his wife miscarry the week before, by cutting off Essex's head. 1837 F. Marryat Snarleyyow (ed. 2) I. viii. 76 She had..a back-door into the street behind. 1868 Rep. Select Comm. Sci. Instr. 47/2 in Parl. Papers 1867–8 (H.C. 432) XV. 1 If these papers are to be used the day after. 1890 Facts & Figures 4 in 2nd Ann. Rep. Exec. Comm. Citizens' Assoc. Boston About half a million more was spent in the years before 1885 in public improvements than in the years since. 1952 K. Amis Lett. (2000) 298 I sent it off without consulting the man here who knows all that. 1995 F. R. Shivers Walking in Baltimore 187 Sending warm air through a flue to the room above. 2015 N.Y. Times Mag. 29 Nov. 55/3 The 58 pots de Waal made the day before. d. Before a noun particularized by a participial clause. Π 1387–8 Petition London Mercers in R. W. Chambers & M. Daunt Bk. London Eng. (1931) 37 The statut ordeigned & made bi parlement. a1500 (c1410) Dives & Pauper (Hunterian) (1980) ii. 200 (MED) He wil nout takyn it of hym into þe tyme assignyd of þe pay. 1568 W. Turner Herbal (rev. ed.) i. 8 The Wormwod growing in Rome, is no good Wormwod. 1601 P. Holland tr. Pliny Hist. World II. 197 Some bee of opinion that it is the gum or liquor issuing from a certain thornie plant or bush. 1658 E. Phillips New World Eng. Words The 12 Priests of Mars instituted by Numa Pompilius. 1750 S. Scott Hist. Cornelia 146 And thus prevent the unhappiness resulting from her cruelty. 1761 London Mag. Oct. 519/2 The account of the monies granted for the pay and cloathing of the unembodied militia. 1825 Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) 115 187 The heating effect emanating from luminous hot bodies. 1868 J. E. T. Rogers Man. Polit. Econ. ix. 80 The privileges accorded..to the merchants of the Hanse Towns. 1906 W. Virginia School Jrnl. June 36/1 Select some object as the book lying on the table. 1942 Irish Times 29 Apr. 2/7 ‘Here,’ she replied, pointing to the boy dressed in a soldier's uniform. 2012 L. Shepherd Solitary House 143 He looks for a moment at the hand resting on his arm. 15. a. Preceding a noun followed and identified by another noun (usually a proper name) in apposition. (a) Where the following noun identifies a person (formerly also a place, a book, etc.) (e.g. the poet Virgil). Π eOE tr. Orosius Hist. (BL Add.) (1980) i. i. 11 Sume men secgen þæt hire æwielme sie on westende Affrica neh þam beorge Athlans. lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Parker) anno 1070 Toforan þam papan Alexandre. c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) Ded. l. 257 Þatt..boc..Apokalypsis..Vss wrat te posstell sannt iohan. a1225 MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 73 Of clene liflade spec þe prophete isaias. c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) l. 7957 Þe king..made..þe bissop ode..vorsuerie engelond. c1405 (c1385) G. Chaucer Knight's Tale (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 70 Heere in this temple of the goddesse clemence We haue been waytynge al this fourtenyght. c1449 R. Pecock Repressor (1860) 327 (MED) Sithen fro and bi the greet ricches in which the aungel Lucifer was sett and putt came his synne. 1529 T. Cromwell in R. B. Merriman Life & Lett. T. Cromwell (1902) I. 325 The Jentylwoman your wyff. 1580 J. Lyly Euphues & his Eng. (new ed.) f. 102 You resemble in your sayings the Painter Tamantes. 1637 J. Milton Comus 16 The huntresse Dian. 1729 Madagascar 251 They are silly enough to think the Dæmon Fermonner has done it. 1783 C. M. Graham Treat. Immutability of Moral Truth ii. 31 Explained by the philosopher Plato under the form of everlasting intellectual ideas. 1813 Classical Jrnl. 7 213 Ahmed el Najem..declared himself a descendant of the Prophet Mohammed. 1863 A. K. H. Boyd Graver Thoughts Country Parson 1st Ser. iv. 67 The violent end of the martyr Stephen. 1930 N.Y. Times 2 Nov. iv. 8/4 The Goethe Prize..was conferred upon the psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud this year. 2010 Independent 4 Jan. 33/2 I love the actor David Tennant as much as anyone. (b) With year followed by a numeral (e.g. the year 1984). Π 1482 W. Caxton in tr. Higden's Prolicionycion viii. viii. f. ccclxxxxviij^v In the yere 1494 [read 1394] were trewes taken bytwene the kyng of Fraunce, and the kynge of Englonde. 1566 in E. Peacock Eng. Church Furnit. (1866) 81 A crosse crosse [sic] clothe, a pillowe beier, were sold the yeare 1560. 1611 J. Speed Hist. Great Brit. ix. viii. 493/1 That Duke-dome..disbranched from France since the year eight hundred eighty fiue, was againe rent away. 1648 Mercurius Pragmaticus No. 36–7. sig. Ccc3 The members Impeached in the year 1647. 1719 Free-thinker No. 152. 1 I began to Trade for my self in the Year Seventeen Hundred and Four. 1724 D. Waterland Crit. Hist. Athanasian Creed vi. 89 One may..infer, that This Creed was not received into the Roman Offices so early as the year 809. 1859 Harper's Mag. Feb. 322/1 The following graphic account of a fashionable lady's toilet for the year 1759. 1921 Gas Manuf., Distribution & Use (Brit. Commerc. Gas Assoc.) i. 38/1 The invention of a practical gas meter, about the year 1815, was..welcomed by all parties. 1968 C. Wilber & G. L. Coon Space Seed in J. Blish Star Trek 2 106 Probably nobody else on board the Enterprise would have recognized Morse code at all, since it had gone out of use around the year 2000. 2015 N.Y. Times Mag. 23 Aug. 54/5 His slurring of the Latino community is not something that should be going on in the year 2015. b. Preceding a noun following and identifying another noun (usually a proper name) in apposition.This is the usual construction when the whole phrase is a recognized appellation (e.g. William the Conqueror, John the Baptist). (a) In general use, with an occupational term or other agent noun denoting a person. Π OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 1st Ser. (Royal) (1997) xxxii. 457 Danihel se witega læg seofon niht betwux seofon leonum on anum seaðe ungewemmed. OE West Saxon Gospels: Matt. (Corpus Cambr.) iii. 1 On þam dagum com Iohannes se Fulluhtere. a1225 MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 73 And dauid þe prophete spekeð in an salm. c1350 Apocalypse St. John: A Version (Harl. 874) (1961) 1 (MED) Seint Poule þapostle seiþ þat alle þoo þat willen..leuen in iesu crist shullen suffre persecuciouns. c1390 (?a1300) Stations of Rome (Vernon) (1867) i. l. 238 Seint Ion þe Ewangelist. ?a1425 (a1400) Brut (Corpus Cambr.) 299 About seint Lukes day þe euangglist. a1500 Gospel of Nicodemus (Harl. 149) (1974) 120 (MED) Oure Lorde toke Adam..and delyuered hym to Saynt Mychel the archaungel. 1528 Rede me & be nott Wrothe sig. hvi Wenest thou that Peter the fissher, Vnderstode not scripture clearlyer. 1599 T. Nashe Lenten Stuffe 15 Their barronry by William the Conquerour conueyed ouer them. 1639 R. B. tr. Epitome Lives Kings of France 265 Encouraged by Joane the Maid, who miraculously drove the English from before Orleance. 1680 R. L'Estrange Compend. Hist. Last 14 Years 7 An Alehouse in Pudding Lane, adjoyning to Farriner the Baker's. 1726 A. Smith Mem. Jonathan Wild 250 One of the Pistols..most dangerously wounded Jack the Tinman, which deferr'd his Tryal. 1797 R. Southey Poems 164 Yet chearful and happy..Poor Mary the Maniac has been. 1869 Tim Doolan v. 53 They called me ‘Bill the Slasher,’ bekays I was fond o' rollickin', an' fightin'. 1906 Edinb. Rev. Oct. 334 Bourdalone the physician was another favourite. 1942 Los Angeles Times 28 Dec. 1/2 Rosie the Riveter and Joe the Jig-builder yesterday showed the folks how they build dive bombers at Northrop. 2014 L. Moriarty Big Little Lies 177 It was Pete the Plumber. Jane's heart sank. (b) regional (chiefly Welsh English). With a noun (other than an agent noun) indicating the trade or profession of a person. [Perhaps compare Welsh formations like John y Bara, lit. ‘John of the Bread’, in which the genitive relationship is marked by the position of the definite article y.] ΚΠ 1894 E. Œ. Somerville & ‘M. Ross’ Real Charlotte I. iv. 40 Norry the Boat, daughter of Shaunapickeen, the ferryman (whence her title). 1951 W. Morum Gabriel ii. vii. 230 He thought Larry the Groan far worse. The effeminate singer..was positively embarrassing. 1974 Times 27 Apr. 15/8 The Welsh tradition of referring to people by the names of their jobs, as Jones the Post or Davis the Bread. 1980 R. H. Lewis Cracking of Spines vii. 113 ‘The prospective client,’..I assumed a Welsh accent. ‘Matt the Book.’ 2006 R. Bowen Evanly Bodies i. 3 I'll just pop up to Evans-the-Milk and get an extra pint, just in case. 16. a. Standing first in a noun phrase consisting of a noun particularized or described by an adjective.The adjective usually precedes the noun, e.g. the good life. An adjective or participle with a modifying addition usually follows the noun (e.g. the grass wet with dew, the tools needed for the work): cf. sense A. 14d.A particularizing adjective may become a conventional or permanent epithet (e.g. the Black Prince, the Good Book, the Great Exhibition, the Princess Royal, the red planet, the Yellow Sea); the adjective and noun may then be treated as the name of a unique person or thing, as in sense A. 3. Π eOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Parker) anno 853 Þy ilcan geare sende Ęþelwulf cyning Ęlfred his sunu to Rome. OE Blickling Homilies 5 Se heofonlica cyning ineode on þone medmycclan innoþ. OE Laws of Æðelred II (Claud.) vi. xxii. §1. 