itself

[it-self]

pronoun

1. a reflexive form of it.

   The battery recharges itself.

2. an emphatic appositive of it, which, that, this, or a noun.

   which itself is also true; Even without flowers, the bowl itself is beautiful.

3. (used as the object of a preposition or as the direct or indirect object of a verb).

   The chameleon's ability to change color is a protection for itself.

4. its normal or customary self.

   After much tender care, the puppy was soon itself again.

itself

/ ɪtˈsɛlf /

pronoun

1. 1. the reflexive form of it 1

   2. (intensifier)

      even the money itself won't convince me

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

   my cat isn't itself today

Usage

See myself.

Word History and Origins

Origin of itself¹

before 1000; Middle English; Old English hit self. See it ¹, self

Example Sentences

Resolution of the shutdown and the return of data will be worth as much as the data itself.

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"This basic shape is, by itself, bistable," says Jie Yin, corresponding author of a paper on the work and a professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at North Carolina State University.

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Recently, the mysterious cosmic stranger revealed itself to two teams of astronomers at the same time.

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But even when an individual is not convicted, the process of defending against charges can itself be a form of punishment, as renowned legal scholar Malcolm Feeley pointed out almost 50 years ago.

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The concept can be imagined as a marble maze that organizes itself.

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