ourselves
Americanpronoun
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a reflexive form of we (used as the direct or indirect object of a verb or the direct object of a preposition).
We are deceiving ourselves. Give us a moment to ourselves.
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(used as an intensive withwe ).
We ourselves would never say such a thing.
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Informal. (used in place of we or us, especially in compound subjects, objects, and complements).
The children and ourselves thank you kindly. When it satisfies ourselves, it will be ready to market. The ones who really want the new system are the manager and ourselves.
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(used in place of we or us after as, than, orbut ).
How many parents are as fortunate as ourselves? No one loves skiing more than ourselves. Nobody heard it but ourselves.
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our customary, normal, or healthy selves.
After a good rest, we're almost ourselves again.
pronoun
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the reflexive form of we or us
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(intensifier)
we ourselves will finish it
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(preceded by a copula) our usual selves
we are ourselves when we're together
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not_standard used instead of we or us in compound noun phrases
other people and ourselves
Usage
See myself.
Etymology
Origin of ourselves
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.
And there are the storage wars that rage within ourselves, between our practical and our sentimental sides, over the cost of storing things that deep down we know we will never need.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 11, 2026
"We are going to achieve such a victory that will surprise everyone, perhaps even ourselves," he told several thousand supporters in a small square on Budapest's Castle Hill.
From BBC • Apr. 11, 2026
I live within the gravitational pull of New York City, and my property value is riding on the continued prosperity of these spreadsheet people, so let’s not pretend that we can spot cheap stocks ourselves.
From Barron's • Apr. 10, 2026
And Harrison and I took a minute and we walked away from the set and we started running the scene, walking up and down the busy street to kind of acclimate ourselves.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 9, 2026
‘We just keep our heads down and don’t draw attention to ourselves and we’ll get through it, all right?’
From "Code Name Kingfisher" by Liz Kessler
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Definitions 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.