252 Woroldlicra weorca on þam halgan dæge geswice man georne. a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 5 Þa oðre men..stiȝen uppeon þe godes cunnes treowe. a1300 in C. Brown Eng. Lyrics 13th Cent. (1932) 117 (MED) Heuene quene..of þe sprong þeo edi blede. 1340 Ayenbite (1866) 1 Ich bidde þe hit by my sseld auoreye þe wycked uend. c1400 Brut (Rawl. B. 171) 26 She was þe ryȝt heire of þis lande. c1405 (c1385) G. Chaucer Knight's Tale (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 1491 Among the goddes hye it is affermed..Thou shalt [etc.]. 1483 ( tr. G. Deguileville Pilgrimage of Soul (Caxton) (1859) v. vi. 76 The chirche militant..that laboureth here in erthe. c1525 J. Rastell New Commodye Propertes of Women sig. Aiv^v The myghty and perdurable god be his gyde. 1575 G. Gascoigne Certayne Notes Instr. in Posies sig. T.iiii^v Vse your verse after thenglishe phrase. 1609 Benet of Canfield Rule of Perfection (new ed.) i. vi. 40 A man trauaileth toward Paradise and discouereth the life eternall. 1662 S. Pepys Diary 20 Oct. (1970) III. 230 Saw the so much by me desired picture of my Lady Castlemayne. 1710 R. Steele Tatler No. 208. ⁋1 They had the quite contrary Effect. 1751 T. Gray Elegy xiv. 8 The dark unfathom'd caves of ocean. 1820 P. B. Shelley Prometheus Unbound iii. iii. 105 The progeny immortal Of Painting, Sculpture, and wrapt Poesy. 1863 H. Cox Inst. Eng. Govt. i. xi. 262 The Long or Pensionary Parliament of Charles II. 1866 S. J. Stone Lyra Fidelium 42 And the great Church victorious Shall be the Church at rest. 1906 G. Matheson Let. 13 June in D. Macmillan Life G. Matheson 346 A creed which will inspire them with the hope everlasting. 1938 Times 5 Feb. 15/6 Where the garden proper is backed by a wood. 2010 N.Y. Times 10 Jan. (Travel section) 6/1 (advt.) A few minutes into our drive, a lioness broke from the tall grass. b. Before the proper name of a person or place (e.g. the Admirable Crichton, the judicious Hooker). Π eOE tr. Orosius Hist. (BL Add.) (1980) i. i. 10 Be westan Capodocia is þæt land þe mon hætt seo læsse Asia. c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 4756 Follȝhe swa þe gode [altered from laferrd] iob Þatt wass an king onn eorþe. c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 18 (MED) An-oþer he nom on Latin þe makede Seinte Albin & þe feire Austin, þe fulluht broute hider in. a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) l. 5261 Whan þe worþi william..hade vnderston þe tidinges to þende, to þe menskful messageres he made glad chere. a1439 J. Lydgate Fall of Princes (Bodl. 263) i. l. 5758 And as poetis recorden bi scripture, He callid was the faire Adonydes. 1481 W. Caxton tr. Hist. Reynard Fox (1970) 78 Bytwene the grete Inde and erthly paradyse. c1500 (?a1475) Assembly of Gods (1896) l. 269 Next vnto hyr..Sate the good Iupyter. 1513 G. Douglas tr. Virgil Æneid x. i. 39 The fresch goldyn Venus. 1645 J. Milton L'Allegro in Poems 34 Their savory dinner..Which the neat-handed Phillis dresses. 1743 W. Emerson Doctr. Fluxions Pref. 13 The divine Newton (whose Works will last as long as the Sun and Moon). 1858 Friends' Rev. 27 Feb. 397/1 The proud England is famed far and wide. 1906 F. Thompson Ode Eng. Martyrs 163 That utterance..Of the doomed Leonidas. 1970 R. Davies Fifth Business (1977) v. ii. 205 The beautiful Faustina, who was naked as the dawn, and lovely as the breeze. 2000 Holiday & Leisure Spring 23 Linking these two..regions..runs the mighty Hadrian's Wall. c. With an adjective, when this is a conventional or permanent epithet, following the noun (e.g. Alfred the Great); similarly with ordinal numerals following names of sovereigns or popes (e.g. Edward the Seventh). Π eOE King Ælfred tr. Gregory Pastoral Care (Hatton) (1871) iv. 37 Bi ðam cuæð Salomonn se snottra: Sunu min [etc.]. OE Blickling Homilies 15 Hit is Hælend se Nazarenisca. OE Battle of Maldon (1942) 273 Þa gyt on orde stod Eadweard se langa, gearo and geornful. c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1978) l. 12630 (MED) Mete þer is vnimete & men swiðe balde..and him-seolf Arður þe balde. c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) l. 1861 Seint eleyne þe gode. a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1879) VII. 443 (MED) For in þat tyme [in] Engelond was robberie under kyng William þe Rede. c1400 J. Gower Eng. Wks. (1901) II. 481 O worthi noble kyng, Henry the ferthe. 1483 W. Caxton tr. A. Chartier Curial sig. ij For to them whom fortune the variable hath most hyely lyfte vp. 1558 in J. T. Gilbert Cal. Anc. Rec. Dublin (1889) 475 Patrick Fitz Symon, theldor, and William Byrsall, the yonger. 1686 Hist. Diss. i, in W. Hopkins tr. Ratramnus Bertram conc. Body & Blood of Lord (1688) 8 Charles the bald chose to consult him. 1718 J. Ozell tr. J. F. Regnard & C. Dufresny Fair of St. Germain iii. i. 45 In the Days of Richard the Fearless. 1795 Gentleman's Mag. Nov. 901/1 Let it not be said that poor James the Second was a voluntary abdicator. 1816 J. B. Rogers Days of Harold ii. 62 Mercia's heir, he saw, Edgar the valiant, fam'd in war. 1858 Harper's Mag. Mar. 557/1 Grim old Gregory the Seventh, Pope of Rome. 1911 Eng. Hist. Rev. 26 417 At the time of Charles the Bold there were 2,200 households. 1958 Life 17 Nov. 74/2 Our last gracious king, George the Sixth, died from the effects of cigarette smoking. 2014 N.Y. Rev. Bks. 19 June 6/2 These lands..were added to the Russian Empire by Catherine the Great. d. Preceding a proper name modified by an adjective designating a person, place, etc., in a particular state or condition, at a particular time or age, etc. (e.g. The young Beethoven was influenced by Haydn and Mozart, ‘Beethoven, when he was young, was influenced..’). Π a1680 Faithful Lovers Downfal (single sheet) Philander, ah Philander, still the bleeding Phillis cries. 1757 tr. J. G. Keyssler Trav. III. 222 Their country appears to have been situated..at a great distance from the modern Padua. 1768 A. Booth Reign of Grace vii. 106 The soul that..does not in some degree, find a glow of affection to the dying Jesus, must be colder than ice. 1807 C. Lamb Tales from Shakespear I. 33 He touched the eyelids of the sleeping Demetrius with the love-juice, and he instantly awoke. 1861 A. P. Stanley Lect. Eastern Church (1869) xii. 409 They rang a tocsin with the great bell of the ancient Novgorod. 1879 M. Pattison Milton i. 6 The tutor to whom the young Milton was consigned was specially noted for Arminian proclivities. 1896 Harper's Mag. Apr. 761/2 The King..made the seventy-year-old Blücher its commander. 1903 P. W. Joyce Social Hist. Anc. Ireland I. ix. 301 Walking three times in the direction of the sun round the wounded Edward, before beginning his examination of the wound. 1972 N.Y. Times 18 Sept. 20/1 The old Paris is no more. 1999 M. Frayn Headlong (2000) 309 But it's powerfully and mysteriously placed—in the foreground on the right-hand edge of the picture, exactly balancing the sleeping John on the left-hand edge. 2003 Daily Mirror 1 Apr. 4/1 The furious White House said Arnett spoke from ‘a point of complete ignorance’. 2006 Daily Rec. (Nexis) 30 Dec. (Sport section) 44 Only two players..have beaten the dominant Federer in the last year. e. With an adjective such as occasional or odd and a singular noun, conveying a sense of indefiniteness (frequently equivalent to a or an). Π 1843 E. Thompson Serm. Future State of Happiness iii. 68 If the occasional tear falls,..it is on account of a passing doubt entertained for the temporal care and prosperity of those, he is about to leave behind. 1918 G. M. Knocker Let. 17 Mar. in Diary & Lett. World War I Fighter Pilot (2008) 170 I then took off & did the odd ‘stunt’, I think they were rather impressed—& probably thought me rather a ‘dog’! 1984 G. Vanderhaeghe My Present Age (1986) ii. 17 On a week night the streets would be deserted except for the occasional carload of drunks tooling around. 2005 F. K. Christensen Stopping Pain vii. 18 In high school there was the rare girl who unexplainably left school. 2016 Church Times 23 Dec. 14/1 Those who are basically vegetarians but who will eat the odd bit of turkey or salmon. 17. Regularly preceding a superlative adjective or an ordinal number. a. With a noun as head of the noun phrase (see also A. 16c).Formerly sometimes with a periphrastic superlative (formed with most) following the noun (see e.g. quot. 1748). Π OE Blickling Homilies 5 Deofol..beswac þone ærestan wifmon. OE West Saxon Gospels: John (Corpus Cambr.) i. 39 Hit wæs þa seo teoðe [OE Lindisf. Gospels ðio teigða] tid. OE Acct. Voy. Ohthere & Wulfstan in tr. Orosius Hist. (Tiber.) (1980) i. i. 17 Se man se þæt swift[ost]e hors hafað. a1225 ( Ælfric's Homily De Duodecim Abusivis (Lamb. 487) in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 103 Þeo fifte sunne is Tristicia. c1225 (?c1200) Hali Meiðhad (Bodl.) (1940) l. 619 Hire keaste ure feader..from þe heste heouene into helle grunde. ?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 50 Echnen beoð þe forme arewen of lecheries prickes. c1300 Havelok (Laud) (1868) l. 9 He was þe wicteste man at nede. a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) l. 1936 (MED) No man..schuld mow deuise men richlier a-raid..þe grete after here degre in þe gaiest wise, & menere men as þei miȝt. a1400 (c1303) R. Mannyng Handlyng Synne (Harl.) l. 7381 (MED) Þe fourþe synne ys more perylous with man and womman relygyus. a1425 (c1395) Bible (Wycliffite, L.V.) (Royal) (1850) Luke xvi. 10 He that is trewe in the leeste thing, is trewe also in the more. c1450 King Ponthus (Digby) in Publ. Mod. Lang. Assoc. Amer. (1897) 12 31 (MED) So itt was gretly spoken of theym that faght the beste and gave the grettest strokes. 