my
pronoun
(a form of the possessive case of I used as an attributive adjective).
Showing results for "my"
- possessive of I.
my
1 American
[mahy]
/ maɪ /
pronoun
interjection
my-
2
American
my
1
British
/ maɪ /
determiner
-
of, belonging to, or associated with the speaker or writer (me)
my own ideas
do you mind my smoking?
-
used in various forms of address
my lord
my dear boy
-
used in various exclamations
my goodness!
interjection
MY
2
British
abbreviation
my
3
British
abbreviation
my-
4
British
combining form
Grammar
See me.
Usage
What does my- mean? My- is a combining form used like a prefix meaning “muscle.” It is often used in medical terms, especially in anatomy. My- comes from the Greek mŷs, meaning “muscle” and “mouse.” Mouse? You read that right. Discover why at our entry for muscle!My- is a variant of myo-, which loses its -o- when combined with words or word elements beginning with vowels. Want to know more? Read our Words That Use myo- article.
Etymology
Origin of my
First recorded in 1125–75; Middle English mī, variant of mīn, Old English mīn; see mine 1
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.
See Examples For:
"They have made their choice, but they have not announced it yet. So my fingers are crossed for Jack."
From BBC ● Nov. 2, 2026
Related: ‘She’s a Type A personality’: My stepmother wants me to repay my late father’s $40,000 wedding gift.
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 2, 2026
“About two months after his funeral, my stepmother called and said she wanted the money back.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026
As my colleague Aymann Ismail has reported, El-Sayed has struggled to convince some core Democratic constituencies, including Black Michiganders, that he will improve their lives.
From Slate ● Nov. 2, 2026
Where the dirt is especially hard, I hammer using my entire weight.
From "Will’s Race for Home" by Jewell Parker Rhodes
While the public relations effort to mold Hillary into a traditional my- heart-belongs-to-hubby First Lady means that campaign insiders are reluctant to publicly acknowledge her substantive role, her imprint on the staff shake-up seems clear.
From Time Magazine Archive
“How could I tie my- self up? Why would I do that?”
From "The Queen of Water" by Laura Resau
Why I should find it a pleasure, in France, to imagine my- self in Italy, is more than I can say; the illusion has never lasted long enough to be analyzed.
From A Little Tour in France by Henry James
This church has high beauty and value, but I will spare the reader a presentation of details which I my- self had no opportunity to master.
From A Little Tour in France by Henry James
When I come from court a very sorry lackey throws a common cloak over my- 278 - shoulders.’
From Critical Miscellanies (Vol. 2 of 3) Essay 4: Joseph de Maistre by John Morley
In Washington, demonstrators gathered at the Lincoln Memorial carrying signs reading “VOTE EARLY” and “HANDS OFF MY VOTE!”
From Salon ● Oct. 18, 2026
One such message from an agent said: "OH MY GOD! There is a shared message board … We've found other agents!"
From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2026
The administration’s office of defects investigation had opened a preliminary evaluation in April after receiving complaints about a loss of brake assistance in 2023 MY Cadillac Lyriq vehicles.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 24, 2026
“OH MY GOODNESS!! Welcome to the world sweet girl! You have the best grandpa in the universe!!” his co-host Savannah Guthrie commented.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 5, 2023
MY hand shakes as I dial Aibileen’s number.
From "The Help" by Kathryn Stockett
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
