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View synonyms for he

he

1

[ hee; unstressed ee ]

pronoun

objective: themobjective: himnominative: hepossessive: their or theirspossessive: hisplural nominative: they
  1. the male person or animal being discussed or last mentioned; that male.
  2. anyone (without reference to gender); that person:

    He who hesitates is lost.



noun

, plural hes.
  1. any male person or animal; a man:

    hes and shes.

adjective

  1. male (usually used in combination):

    a he-goat.

he

2
or heh

[ hey ]

noun

  1. the fifth letter of the Hebrew alphabet.
  2. any of the sounds represented by this letter.

He

3
Symbol, Chemistry.
  1. helium.

HE

4
or H.E.
  1. high explosive.

H.E.

5

abbreviation for

  1. high explosive. Also HE
  2. His Eminence.
  3. His Excellency; Her Excellency.

HE

1

abbreviation for

  1. high explosive
  2. His Eminence
  3. His ( or Her) Excellency
“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


he

2

/ he; heɪ /

noun

  1. the fifth letter of the Hebrew alphabet (ה), transliterated as h
“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

he

3

/ hiː; heɪ /

interjection

  1. an expression of amusement or derision Alsohe-he!hee-hee!
“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

he

4

/ iː; hiː /

pronoun

  1. refers to a male person or animal

    he's a fine stallion

    he looks interesting

  2. refers to an indefinite antecedent such as one, whoever, or anybody

    everybody can do as he likes in this country

  3. refers to a person or animal of unknown or unspecified sex

    a member of the party may vote as he sees fit

“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

noun

    1. a male person or animal
    2. ( in combination )

      he-goat

    1. a children's game in which one player chases the others in an attempt to touch one of them, who then becomes the chaser Compare tag 2
    2. the person chasing Compare it 1
“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

He

5

the chemical symbol for

  1. helium
“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
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Grammar Note

Traditionally, the masculine singular pronouns he, his, and him have been used generically to refer to indefinite pronouns like anyone, everyone, and someone ( Everyone who agrees should raise his right hand ) and to singular nouns that can be applied to either gender ( painter, parent, person, teacher, writer, etc.): Every writer knows that his first book is not likely to be a bestseller. This generic use is often criticized as sexist, although many speakers and writers continue the practice. Those who object to the generic use of he have developed various ways of avoiding it. One is to use he/she or she/he (or he or she or she or he ) or the appropriate case forms of these pairs: Everyone who agrees should raise his or her (or her or his or his/her or her/his ) right hand. Forms blending the feminine and masculine pronouns, as s/he, have not been widely adopted, probably because of confusion over how to say them. Another solution is to change the antecedent pronoun or noun from singular to plural so that the plural pronouns they, their, and them can be used: All who agree should raise their right hands. All writers know that their first books are not likely to be bestsellers. they none.
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Word History and Origins

Origin of he1

First recorded before 900; Middle English, Old English hē; cognate with Dutch hij, Old Saxon hē, Old High German her; her none, here ( def ), it 1none

Origin of he2

From Hebrew hē; cognate with Arabic hāʾ ( def )
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Word History and Origins

Origin of he1

Old English hē; related to Old Saxon hie, Old High German her he, Old Slavonic this, Latin cis on this side
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Example Sentences

This is just one voter out of many, naturally, but he/she has enough to say for an army.

No he-said-she-said, no muffled sounds through the dorm ceiling, no “Maybe he has other issues.”

Law, 41, has set the “he-vage” bar high, or low, for this summer.

Kanye West finally got Kim Kardashian the Vogue cover he/she/they have been waiting for.

Whoever this tweeter was, s/he has been hearing the refrain since the day s/he got into the game.

He must be The saltest fish that swims the sea.And, oh!He has a secret woe!

Mr. Newdegate was a hard-mouthed witness, but he-was saddled, bridled, and ridden to the winning-post.

However the he-ass is a great example of vigour, for he can cover females several times each day successively.

He never can cross that mighty top!He's forced to let the piping drop, And we shall see our children stop!

It's a hard word, but I've sure-ly heard her say he-li-o-trope sach-et.

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