1558 T. Phaer tr. Virgil Seuen First Bks. Eneidos vi. sig. R.ii Then comes the foulest feend. 1596 J. Dalrymple tr. J. Leslie Hist. Scotl. (1888) I. 180 The twelfte ȝeir of his regne. a1616 W. Shakespeare Julius Caesar (1623) iii. ii. 181 This was the most vnkindest cut of all. View more context for this quotation 1626 C. Potter tr. P. Sarpi Hist. Quarrels 110 The most Potent Princes of Italy. 1691 J. Ray Wisdom of God 46 To the hundredth part of a Minute. 1748 T. Smollett Roderick Random II. l. 148 In terms the most hyperbolical. 1759 S. Fielding Hist. Countess of Dellwyn I. 149 Ready to take fire at every the least Provocation. 1830 Edinb. Rev. Jan. 517 The millionth part of a grain of many substances is an ordinary dose; but the reduction proceeds to the billionth, trillionth, nay to the decillionth, portion of a grain! 1848 E. C. Gaskell Mary Barton I. ix. 166 Th'longest lane will have a turning. 1880 E. Ryerson Loyalists Amer. & their Times (ed. 2) II. v. 178 The King..addressed them in terms the most conciliatory. 1937 Amer. Home Apr. 102/1 (advt.) Not the slightest draft will disturb you. 1988 J. Frame Carpathians ix. 56 We want the whole of the country to be computer-literate by the twenty-first century. 2016 J. Chang Wangs vs. World vii. 35 This was the fifth time she'd called Saina today. b. With the superlative or ordinal as head of the noun phrase.In North American usage, the is normally omitted before an ordinal signifying a date when following the name of a month (e.g. July fourth). Π OE Cynewulf Elene 536 Him þa togenes þa gleawestan on wera þreate wordum mældon. OE Ælfric 2nd Let. to Wulfstan (Corpus Cambr.) in B. Fehr Die Hirtenbriefe Ælfrics (1914) 208 Se sixta is accidia, þæt is asolcennyss. a1225 MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 69 Þet ðridde is þes monnes wil. c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 6183 Þat writ wes irad imæ[n]g þan Rom-leden Þa speken sone þæ wisseste of Rome. 1340 Ayenbite (1866) 33 Þer byeþ zix poyns kueade huerby sleuþe brengeþ man to his ende. Þe uerste is onboȝsamnesse... Þe þridde is grochynge. a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1865) I. 79 (MED) Among alle þe londes of þis worlde Ynde is þe grettest and most richest. c1450 (?c1400) tr. Honorius Augustodunensis Elucidarium (1909) 8 (MED) Where firste he was þe moost faireste was maide anoon þe moost fouleste. a1470 T. Malory Morte Darthur (Winch. Coll. 13) (1990) III. 1178 Amonge the thyckyste of the prees. 1526 Bible (Tyndale) Matt. xviii. f. xxiiij^v Who is the greatest in the kyngdom off heven? 1622 in G. Seton Life Earl of Dunfermline (1882) vi. 141 (note) [He] took sickness the first of June 1622. 1667 in D. H. S. Cranage Archit. Acct. Churches of Shropshire (1897) 192 He died lamented in the great septenary or 49 year of his age march the 29 anno dom 1648. 1779 Mirror No. 27. (1781) I. 215 With the best and most affectionate of husbands. 1779 J. Warner in J. H. Jesse G. Selwyn & his Contemp. (1844) IV. 14 Your letter of Tuesday the 19th, was brought to me on Monday. 1799 R. Southey Let. 5 Jan. in C. C. Southey Life & Corr. R. Southey (1850) II. 3 These vile taxes will take twenty pounds from me, at the least. 1852 M. Arnold Youth of Nature 71 Too deep for the most to discern. 1911 Eugenics Rev. 3 219 In respect to intellect the third appears to be the best when judged by the standard we have adopted. 1923 S. O. Siang 100 Years' Hist. Chinese in Singapore v. 76 He was the second of three sons. 1968 C. Chaundler Everyman's Bk. Anc. Customs ii. 180 December the sixth is the feast day of St. Nicholas. 2010 Irish Times 8 Sept. 9/1 He had evidently been conditioned by past experience to expect the worst. 18. Before higher titles of rank identified by a following personal name, place name, or title of office (e.g. the Emperor Napoleon, the Grand Duke Michael, the Empress Josephine, the Queen of the Netherlands, the Duchess of Windsor, the Lord Privy Seal, etc.); also with some courtesy titles (e.g. the Right Honourable, the Honourable, the Reverend, etc.).In the United Kingdom, except in formal use, the is not now usual with higher titles when followed by the personal name, as King George, Prince Edward, Duke Humphrey, Earl Grey, Earl Simon, etc. In formal use, the is now used before a title which is not a courtesy title; before Prince and Princess only for the children of the Sovereign.See further lady n. 3a, lord n. 8a, and the other titles; see also honourable adj. 5a, reverend adj. 1c. Π lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) anno 1117 Þa..com se cyng of France & se eorl of Flandra mid him. c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 1546 Þe Duc of Cornwaile scal habbe Gornoille & þe Scottene king Regau þat scone. c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 6563 (MED) Sone gon of-ærne þe eorl Uortigerne. 1340 Ayenbite (1866) 76 (MED) Þe leuedy fortune went hare hueȝel eche daye. 1399 in Rec. Parl. Scotl. to 1707 (2007) 1399/1/3 The duc of Rothesay be the kyngis lieutenande..for the terme of thre yhere. ?1435 in C. L. Kingsford Chrons. London (1905) 60 (MED) And affterwarde kome the Erle off Salysbury and prayed that he myht have his protestacion entred ayens the Lorde Morle. 1472 J. Paston in Paston Lett. & Papers (2004) I. 448 Robert off Racclyff weddyd the Lady Dymmok. 1553 in W. Jerdan Rutland Papers (1842) 119 Therle of Oxford claymeth thoffice of great chamberlayne of England. 1603 R. Wilbraham Jrnl. (1902) 60 The lord Thomas Howard made erle of Suffolk. 1623 W. Shakespeare & J. Fletcher Henry VIII ii. iii. 95 The Marchionesse of Pembrooke. View more context for this quotation 1707 J. Chamberlayne Angliæ Notitia (ed. 22) ii. xv. 188 The Lord Chief Justice. 1794 A. Radcliffe Myst. of Udolpho IV. xi. 220 ‘The Chevalier Valancourt!’ said Emily, trembling extremely. 1827 Edinb. Weekly Jrnl. 28 Feb. The absence of the Right Hon. the Lord Provost. 1878 Observer 19 May 6/2 The Earl Fitzwilliam arrived in town yesterday. 1935 C. Hamilton Pillion 25 He was the third son of Colonel the Hon. Almeric Sounds Sharnal Piers Clement Piers, late of the Rifle Brigade. 1943 H. Saunders Combined Operations vii. 52 Admiral of the Fleet Sir Roger Keyes was succeeded as Director of Combined Operations by Captain the Lord Louis Mountbatten. 1981 Daily Tel. 5 Nov. 16/2 Her Majesty's Body Guard of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms under the command of the Lord Denham. 2011 Daily Tel. 20 July 26/5 The Duchess of Cambridge again stole the show in a white chiffon dress. II. Referring to a term used generically or universally. * With a singular noun or an adjective. 19. a. Before a noun denoting an animal, plant, or precious stone, used generically.Not now used with man or woman, except as opposed to child, boy, girl, or the like: contrast the view that man is the norm, and woman is the opposite but better with the child is father of the man and you can see the woman in the little girl. Π eOE tr. Orosius Hist. (BL Add.) (1980) iii. xi. 77 Seo leo bringð his hungregum hwelpum hwæt to etanne. lOE King Ælfred tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. (Bodl.) (2009) I. xli. 380 Ac se mann ana gæþ uprihte. a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 53 Þe tadde..ne mei itimien to eten hire fulle. c1225 (?c1200) St. Juliana (Royal) l. 142 Hire leofliche leor..rudi as þe rose. c1300 (?c1225) King Horn (Cambr.) (1901) l. 14 (MED) He was whit so þe flur. a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) l. 820 Þei founde..briddes þat bliþeliche song, boþe þe þrusch & þe þrustele bi xxxti of boþe. c1400 (?a1300) Kyng Alisaunder (Laud) (1952) l. 1820 Men dreden hym..So chalf þe bere and shep þe wolf. c1475 Court of Sapience (Trin. Cambr.) (1927) l. 1282 The roose, the lyly, the vyolet, Refleiring, shynyng, and the peyntyng [read peyntyng the] ground. a1500 (?c1440) J. Lydgate Horse, Goose & Sheep (Lansd.) l. 344 in Minor Poems (1934) ii. 553 The Goos may gagle, the Hors may prike & praunce..A-geyn the Lamb. 1553 R. Eden tr. S. Münster Treat. Newe India sig. Biiij^v The Diamande is engendred in the mynes of India, Ethiopia,..and Cyprus. 1597 A. Montgomerie Cherrie & Slae 21 The Hairt the Hynd, the Dae the Rae, The Fulmarte and the Fox. 1622 M. Drayton 2nd Pt. Poly-olbion xx. 12 The Colewort, Colifloure, and Cabidge in their season. 1727 J. Thomson Summer 19 At Thee the Ruby lights his deepening Glow. 1797 T. Holcroft tr. F. L. Stolberg Trav. II. xliv. 93 They sell the heifer to the butcher. 1832 T. B. Macaulay Burleigh & his Times in Ess. (1887) 236 Burleigh..was of the willow, and not of the oak. 1854 J. S. Bushnan in Orr's Circle Sci.: Org. Nature I. 142 It [sc. voice of the tiger] purrs like the Cat. 1955 Country Life 13 Oct. 780/2 (caption) Each bulb flowers only once, and the lily needs much space. 2011 S. Otfinoski Jaguars iii. 23 The jaguar is a solitary animal. b. Generally, before a noun denoting anything used as the type of its class (e.g. with the names of musical instruments, tools, modes of transport, etc.).Frequently in prepositional phrases (especially headed by on) with nouns of action derived from verb stems, as on the go, on the make, on the rebound, on the run, on the take, etc.: see the nouns. ΚΠ OE West Saxon Gospels: Matt. (Corpus Cambr.) iii. 10 Eallunga ys seo [c1200 Hatton syo] æx to ðæra treowa wurtrumum asett. a1225 (c1200) Vices & Virtues (1888) 69 (MED) Ne mai na more..