yourself

American  

[yoor-self, yawr-, yohr-, yer-] / jʊərˈsɛlf, jɔr-, joʊr-, jər- /

pronoun

• yourselves
  plural

1. (an emphatic appositive of you orye ).

   a letter you yourself wrote.

2. a reflexive form of you (used as the direct or indirect object of a verb or the object of a preposition).

   Don't blame yourself. Did you ever ask yourself “why”? You can think for yourself.

3. Informal. (used in place of you, especially in compound subjects, objects, and complements).

   Ted and yourself have been elected. We saw your sister and yourself at the game. People like yourselves always feel like that.

4. (used in absolute constructions).

   Yourself having so little money, how could they expect you to help?

5. your normal or customary self.

   You'll soon be yourself again.

6. (used in place of you after as, than, orbut ).

   scholars as famous as yourselves; a girl no older than yourself.

7. oneself.

   The surest way is to do it yourself.

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yourself British  

/ jɔːˈsɛlf, jʊə- /

pronoun

1. 1. the reflexive form of you

   2. (intensifier)

      you yourself control your destiny

2. (preceded by a copula) your normal or usual self

   you're not yourself these days

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Usage

See myself.

Etymology

Origin of yourself

Middle English word dating back to 1275–1325; see origin at your, self

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

yourself

Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb told Natland: "You agreed to be the enforcer and pursued it, despite numerous opportunities to extricate yourself."

From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026

The idea is to give them a window of time to handle things on their own before you make yourself available for questions, coaching or feedback.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026

“When you’ve already surrounded yourself with queer circles that seem so safe, it’s often easy to forget many of the realities you experienced before,” Guitarrica says.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2026

Before your next checkup, ask yourself a simple question: If the risk of cancer, heart disease or another debilitating disease became real for me tomorrow, what would I wish I had done today?

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 13, 2026

“Don’t let your feet touch sand. Keep ahold of Belle’s leg and guide yourself down.”

From "Will’s Race for Home" by Jewell Parker Rhodes

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