Thou Definition & Meaning

American

British

Etymology

Examples

thou 1 American [thou] / ðaʊ /

pronoun

singular

thou,

possessive

thy, thine,

objective

thee,

plural

you, ye,

possessive

your, yours,

objective

you, ye

1. Archaic except in some elevated or ecclesiastical prose. the second person singular subject pronoun, equivalent to modern you (used to denote the person or thing addressed).

   Thou shalt not kill.

2. (used byQuakers ) a familiar form of address of the second person singular.

   Thou needn’t apologize.

verb (used with object)

1. to address as “thou,” especially during an era of historical English when “thou” was distinguished as an informal form of you.

   It would have been scandalous for household staff to thou the lord of the manor.

verb (used without object)

1. to use “thou” in discourse.

   There are still Quakers who thou as a matter of custom.

thou 2 American [thou] / θaʊ /

noun

Slang.

plural

thous,

plural

thou

1. one thousand dollars, pounds, etc.

thou 1 British / ðaʊ /

pronoun

1. archaic refers to the person addressed: used mainly in familiar address or to a younger person or inferior

2. (usually capital) refers to God when addressed in prayer, etc

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012 thou 2 British / θaʊ /

noun

1. one thousandth of an inch. 1 thou is equal to 0.0254 millimetre

2. informal short for thousand

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of thou1

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English thū; cognate with German, Middle Dutch du, Old Norse thū, Gothic thu, Old Irish tú, Welsh, Cornish ti, Latin tū, Doric Greek tý, Lithuanian tù, Old Church Slavonic ty; akin to Sanskrit tvam; (verb) late Middle English thowen, derivative of the pronoun

Origin of thou2

First recorded in 1865–70; by shortening

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

He offered words of wisdom for Thanksgiving: “Always do thy duty, which is best, leave unto the Lord the rest.”

From Los Angeles Times

“Because ye scared me parrot, ye scurvy brat!” the captain roared.

From Literature

“Words cannot express what your music has meant to me. Thank you for everything, and fare thee well, indeed.”

From Los Angeles Times

While it reads similarly to past statements on loving thy neighbor and concern about keeping families together, the first point this time notably focused on “obeying the law.”

From Los Angeles Times

Burton replied: "You've never been nicked or had ye prints took anyway so doesn't matter".

From BBC

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.