ðe riche mann cumen in to heuene riche, ðanne mai ðe oluende cumen ðurh ðe nædle eiȝen. c1300 Havelok (Laud) (1868) l. 2329 Þer mouthe men here..Þe gleymen on þe tabour dinge. a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add. 27944) (1975) II. xix. cxxxix. 1391 The harpe hatte cithara, and was first yfounde of Appolyn. a1439 J. Lydgate Fall of Princes (Bodl. 263) i. l. 295 (MED) He made a tretis..Vpon thastlabre. 1481 W. Caxton tr. Myrrour of Worlde i. xiv. sig. d. 1 The axe doeth nothynge but cutte, And he that holdeth it addressith it to what parte he wylle. a1525 (c1448) R. Holland Bk. Howlat l. 759 in W. A. Craigie Asloan MS (1925) II. 118 The rote and ye recordour..The trumpe and ye talburn. 1589 G. Puttenham Arte Eng. Poesie i. xix. 33 To be..song to the harpe. 1593 W. Shakespeare Venus & Adonis sig. D^v A red morne that..betokend, Wracke to the sea-man, tempest to the field. View more context for this quotation 1631 B. Jonson Bartholmew Fayre iii. ii. 33 in Wks. II A notable hot Baker 'twas, when hee ply'd the peele. 1711 R. Steele Spectator No. 52. ⁋3 The renowned British Hippocrates of the pestle and mortar. 1746 P. Francis tr. Horace in P. Francis & W. Dunkin tr. Horace Epistles i. x. 7 You keep the Nest, I love the rural Mead, The Brook, the mossy Rock and woody Glade. 1785 W. Cowper Task ii. 629 The rout is folly's circle. 1815 W. Scott Lord of Isles iii. xxiii. 115 The lad can deftly touch the lute, And on the rote and viol play. 1839 E. Bulwer-Lytton Richelieu ii. ii. 308 The pen is mightier than the sword. 1841 Derbyshire Journey-bk. Eng. vii. 115/1 The tourist will proceed to the Amber Gate Station, 6 miles from Matlock,..and take the train to the Winfield Station. 1868 London Society Nov. 411 The tricycle..is easier to guide and safer to use than the bicycle. 1906 Edinb. Rev. Oct. 448 Zola has democratised the novel in another fashion. 1959 G. E. Ladd Gospel of Kingdom i. 13 The automobile has freed man to explore..sights which to his grandparents were contained only in story-books. 2015 Film & Hist. 45 74 While she was a master of the stage, Tucker did not fare so well in films. c. Before body, mind, soul, or parts, functions, and attributes of these (as the eye, the heart, etc.). See also body n. 1, mind n.¹ 19. Cf. sense A. 8a. Π OE West Saxon Gospels: Matt. (Corpus Cambr.) vi. 25 Hu nys seo sawl selre þonne mete. lOE King Ælfred tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. (Bodl.) (2009) I. xxiv. 291 Seo fægernes þonne and seo [eOE Otho sio] hwætnes þæs lichoman geblissað ðone mon. a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 153 Ine þe eren. ?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 2 Þeo oðer is alwið vten & riwleð þe licome. ?a1300 Iacob & Iosep (Bodl.) (1916) l. 9 (MED) Þat is þe soule ful loþ, & lef þe licame. a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add. 27944) (1975) I. v. lxvi. 289 By þat yuel þe nurtur of heer is corrupt and faileþ, and þe heer falleþ, and þe ferþe partye of þe heed is bare. c1400 (?a1300) Kyng Alisaunder (Laud) (1952) l. 6251 A folk..rouȝ as bere to þe honde. a1425 J. Wyclif Sel. Eng. Wks. (1869) I. 103 (MED) Rychesse..ryven þe soule. a1500 (?a1425) tr. Secreta Secret. (Lamb.) 85 His effect is properly to comforte þe brayn, þe herte, and þe stomak. a1513 W. Dunbar Poems (1998) I. 130 Trew lufe rysis fro the splene. 1594 R. Ashley tr. L. le Roy Interchangeable Course ii. f. 24 Nothing offending, or displeasing the eare. 1692 R. South 12 Serm. I. 407 How accidentally oftentimes does the thing..offer it self to the mind. 1736 Bp. J. Butler Analogy of Relig. i. i. 20 To think the Eye itself a Percipient. 1841 W. M. Thackeray Men & Pictures 109 [They] pall on the palate. 1938 Manch. Guardian 5 Mar. 9/1 Green lands are rich, soft to the foot. 2014 M. A. Monroe Summer Wind 155 Isn't gardening supposed to be good for the soul? d. Before names of days of the week (e.g. on the Monday, i.e. on Monday of any or every week, on Mondays generally). Π OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 1st Ser. (Royal) (1997) xii. 531 Scolde gehwa freolsian þone sunnandæg mid arwyrðnysse. c1230 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Corpus Cambr.) (1962) 211 Ȝe schulen eoten..euche dei twien bute þe fridahes. c1300 Vision St. Paul (Laud) in Archiv f. das Studium der Neueren Sprachen (1874) 52 35 (MED) Seue dawes aren þat men callez þe sonenday is best of alle. 1340 Ayenbite (1866) 213 (MED) Þe zonday is more holy þanne þe zeterday. a1438 Bk. Margery Kempe (1940) i. 21 Þow must fastyn þe Fryday boþen fro mete & drynke. c1450 J. Capgrave Life St. Augustine (1910) 16 Þat sche used to fast þe Satirday. c1500 Melusine (1895) 15 That he wil promytte to the that neuer on the Satirday he shall see the. ?c1510 tr. Newe Landes & People founde by Kynge of Portyngale sig. Dvi Noman ther ouer can passe, excepte y^e saterdaye. 1659 T. Pecke Parnassi Puerperium 161 Augustus wil'd the Publicans to stay, From grudg'd Collections, on the Saturday. 1671 R. McWard True Non-conformist 119 That the Churches meeting recorded to have been on the first day of the week, sayeth not that they antiquated the Saturnday. 1797 R. Townson Trav. Hungary xiii. 304 They are not such strict observers of the Sabbath, as not to frequent balls and routes on the Sunday. 1854 T. B. Macaulay Speeches 553 He returns to his labours on the Monday. 1860 J. Gardner Faiths World II. 467/2 In the mosque on the Friday, which may be termed the Mohammedan Sabbath, the Khotbeh..is regularly recited. 1904 N. Munro Erchie Droll Friend xiv. 86 There's nae Fair holidays for puir auld Erchie, no' even on the Sunday. 1993 C. MacDougall Lights Below 30 Sunday morning's the only peace I get. He's as sick as a barrel of tripe, full of drink and party tunes on Saturday night and full of remorse on the Sunday. 2013 Y. Zhekov Conscience in Recovery from Alcohol Addiction 174 On the Saturday we would clean the chapel. †e. Used before the scientific name of a species of plant. Obsolete. Π 1777 W. Curtis Flora Londinensis I. Pl. 31 The Farmer also distinguishes theAlopecurus agrestis..by the name of Black Grass. 1804 J. L. Knapp Gramina Britannica pl. cxii An observer not sufficiently attentive would conclude the awned variety of the T[riticum] repens to be the true T. caninum, but they are perfectly distinct; the T. caninum is a much less common, and a sylvan plant. 1831 W. J. Hooker Brit. Flora (ed. 2) 10 This [sc. Utricularia intermedia] has probably often been passed by as the U. vulgaris. 20. a. Before a noun normally having individual personal reference used as the type of a class of persons.to act the man, to act the soldier, etc.: see act v. 3c; to play the man, to play the fool, etc.: see play v. 28a. Π eOE King Ælfred tr. Gregory Pastoral Care (Hatton) (1871) xii. 75 Þæs biscepes weorc sceolon bion..sua micle beteran sua hit micel bið betwux ðæs hirdes life & ðære heorde. OE tr. Bede Eccl. Hist. (Cambr. Univ. Libr.) Pref. ii. 6 Þone leornere ic nu eadmodlice bidde & halsige.., þæt he me þæt ne otwite. a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 27 Ah þenne þe preost hit deð in his muþe. ?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 67 Þe fikelere blent mon. c1350 Psalter (BL Add. 17376) in K. D. Bülbring Earliest Compl. Eng. Prose Psalter (1891) vii. 15 (MED) Lo, þe sinner doþ vnryȝt-fulnesse; he conceiued sorow and childed wickednesse. a1425 (c1395) Bible (Wycliffite, L.V.) (Royal) (1850) Psalms xxxi. 10 Many betyngis ben of the synnere. c1449 R. Pecock Repressor (1860) 273 Therfore chese the reder..whether this or thilk or bothe he wole holde. 1535 Bible (Coverdale) Isa. xliv. C The carpenter (or ymage caruer) taketh me the tymbre, and spredeth forth his lyne. 1602 W. Watson Decacordon Ten Quodlibeticall Questions 334 I..craue patience of the catholike Reader. 1647 H. Hexham Copious Eng. & Netherduytch Dict. (title page) A compendious Grammar for the Instruction of the Learner. 1681 J. Dryden Absalom & Achitophel 20 But, where the witness faild, the Prophet Spoke. 1720 I. Watts Divine & Moral Songs i. i 'Tis the voice of the Sluggard. 1748 S. Richardson Clarissa VI. lxxvii. 283 I will contrive to be the man. 1787 ‘G. Gambado’ Acad. Horsemen 21 To ride with a lash whip; it shews the sportsman. 1843 T. B. Macaulay Addison in Ess. (1887) 791 Steele..was much of the rake and a little of the swindler. 1859 Ld. Tennyson Enid in Idylls of King 68 As careful robins eye the delver's toil. 1930 Spectator 16 Aug. 229/1 Only the cynic will say that Ivan is altogether too good to be true. 2014 M. Bagshaw & C. Mills North Yorks. Moors & Wolds iii. 77 This is possibly the best area in the country for the cyclist. 2015 J. Whittemore Colonial Madness 162 I, once again, had to be the grown-up and fix everything. b. In predicative use: before a noun or noun phrase of this kind used to indicate that a person is a notable example of the class. Π 1761 T. Smollett et al. tr. Voltaire Wks. V. 82 In reading the history of Henry IV. by father Daniel, we are surprised at not finding him the great man. 1767 A. Young Adventures Emmera I. iv. 13 I am often surprized you should have treated so coldly a man so much the gentleman. 1838 M. M. Sherwood Henry Milner iii. ix. 175 He is a genteel young man—no snob—quite the gentleman. 1897 A. R. Marshall ‘Pomes’ from Pink 'Un 8 She was quite the lady In deportment and dress. 