he
1[ hee; unstressed ee ]
/ hi; unstressed i /
pronoun, nominative he,possessive his,objective him;plural nominative they,possessive their or theirs,objective them.
the male person or animal being discussed or last mentioned; that male.
anyone (without reference to gender); that person: He who hesitates is lost.
noun, plural hes.
any male person or animal; a man: hes and shes.
adjective
male (usually used in combination): a he-goat.
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Question 1 of 10
seclusion
Origin of he
1usage note for he
Traditionally, the masculine singular pronouns he1 , 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. See also they.
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. See also they.
Words nearby he
Definition for he (2 of 5)
he2
or heh
[ hey ]
/ heɪ /
noun
the fifth letter of the Hebrew alphabet.
any of the sounds represented by this letter.
Origin of he
2From the Hebrew word hēʾ
Definition for he (3 of 5)
He
Symbol, Chemistry.
helium.
Definition for he (4 of 5)
HE
or H.E.
high explosive.
Definition for he (5 of 5)
H.E.
high explosive.Also HE
His Eminence.
His Excellency; Her Excellency.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
British Dictionary definitions for he (1 of 5)
he1
/ (hiː, unstressed iː) /
pronoun (subjective)
refers to a male person or animalhe looks interesting; he's a fine stallion
refers to an indefinite antecedent such as one, whoever, or anybodyeverybody can do as he likes in this country
refers to a person or animal of unknown or unspecified sexa member of the party may vote as he sees fit
noun
- a male person or animal
- (in combination)he-goat
- a children's game in which one player chases the others in an attempt to touch one of them, who then becomes the chaserCompare tag 2
- the person chasingCompare it 1 (def. 7)
Word Origin for he
Old English hē; related to Old Saxon hie, Old High German her he, Old Slavonic sĭ this, Latin cis on this side
British Dictionary definitions for he (2 of 5)
he2
/ (heɪ, Hebrew he) /
noun
the fifth letter of the Hebrew alphabet (ה), transliterated as h
British Dictionary definitions for he (3 of 5)
he3
/ (hiː, heɪ) /
interjection
an expression of amusement or derisionAlso: he-he!, hee-hee!
British Dictionary definitions for he (4 of 5)
He
the chemical symbol for
helium
British Dictionary definitions for he (5 of 5)
HE
abbreviation for
high explosive
His Eminence
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
Medical definitions for he
He
The symbol for the elementhelium
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Scientific definitions for he
He
The symbol for helium.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.