释义 |
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2024we /wi/USA pronunciation pron.pl., poss. our or ours, obj. us. - the plural of I, used as the subject of a sentence when the speaker wishes to refer to himself or herself and another or others:I met her last night and we attended a concert.
- (used after some form of be with the same meaning):It is we who should thank you.
- Also called the royal we. (used in place of I by a king or a queen, or by the Pope).
- Also called the editorial we. (used by editors, writers, etc., to avoid the personal I or to represent a collective viewpoint).
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2024we (wē),USA pronunciation pron. pl., [possessive] our or ours, [objectective] us. - nominative pl. of I.
- (used to denote oneself and another or others):We have two children. In this block we all own our own houses.
- (used to denote people in general):the marvels of science that we take for granted.
- (used to indicate a particular profession, nationality, political party, etc., that includes the speaker or writer):We in the medical profession have moral responsibilities.
- Also called the royal we. (used by a sovereign, or by other high officials and dignitaries, in place of I in formal speech):We do not wear this crown without humility.
- Also called the editorial we. (used by editors, writers, etc., to avoid the too personal or specific I or to represent a collective viewpoint):As for this column, we will have nothing to do with shady politicians.
- you (used familiarly, often with mild condescension or sarcasm, as in addressing a child, a patient, etc.):We know that's naughty, don't we? It's time we took our medicine.
- (used in the predicate following a copulative verb):It is we who should thank you.
- (used in apposition with a noun, esp. for emphasis):We Americans are a sturdy lot.
- bef. 900; Middle English, Old English wē; cognate with Dutch wij, German wir, Old Norse vēr, Gothic weis
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers:: we /wiː/ pron (subjective)- refers to the speaker or writer and another person or other people: we should go now
- refers to all people or people in general: the planet on which we live
- when used by editors or other writers, and formerly by monarchs, a formal word for I1
- informal used instead of you with a tone of persuasiveness, condescension, or sarcasm: how are we today?
Etymology: Old English wē, related to Old Saxon wī, Old High German wir, Old Norse vēr, Danish, Swedish vi, Sanskrit vayam WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2024our•selves /ɑrˈsɛlvz, aʊr-, ˌaʊɚ-/USA pronunciation pron.pl. - a form of the pronoun we, a reflexive pronoun used as the direct or indirect object of a verb or the direct object of a preposition when the subject is we:We may be deceiving ourselves. We don't dare vote ourselves a big pay raise.
- (used to add emphasis to the pronouns we and us):We ourselves would never say such a thing.
- (used in place of we or us in certain constructions with "and'' and "more than''):The children and ourselves want to thank you. No one is more fortunate than ourselves.
- our normal, healthy, or customary selves:We were ourselves again after a nap.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2024our•self (är self′, ouər-, ou′ər-),USA pronunciation pron. - one's own person, individuality, etc., considered as private and apart from others:It is for ourself that we should strive for greater knowledge.
- (a form corresponding to ourselves, used of a single person, esp. in the regal or formal style, as we for I):We have taken unto ourself such powers as may be necessary.
- 1300–50; Middle English oure self; see our, self
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2024our•selves (är selvz′, ouər-, ou′ər-),USA pronunciation pron.pl. - a reflexive form of we (used as the direct or indirect object of a verb or the direct object of a preposition):We are deceiving ourselves. Give us a moment to ourselves.
- (used as an intensive with we):We ourselves would never say such a thing.
- [Informal.](used in place of we or us, esp. in compound subjects, objects, and complements):The children and ourselves thank you kindly. When it satisfies ourselves, it will be ready to market. The ones who really want the new system are the manager and ourselves.
- (used in place of we or us after as, than, or but):How many parents are as fortunate as ourselves? No one loves skiing more than ourselves. Nobody heard it but ourselves.
- our customary, normal, or healthy selves:After a good rest, we're almost ourselves again.
- 1300–50; Middle English oure selven; see our, self, -en4, -s3
|