1925 L. H. Myers Clio i. 8 Marie, golden-haired, short-skirted, very much the soubrette, began tripping about the room. 1934 P. Lynch Turf-cutter's Donkey xiii. 101 Isn't he the clever lad! 1955 ‘P. Dennis’ Auntie Mame iv. 62 In the process of coaching the kid, the old girl became quite the athlete herself. 2000 K. Charles Cruel Habitations (2001) xv. 283 ‘Oh, bully for you,’ she sneered. ‘Aren't you the noble one?’ 21. Before an adjective used as the head of a noun phrase (and now frequently treated as a noun), usually denoting an abstract notion (e.g. the beautiful, that which is beautiful).In phrases headed by the preposition on, as on the cheap, on the loose, on the quiet, on the sly, etc.: see the main word. Π eOE King Ælfred tr. Gregory Pastoral Care (Hatton) (1871) xi. 65 Ðurh ða gesceadwisnesse we tocnawað good & yfel, & geceosað ðæt god, & aweorpað ðæt yfel. OE Beowulf (2008) 1739 Him eal worold wendeð on willan; he þæt wyrse ne con. c1390 (?c1350) St. Paula l. 90 in C. Horstmann Sammlung Altengl. Legenden (1878) 5 Þe bettre heo chose and toke Þat þe wombe raþur þen þe þouht oke. a1460 tr. Dicts & Sayings Philosophers (Helm.) (1999) 89 He is a beest that discerneth nat betwene the good & the euel. 1498 Interpr. Names Goddis & Goddesses (de Worde) sig. Bi/2 In stede of better the worse there they ches [c1500 Trin. Cambr. In stede of the bettyr the worse ther they ches]. 1560 J. Knox Answer Great Nomber Blasphemous Cauillations 194 The hole scope of oure doctrine tend to the contrarie. a1616 W. Shakespeare Taming of Shrew (1623) iv. iii. 80 I will be free, Euen to the vttermost. View more context for this quotation 1650 Exercitation conc. Usurped Powers v. 69 He hath begun his Argument ab hypothesi, ad thesin, or from the particular to the generall. 1748 T. Smollett Roderick Random I. xxii. 188 A nose inclining to the aquiline. 1757 E. Burke (title) A philosophical enquiry into the origin of our ideas of the sublime and beautiful. 1850 Ld. Tennyson In Memoriam civ. 162 Ring out the false, ring in the true. View more context for this quotation 1878 T. Hardy Return of Native III. vi. iii. 292 There is too much reason why we should do the little we can to respect it now. 1940 J. Power Shelley in Amer. vii. 121 A taste for the sentimental and a desire to cultivate art for art's sake. 1991 Today 13 June 13/4 An interesting mixture of the elegant, the intellectual, the off-beat and the naff. 2015 Irish Times 18 Apr. (Weekend Review section) 11/4 The chapter..verges on the ridiculous. With a noun or adjective with plural reference used universally. 22.** Before a noun in the plural, chiefly the name of a nation, class, or group of people, where the has the sense ‘those who are’; ‘the —— taken as a whole’. Also with family surnames (e.g. the Joneses, the Smiths, the Robinsons). Π eOE tr. Orosius Hist. (BL Add.) (1980) v. xii. 126 He for on Bretanie þæt iglond, & wið þa Brettas gefeaht. c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 188 He shall turrnenn þurrh hiss spell Þe trowwþelæse leode. c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) l. 87 Þe saxons..Seve kynges made in engelond. a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1879) VII. 57 Þe Danes spoylede and robbede al Northumberlond. ?a1425 (c1400) Mandeville's Trav. (Titus C.xvi) (1919) 90 (MED) The sarazines ben gode & feythfull, for þei kepen entierly the commandement of..Alkaron. 1477 W. Caxton tr. R. Le Fèvre Hist. Jason (1913) 91 Salathiel whiche was of the lignye of the Hebrews. 1548 W. Patten Exped. Scotl. Pref. sig. c ij^v Neyther the Grekes [nor] the Ruthens. 1570 T. Blundeville tr. F. Furio Ceriol Very Briefe Profitable Treat. sig. A.3^v As the Phisitians doe deuide mannes lyfe into seauen ages or times. 1613 S. Purchas Pilgrimage 246 The bodie..was afflicted on the East by the Persians, on the West by the Gothes. 1783 J. O. Justamond tr. G. T. F. Raynal Philos. Hist. Europeans in Indies (new ed.) III. 380 The Rima..is not yet well know'n to the botanists. 1816 G. Crabb Eng. Synonymes 139/2 The Tarquins were banished from Rome. 1817 New Monthly Mag. Sept. 102/1 The tremendous rioters.., including the Watsons and the small fry who accompanied the flags through the city. 1865 Catholic World Sept. 788/2 It was what the lawyers would call a ‘leading question’. 1906 Edinb. Rev. Oct. 429 These laws of sight the Greeks made it their business to analyse. 1956 Country Life 3 May 951/1 Certainly the Saddlebacks are good mothers and produce thriving litters. 2014 Epoch Times (N.Y.) 26 Sept. a16/4 Why should the Scots have a say in English affairs? 23. a. Before an adjective or participle used as the head of a noun phrase and having plural reference, usually to all members of a group or class of people (e.g. the poor, those who or such as are poor).Where they become conventional such uses may be regarded as giving rise to new nouns (by conversion), e.g. poor n.¹ 1. Π eOE King Ælfred tr. Gregory Pastoral Care (Hatton) (1871) xxiii. 175 On oðre wisan [mon sceal manian] ða woroldwisan, on oðre ða dysegan. c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 15498 Þe blinde ȝaff he wel to sen. c1275 Doomsday (Calig.) in C. Brown Eng. Lyrics 13th Cent. (1932) 45 (MED) Þer stondeþ þe riȝtwise on his riȝt honde. a1300 in C. Brown Eng. Lyrics 13th Cent. (1932) 2 (MED) Ȝieue þe hungrie mete & te nakede iwede. c1390 (a1376) W. Langland Piers Plowman (Vernon) (1867) A. Prol. l. 18 Alle maner of men, þe mene and þe riche. c1426 J. Audelay Poems (1931) 7 Vysyte þe seke. c1450 tr. G. Deguileville Pilgrimage Lyfe Manhode (Cambr.) (1869) 35 (MED) J make him yiue and departe that that he hath to the needy and to mendivauns. 1526 Bible (Tyndale) John xii. f. cxxxix The povre all wayes shall ye have with you. 1535 Bible (Coverdale) Psalms lxviii. D Let them be wyped out of ye boke of the lyuinge, & not be written amonge the rightuous. 1587 A. Fleming et al. Holinshed's Chron. (new ed.) III. 449/2 To fetch awaie the dead and the wounded. 1622 H. Peacham Compl. Gentleman xvi. 200 If it be the common Law of Nature, that the learned should..instruct the ignorant, the experienced, the vnexperienced. 1671 J. Milton Paradise Regain'd iv. 157 Nothing will please the difficult and nice. View more context for this quotation 1718 M. Prior Solomon on Vanity i, in Poems Several Occasions (new ed.) 420 All the living that four-footed move Along the shore, the meadow, or the grove. 1748 T. Gray Ode in R. Dodsley Coll. Poems II. 265 How low, how indigent the proud, How little are the great! 1812 Ld. Byron Childe Harold: Cantos I & II i. xxxiv. 25 Here ceas'd the swift their race, here sunk the strong. 1819 P. B. Shelley Rosalind & Helen 16 He was a coward to the strong: He was a tyrant to the weak. 1876 Japan Mail 11 Feb. 112/1 A cask of the sound and one of the damaged were opened. 1931 Amer. Mercury Feb. 139/2 The stertorous breathing of the dying. 1953 Living Church 5 Feb. 12/1 Other hospitals to which the injured were rushed. 2012 Observer 22 Jan. 41/2 The rich should pay their fair share. b. Before a past participle of this kind, with complementary adverb clause. †Formerly also before a present participle, with adverb clause or object (obsolete).In this construction those is now more usual. Π OE West Saxon Gospels: Matt. (Corpus Cambr.) xxii. 3 He..clypode þa gelaðodan to þam gyftum. a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Bodl. 959) (1965) Job xxiv. 10 To þe nakide & to þe goyng wiþoute cloþing..þei tooken awei erys. c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Nahum i. 11 Of thee shal go out the thynkynge malice aȝeinus the Lord. c1450 tr. G. Deguileville Pilgrimage Lyfe Manhode (Cambr.) (1869) 56 (MED) Bi the which beth reised the fallen doun and the ouerthrowen. 1590 R. Hitchcock tr. F. Sansovino Quintesence of Wit f. 88 The aflicted with labour, with him that hath neuer tasted of any trauaile. 1602 W. Watson Decacordon Ten Quodlibeticall Questions 49 Dignities which intitle the inuested with them, with a preheminence aboue all other persons. 1633 D. Rogers Treat. Two Sacraments Gospell ii. ii. 49 Even the decayed in faith, yea the fallen into sinne, if recover'd by faith, are not to be debarred from the Sacrament. 1741 Chambers's Cycl. (ed. 5) at Jesuit The professed of this order renounce..all preferment. 1787 A. O'Leary Def. Conduct & Writings 61 Such is the number of the wounded by the white-boys in the counties of Cork and Kerry. 1819 P. B. Shelley Rosalind & Helen 27 Thou knowest what a thing is Poverty Among the fallen on evil days. 1881 Gospel in all Lands Jan. 4/1 The slain in battle living in another house by themselves [in the afterlife]. 1901 S. Suzuki tr. Surg. & Med. Hist. Naval War Japan & China 1894–5 410 The proportions above enumerated between the numbers of the killed in action, and those who died from sickness all refer to armies. 2000 G. L. Ramsey Care-full Preaching i. 9 The broken in spirit, the perplexed, the bored, the desperate. 2005 H. Barker Death, One & Art of Theatre 59 This adieu of the loved to the stricken-with-grief. B. pron.² As demonstrative pronoun. Obsolete except as that pron.¹In Old English use as demonstrative pronoun is found for forms of all cases and genders. In modern standard English only the reflex of the nominative and accusative singular neuter þæt that pron.¹ is current in this use (see discussion at that entry). The occasional survival in use as demonstrative pronoun in Middle English is illustrated below for reflexes of case forms that are not otherwise covered at that pron.¹, tho pron.¹, than pron., thon pron.¹, thy pron. 1. The person or thing contextually indicated, that person or thing. Cf. that pron.¹ I.In some uses approaching use as personal pronoun; cf. quot. OE¹Rare in later Middle English and some of the apparent examples may represent transmission errors. Forms that do not show the reflex of the neuter singular nominative or accusative (i.e. that pron.¹) are more frequently attested as antecedents of a relative clause (see sense B. 2). Π OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Matt. xv. 24 Ipse autem respondens : ðe uel he soðlice onduearde. OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 2nd Ser. (Cambr. Gg.3.28) xxxii. 278 Hwæt ða drihten arærde micelne wind, and se gelæhte ealne ðone lig. a1200 (?c1175) Poema Morale (Trin. Cambr.) l. 379 in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 231 Þar me drihte self isien swo se is mid iwisse. a1225 (?OE) MS Vesp. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 235 Þer efter arerde god þas lage..and si ȝeleste sume wile. c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 4216 (MED) An of þon he weolden him don, oðer slan oðer an-hon. c1275 (?c1250) Owl & Nightingale (Calig.) (1935) 800 Þe oþer ne can sweng but anne, An þe is god wiþ eche manne. c1275 (?c1250) Owl & Nightingale (Calig.) (1935) l. 1525 Þe were gulte Þat leof is over wummon to pulte, An speneþ on þare al þat he haueþ, An siueþ þare þat noriht naueþ. c1350 Ayenbite (1866) App. 263 (MED) Þe uader of þe house..zette sleȝþe to by doreward..Nixt þan [L. hanc] ha zette strengþe. c1400 (?a1300) Kyng Alisaunder (Laud) (1952) 489 And settleþ sone after þas On stede þere þe quene was. c1460 (?c1400) Tale of Beryn 885 Ioy þat ffawnes made was dobil tho to-fore. 2. In use as antecedent pronoun before a relative clause. Cf. that pron.¹ II.In Old English frequently in the phrase se þe, sēo þe, etc. (where the second element shows the pron.¹ b). This sometimes follows a personal pronoun, as e.g. he se þe (see he pron. 5a), suggesting that the phrase was perceived as a unit with relative function. Where generalized nominative forms in þ- rather than s- occur for the demonstrative (see Forms 3aα. ), the phrase appears as þe þe (as similarly in þe þat, where the second element shows that pron.²). Π OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: Matt. iii. 3 Hic est enim qui dictus est per esaiam : ðes is forðon ðe ðe [OE Rushw. Gospels seþe] gecuoeden wæs ðerh esaias. OE Seafarer 47 A hafað longunge se þe on lagu fundað. OE Beowulf (2008) 506 Eart þu se Beowulf, se þe wið Brecan wunne? a1225 ( Ælfric's Homily De Duodecim Abusivis (Lamb. 487) in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 109 Eft þe ðe [OE Corpus Cambr. 178 se þe] deleð elmessan for his drihtnes luuan, þe bihut his gold hord on heouene riche. a1225 ( Ælfric's Homily In Die Sancto Pentecosten (Lamb. 487) in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 95 Alswa scal þe larðeu don þe ðet bið mid þet [perhaps read þen] halia gast itend. ?c1225 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Cleo. C.vi) (1972) 69 Ase þe þet seide to þe cnicht þe robbeð [etc.]. ?c1225 Ancrene Riwle (Cleo.: Scribe B) (1972) 42 Me sire. þeo deð aswa þet is betere þenne ich am. ?c1250 (?c1175) Poema Morale (Egerton) l. 217 in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 294 Þe ðe [a1300 Jesus Oxf. þe þat] godes milce sechð, iwis he mai is [a1225 Lamb. ha] finde. ?c1250 (?c1175) Poema Morale (Egerton) l. 219 in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 294 Þe ðe [a1300 Jesus Oxf. Þe þat] deð his wille mest, he haueð wurst mede. a1325 (?c1300) Northern Passion (Cambr. Gg.1.1) l. 596 (MED) Þe is vnwis þat þis ne dredes. 1340 Ayenbite (1866) 30 (MED) Þe þridde werre þet þe wreþuolle heþ is to þan þet byeþ onder him, þet is, to his wyue and to his mayne. c1350 (a1333) William of Shoreham Poems (1902) 95 (MED) Þe þat seggeþ hyt nys nauȝt so, hare wyȝt hys al to þenne. c1450 C. d'Orleans Poems (1941) 93 Neuyr more he chesen shalle princes Nor maystres, The who his hert consentid to hit has. ?c1450 Life St. Cuthbert (1891) 5626 Þe þat toke þe belt him fra, In his eyen he had..wa. C. n.¹ With plural the's or thes. An instance of the word ‘the’. Π 1758 R. Dodsley Let. 2 Feb. (1988) 335 I thought there were too many the's. 1835 A. Symonds Mech. Law-making 393 The table must be read as if many ‘the's’ and short words were there. 1882 ‘M. Twain’ Stolen White Elephant 269 You [English] say ‘out of window’; we always put in a the. 1926 H. W. Fowler Dict. Mod. Eng. Usage 643/2 How common these superfluous thes are becoming in the newspapers. 1959 Amer. Speech 34 111 The Syrian student tends to put in the's where they are not needed. 1977 Guardian Weekly 4 Dec. 4/1 If you are really serious about something and want to be taken seriously yourself, never, ever, under any circumstances, sully its name by putting a ‘the’ in front of it. 2015 E. Gorokhova Russ. Tattoo 188 My doctoral dissertation about how non-native speakers acquire English articles, all those silly a's and the's. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2018; most recently modified version published online September 2022). theadv. (before consonants)Brit. /ðə/, U.S. /ðə/ (before vowels)Brit. /ði/, /ðiː/, U.S. /ði/ Forms: Old English–early Middle English ðe, Old English–Middle English þe, early Middle English þa (probably transmission error), early Middle English þæ, early Middle English ð- (before a vowel), Middle English te (after t), Middle English þee, Middle English– the, 1800s– de (regional), 1900s– da (Scottish (Shetland)). Origin: A word inherited from Germanic. Etymology: Probably use as adverb of a case form (perhaps neuter instrumental) of the Germanic base of the demonstrative pronoun (see the adj., pron.², and n.¹; compare that pron.¹, adj.¹, adv., and n.), perhaps ultimately reflecting the same Germanic form as the conj. Compare thy adv., thon adv. In later use probably partly also a phonologically reduced form of thy adv.It is frequently assumed that in Old English the word shows an inherited long vowel (þē ) which was shortened in low stress. In Old English the word, probably reflecting what was historically an instrumental form, is found beside more frequent þȳ thy adv. and þon thon adv. in the construction with a comparative (see sense 1), sometimes in the same sentence (compare quot. eOE at sense 1a). Compare also thes the at thes adv. 2. With use in the correlative construction in sense 1c compare similar use of þȳ (see thy adv. 2a). (It has alternatively been suggested that the second the in this construction may perhaps reflect earlier use of the conj.) With sense 2 compare thy adv. 1a. However, this causal use can be difficult to distinguish from uses of the conj. (especially the conj. 1a or the conj. 3a), and the sense of individual attestations is sometimes disputed. The origin and relationship of the Old English instrumental forms þon , þȳ , and the fossilized þē̆ are uncertain and disputed; see discussion and references cited at thy adv. and pron., and compare the Germanic forms cited at that entry. 1. a. Used with a following comparative adjective or adverb to emphasize the effect of circumstances indicated by the context.The circumstances are sometimes expressed by a phrase introduced by for, e.g. he is much the better for it, he looks the better for his holiday.See also all adv. 7a, none adv. 1b, so adv. and conj. 39d, and thes the at thes adv. 2. ΚΠ eOE King Ælfred tr. Gregory Pastoral Care (Hatton) (1871) xvii. 123 Oft sio wund bið ðæs ðe wierse & ðy mare, gif hio bið unwærlice gewriðen. OE Blickling Homilies 111 Vton we þonne georne teolian þæt we æfter þon ðe beteran syn & þe selran for ðære lare ðe we oft gehyrdon. a1225 ( Ælfric's Homily In Die Sancto Pentecosten (Lamb. 487) in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 87 Þa cleopede god þe ner Moyses him to. c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1978) l. 15272 Of þere brede he æt sone þer-after him wes þæ [c1300 Otho þe] bet. c1275 (?c1250) Owl & Nightingale (Calig.) (1935) l. 19 (MED) Ho was þe gladur uor þe rise. c1300 St. Thomas Becket (Laud) l. 1252 in C. Horstmann Early S.-Eng. Legendary (1887) 142 He chaungede is name, þe sikerloker forto go. a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add. 27944) (1975) I. v. xxxviii. 243 He [sc. the stomak] is rouȝ..to holde þe bettir þe mete þat he fongiþ. a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 3651 Þat he þe mai þe less mistru þou sal sai þou ert esau. c1450 How Good Wijf (Lamb. 853) in Babees Bk. (2002) i. 41 Þe work is þe sonner do þat haþ many handis. 1526 Bible (Tyndale) John xix. 8 When Pilate herde that sayinge, he was the moare afrayde [1388 Wyclif, he dredde the more]. 1596 E. Spenser Second Pt. Faerie Queene vi. ii. sig. Aa7 That..I may beare armes,..The rather since that fortune hath this day Giuen to me the spoile of this dead knight. View more context for this quotation a1625 J. Fletcher Wild-goose Chase (1652) iv. i. 36 'Tis not to be help'd now. Lel. The more's my Miserie. 1686 tr. P. O. de Vaumorière Agiatis i. 67 All the advantage he has, is that of being in the same place as Cylesira; yet he is not much the happier for it. 1724 Modest Def. Publick Stews 51 She will be the easier bribed, when Love and Avarice jointly must be gratified. 1782 W. Cowper Mutual Forbearance in Poems 24 Your fav'rite horse Will never look one hair the worse. 1838 J. Ruskin Ess. Music & Painting §24, in Wks. (1903) I. 285 And if others do not follow their example,—the more fools they. 1883 Law Times 27 Oct. 425/1 What student is the better for mastering these futile distinctions? 1938 Manch. Guardian 8 Mar. 8/1 This record is the more remarkable when we remember the defective eyesight by which..Dr. Garvie has been handicapped. 2014 K. Fforde Christmas Feast 289 She wouldn't really be any the wiser. †b. the less (the) = lest conj. Obsolete.On forms see discussion at lest conj. ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > quantity > smallness of quantity, amount, or degree > [noun] > smaller quantity or amount the less (the)OE lesser1543 the world > relative properties > quantity > smallness of quantity, amount, or degree > [noun] > smaller quantity or amount > than one which is implied the less (the)OE OE Blickling Homilies 65 Þe læs hi us besencean on helle grund. OE West Saxon Gospels: John (Corpus Cambr.) v. 14 Ne synga þu, þelæs þe þe on sumon þingon wyrs getide. OE Ælfric Homily: De Duodecim Abusivis (Corpus Cambr. 178) in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 304 Underfoð steore þe læs [a1225 Lamb. þi les] þe god yrsige wið eow. OE Rule St. Benet (Corpus Cambr.) xxii. 47 Hy gewædode and begyrde resten and nane sex be heora sidan næbben, þe læs þe [a1225 Winteney þe læste] hy on slæpe gewundade weorþan. OE Aldhelm Glosses (Digby 146) in A. S. Napier Old Eng. Glosses (1900) 98/1 Ne offenderet : þe læste [OE Brussels þe læst] gehremde, gelette. a1225 (c1200) Vices & Virtues (1888) 109 Him ðe hem wel cann wissin hie besekeð, and his ræd bliðeliche hlisteð and folȝið, ðe laste hie falleð mid ða blinde in to ðan pette. a1225 (c1200) Vices & Virtues (1888) 125 Nemeð discipline of alle ðe misdades ðe ȝe deð, þe las te godd him wraðþi, and ȝie forfaren of ða rihte weiȝe. c. In the correlative construction the ——, the ——, denoting proportional dependence between the notions expressed by two clauses which each contain a comparative: as much (more ——), so much (more ——). Cf. thy adv. 2a. See also ever adv. 3b(a).The subordinate clause expressing the circumstances usually comes first followed by the clause expressing the consequence, e.g. The more one has, the more one wants, but the order may be reversed, as One wants the more, the more one has; and in either order the comparative in the subordinate clause is sometimes followed by that, e.g. the more that one has.the more the merrier: see merry adj. Phrases 2b. ΚΠ c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) l. 7547 Þe more þat a mon can, þe more wurþe he is. c1390 in C. Brown Relig. Lyrics 14th Cent. (1924) 163 Þe more we trace þe Trinite, Þe more we falle in fantasye. ?a1425 Mandeville's Trav. (Egerton) (1889) 14 Ay þe elder it es, þe whittere it waxes. c1450 Alphabet of Tales (1904) I. 1 Yitt þai er ay þe langer þe wers. ?1523 J. Fitzherbert Bk. Husbandry f. xiiii The yonger and the grener that the grasse is the softer and the sweter it wyl be. 1598 W. Shakespeare Henry IV, Pt. 1 ii. v. 404 Though the cammomill, the more it is troden on, the faster it growes: so youth the more it is wasted, the sooner it weares. View more context for this quotation 1647 Moderate Intelligencer No. 107. 986 The lesser the difference, the greater the antypothie. 1690 T. Saunders in Hist. MSS Comm.: 11th Rep. App. Pt. VII: MSS Duke of Leeds &c. (1888) 111 in Parl. Papers (C. 5612) LXXII. 1 As to our sea affairs..the lesse I say the better. 1704 Dict. Rusticum at Waggon Therefore the lesser the wheel is, the heavier and more unevenly and jogging they go. 1771 in J. Watson Jedburgh Abbey (1894) 98 The bells must be removed, and the sooner the better. ?1790 J. Imison School of Arts (ed. 2) 208 The smaller a lens is, and the more its convexity, the nearer is its focus, and the more its magnifying power. 1855 C. Kingsley Westward Ho! iv The less said the sooner mended. 1874 J. T. Micklethwaite Mod. Parish Churches 26 The higher the windows are from the ground the better. 1954 F. L. Wright Nat. House ii. 178 The further north you go, the more bleached the hair and the whiter the skin. 2010 P. Murray Skippy Dies 201 The sooner he finds out the truth, the better. †2. a. For that reason, therefore. Also in relative use: for which reason, wherefore. Cf. thy adv. 1a. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the world > existence and causation > causation > cause or reason > [adverb] thyeOE therebyc897 theOE thereforec1175 soa1200 hereforc1200 for that sakea1375 ipso facto1548 hence1571 argal1604 eo ipso1696 OE Beowulf (2008) 2638 Ðe he usic on herge geceas to ðyssum siðfate sylfes willum.., þe he usic garwigend gode tealde. lOE tr. R. d'Escures Sermo in Festis Sancte Marie Virginis in R. D.-N. Warner Early Eng. Homilies (1917) 135 Sume næmmeð þone cæstel Magdalum, þe Maria wæs of Magdalenisc geclypod. a1225 (?OE) MS Vesp. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 233 (MED) Þa þis was isegd, þa were cofe abruden into þesternesse, þe hi sturfe hungre. b. Because. Cf. thy adv. 1b. Obsolete.In quot. OE¹ in correlative use; cf. quot. OE at sense 2a. ΘΚΠ the world > existence and causation > causation > cause or reason > [adverb] > because thyeOE theOE asOE forwhyc1200 whenc1230 forsomuch1454 insomuch asc1500 whenas1551 insomuch1605 'cos1887 OE Beowulf (2008) 2638 Ðe he usic on herge geceas to ðyssum siðfate sylfes willum.., þe he usic garwigend gode tealde. OE West Saxon Gospels: John (Corpus Cambr.) ix. 16 Sume þa Pharisei cwædon, nis ðes man of gode þe [c1200 Hatton þe] restedæg ne healt [L. quia sabbatum non custodit]. OE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Tiber. B.iv) anno 787 Þa sægerefa..hie wolde drifan to þæs cyninges tune, þe [eOE Parker þy] he nyste hwæt hi wæron. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2018; most recently modified version published online March 2022). † theconj.pron.¹ Forms: Old English (Mercian)–Middle English the, Old English–Middle English þe, Old English–Middle English ðe, early Middle English þa (south-west midlands, perhaps transmission error), early Middle English þæ. Origin: A word inherited from Germanic. Etymology: Ultimately < the same Germanic base as the demonstrative pronoun (see the adj., pron.², and n.¹; compare that pron.¹, adj.¹, adv., and n.), perhaps originally a case form, such as instrumental (compare the adv.) or locative. Compare the similar development seen in that pron.² Compare Old Saxon the (Middle Low German de ), Old High German de , the , used as relative particle, although it is disputed whether these show a shared origin or separate developments from forms of the demonstrative pronoun in each language. Compare also Old Frisian the , although it has been suggested that in use as relative particle it shows influence from Middle Low German. Compare also Gothic þei , relative particle (apparently a compound with -ei ), and (probably ultimately from the same base) þe , adverbial particle and enclitic particle forming conjunctive phrases (compare thy adv. and pron.), þe-ei, conjunction (after negative), (not) that.The inherited quantity of the vowel is not certain. The Old English word probably reflects very early phonological reduction under low stress. It appears to be enclitic in the construction with preceding demonstrative pronoun (see sense B. b) and sometimes in other functions (compare sense A. 2). Although the word clearly functions as a general subordinating particle (compare sense A. 2), the fact that in relative clauses, being indeclinable, it can potentially relate to a great variety of antecedents means that when it occurs on its own as a conjunction (as in sense A. 1) it can sometimes alternatively be interpreted as introducing a relative clause in which the antecedent is implied in the principal clause rather than made explicit (i.e. showing the pron.¹); compare e.g. quot. OE¹ at sense A. 1a. In Old English in use as temporal conjunction (see sense A. 3a) the word can sometimes alternatively be interpreted as showing the adv. 2a. In use with reference to time (see senses A. 2 and A. 3) probably (especially in Middle English) partly a phonologically reduced form of tho adv. (compare also þeo at tho adv. Forms). Some apparent uses in sense A. 3b may be transmission errors. Obsolete. A. conj. 1. a. Introducing a subordinate clause: = that conj.Quot. OE¹ could alternatively be interpreted as showing sense B. a. ΚΠ OE Beowulf (2008) 1334 Heo þa fæhðe wræc, þe þu gystran niht Grendel cwealdest. OE Paris Psalter (1932) cxliii. 4 Hwæt is se manna, mihtig drihten, þe þu him cuðlice cyþan woldest? a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 29 Hwet is scrift bute..habben in his þonke þe he nule nefre mare eft ȝe don þeo sunnen þe he geð to scrifte fore. c1275 (?c1250) Owl & Nightingale (Calig.) (1935) l. 941 Þe niȝtingale..wiste wel..Þe wraþþe binimeþ monnes red. b. spec. After a comparative: than; = that conj. 9. ΚΠ OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 1st Ser. (Royal) (1997) x. 259 Þeos woruld.., nis heo hwæðre þe gelicre þære ecan worulde, þe is sum cweartern leohtum dæge. OE Blickling Homilies 215 Ða he þa hæfde twæm læs þe twentig wintra. a1200 MS Trin. Cambr. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 119 Þe holi gost..com..and alihte hem of brihtere and of festere bileue þe hie hedden er. a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 151 If ȝe beoð strengre þe heo. c1275 (?c1250) Owl & Nightingale (Calig.) (1935) l. 564 Na mo þe deþ a wercche wranne. c. As a correlative conjunction in whether..the.., the..the..: whether..or... ΚΠ eOE King Ælfred tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. (Otho) (2009) I. xx. 475 Hwæþer þincð þe þonne þæt þa þincg sien ðe ðara soðena gesælða limu þe sio gesælð self? OE Blickling Homilies 97 Hwæt is þæt þæm men sy mare þearf to þencenne þonne..hwyder he gelæded sy, þe to wite, þe to wuldre. OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 2nd Ser. (Cambr. Gg.3.28) ix. 74 Gregorius befran, hwæðer þæs landes folc cristen wære, ðe hæðen. a1225 (c1200) Vices & Virtues (1888) 109 (MED) Ne nimþ he none ȝieme hwaðer hit bie fair ðe loðlich, ðe hot ðe cold. c1275 (?c1250) Owl & Nightingale (Calig.) (1935) l. 1064 Waþer þu wult wif þe maide. c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1978) l. 8390 Do þine iwille. whaðer-swa þu wult don þa us slan þa us an-hon. c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) l. 4507 In woch half turne he nuste þo weþer est þe west. c1330 (?c1300) Bevis of Hampton (Auch.) l. 2852 (MED) A neste, whaþer hit was dai þe niȝt. 2. As a particle appended to adverbs and adverbial expressions of time, place, etc., to make them relative or conjunctive. Cf. that conj. 6.See also ere conj. 1a(b), for-thon the conj. at for-thon conj. Derivatives, tho adv. 2b, with than the at with prep. 6. ΚΠ eOE (Kentish) Will of Abba (Sawyer 1482) in N. P. Brooks & S. E. Kelly Charters of Christ Church Canterbury, Pt. 2 (2013) 663 Þæt hit hæbbe min wiif ða hwile ðe hia hit mid clennisse gehaldan wile. a1200 MS Trin. Cambr. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 35 Þe fiffeald mihten þe god him gef þo þe he him shop. c1200 ( West Saxon Gospels: Mark (Hatton) viii. 24 Þa þæ [OE Corpus Cambr. þa ða] he hine beseag. a1225 ( Ælfric's Homily In Die Sancto Pentecosten (Lamb. 487) in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 87 Þa þe [OE Royal þa ða] heo comen on midden þere se. a1250 in C. Brown Eng. Lyrics 13th Cent. (1932) 4 Þer ðe neure deað ne come. 3. In temporal use. a. In a subordinate clause: when. Cf. tho adv. 2b. ΘΚΠ the world > time > particular time > [adverb] > when or at the time that thoc893 then971 whenOE theOE whensoc1175 whenas1423 while as1625 wen1893 OE Wærferð tr. Gregory Dialogues (Corpus Cambr.) (1900) iv. x. 273 Ic þa gyt wæs wuniende ealling in þam mynstre, þe he me þis cyðde. c1175 ( Homily (Bodl. 343) in S. Irvine Old Eng. Homilies (1993) 116 God heom unwreah alle þa ðing ðe towearde weron..bi Cristes tocyme hider on middæneard..& bi his upstiȝe þe he on heofene astah. c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 2071 Þe [c1300 Otho þo] Dunwale hauede isæd al his folc luuede þene ræd. c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 134 Þeos ȝunge wiman iwerd hire mid childe. þe ȝet leouede Asscanius. c1300 (c1250) Floris & Blauncheflur (Cambr.) (1966) l. 153 (MED) Þe he com to þe gate, þe porter he fond anon þerate. a1350 (a1250) Harrowing of Hell (Harl.) (1907) l. 41 Þe [c1330 Auch. þan] he com þere þo [Auch. þan] seide he, asse y shal nouþe telle þe. b. In a main clause: then. Cf. tho adv. 1a. ΚΠ a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 27 (MED) Þe deofel þet to soþe þe rixat innan him, þet he nulle nefre forleten his sunne. ?1316 Short Metrical Chron. (Royal) (2002) l. 273 Whyl kyng Arthur wes alyue In Bretaigne wes chyualerie, Ant þe [perhaps read þo] in Bretaigne were yfonde Þis gret auentures..Þat ȝe habbeþ yherd her þis. a1325 (c1250) Gen. & Exod. (1968) l. 1416 Ðe broðer and de moder oc Riche giftes eliezer ðe [perhaps read ðo] toc. a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 20700 (MED) Dos þe belles all at ring, And suitfair þe [Gött. þar-wid] ȝe sing. B. pron.¹ As a relative pronoun: that; who, which. a. As subject or object of a relative clause with an antecedent. Also as subject or object of a nominal relative clause: he who, that which, what; = that pron.² 3.In Old English an indeclinable particle, which may refer to antecedents of any number or gender and may occur in any syntactic function in the relative clause that can be filled by a noun phrase (see quots. eOE³, eOE⁵, and cf. senses B. c, B. d). ΚΠ eOE (Kentish) Charter: Oswulf & Beornðryð to Christ Church, Canterbury (Sawyer 1188) in N. P. Brooks & S. E. Kelly Charters of Christ Church Canterbury, Pt. 1 (2013) 501 Ic ðe ðas gesettnesse sette. eOE Bounds (Sawyer 298) in D. Hooke Pre-Conquest Charter-bounds Devon & Cornwall (1994) 105 Ðonon to ðæm beorge ðe mon hateð æt ðæm holne. eOE tr. Orosius Hist. (BL Add.) (1980) ii. i. 37 Þy ilcan geare þe Romana rice weaxan ongann.., þy ilcan geare gefeoll Babylonia. eOE King Ælfred tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. (Otho) (2009) I. xxv. 495 Þæt ðu mæge ðy bet gelefan ðe ic ðe oðre hwile recce. eOE King Ælfred tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. (Otho) (2009) I. xx. 472 His [sc. God's] sio hea goodnes þe he full is. OE West Saxon Gospels: John (Corpus Cambr.) i. 26 Tomiddes eow stod þe [OE Lindisf. Gospels ðone] ge ne cunnon. OE West Saxon Gospels: Matt. (Corpus Cambr.) vi. 9 Fæder ure, þu þe eart on heofonum. ?a1160 Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) (Peterborough contin.) anno 1140 Alle þe men þe mid [him h]eoldon. a1200 MS Trin. Cambr. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1873) 2nd Ser. 45 Þe þre kinges þe comen of estriche. c1275 (?c1250) Owl & Nightingale (Calig.) (1935) l. 1386 For heo beoþ wode, Þe [a1300 Jesus Oxf. þat] bute nest goþ to brode. c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 21 Wace wes ihoten þe wel couþe writen. a1350 (a1250) Harrowing of Hell (Harl.) (1907) l. 24 Moyses þe holy whyt, þe heuede þe lawe to ȝeme ryht. a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) l. 4422 Sche..went Into a choys chaumber þe clerli was peinted. a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Coll. Phys.) l. 24317 Wit hard trhauis þe [Vesp. þat] he þrow Þai sau þat he to ded him drew. c1460 in A. Clark Eng. Reg. Oseney Abbey (1907) 166 He Bryngeth also Anoþer charter..the witnyssith [L. Cartam..que testatur] that the Same Nicoll yafe [etc.]. c1460 in A. Clark Eng. Reg. Oseney Abbey (1907) 170 For þe Sowle of my ffadur Robert Doylly þe þat same church foundid. b. Forming part of a compound relative, following the demonstrative pronoun (Old English se, sēo, þæt: see forms at the adj., pron.², and n.¹; see also the pron.² 2 and cf. that pron.¹ 4). ΚΠ eOE (Kentish) Will of Abba (Sawyer 1482) in N. P. Brooks & S. E. Kelly Charters of Christ Church Canterbury, Pt. 2 (2013) 664 Swælc monn se ðe to minum ærfe foe. eOE tr. Orosius Hist. (BL Add.) (1980) ii. iv. 43 Seo ilce burg Babylonia, seo ðe mæst wæs & ærest ealra burga, seo is nu læst. OE Ælfric Old Eng. Hexateuch: Gen. (Claud.) vi. 2 Godes bearn..namon him wif of eallum ðam ðe hi gecuron. OE West Saxon Gospels: Matt. (Corpus Cambr.) iii. 3 Ðis ys se be þam þe gecweden ys þurh Esaiam. a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 5 He is iblesced þe þe her cumet on drihtenes nome. ?c1250 (?c1175) Poema Morale (Egerton) l. 217 in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 294 Þe ðe [a1300 Jesus Oxf. þe þat] godes milce sechð, iwis he mai is [a1225 Lamb. ha] finde. c1275 (?c1250) Owl & Nightingale (Calig.) (1935) l. 1675 (MED) Ȝe schulle wite..Hwuch is þe strengþe of mine kunne, For þeo þe [a1300 Jesus Oxf. þeo þat] haueþ bile ihoked An cliures charpe..Alle heo beoþ of mine kunrede. c. As prepositional object: with preposition following and standing before the verb. ΚΠ eOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Parker) anno 885 He sende him..þære rode dęl þe Crist on þrowude. OE West Saxon Gospels: Mark (Corpus Cambr.) ii. 4 Hi þa inasendan þæt bed þe se lama on læg. d. Followed by a possessive pronoun, expressing the genitive case: whose, of which. Cf. that pron.² 9. ΚΠ OE Cynewulf Elene 162 Hwæt se god wære..þe þis his beacen wæs. OE Old Eng. Martyrol. (Julius) 10 July (2013) 134 Þære fæmnan tid, þe hire noma wæs Sancta Anatolia. OE King Ælfred tr. Psalms (Paris) (2001) xxxii. 11 Eadig byþ þæt kynn, þe swylc God byð heora God. lOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Laud) anno 1011 Ælmær.., þe se arcebiscop Ælfeah ær generede his life. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2018; most recently modified version published online March 2022). > as lemmas the a. U.S. With the: the place where a witness testifies in court, typically an enclosed seat next to the judge's bench in a courtroom; a witness box. More fully witness-stand n. Cf. witness-box n. on (or upon) the stand: seated in the witness box. to take the stand: enter the witness box in order to give testimony. ΚΠ 1805 Rep. Trial Ephraim Wheeler (ed. 2) 19 He has not called a single witness upon the stand. 1837 Emancipator (N.Y.) 22 June 31/3 Arthur Jones, a respectable colored man from Boston is on the stand, who testifies that he shipped Dixon from Boston in 1826, on board the brig John Gilpin. 1922 R. Parrish Case & Girl xxx. 316 Percival wouldn't go on the stand, and there wasn't much he could swear to if he did. 1951 Austin (Minnesota) Daily Herald 21 July 1/1 Maloney was the first witness to testify for the defense, and he was put on the stand to enable him to return to California as soon as possible. 2018 @abcWNN 7 Aug. in twitter.com (accessed 5 Oct. 2019) Special counsel Robert Mueller's ‘star witness’ Rick Gates, took the stand in the trial of President Trump's former campaign chairman. extracted from standn.¹ < adj.pron.²n.¹eOEadv.eOEconj.pron.¹eOE as lemmas
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