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
1300–50; Middle English oure selven; see our, self, -en 4, -s 3
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.
“It’s sort of a neon razor blade story of the American dream — we didn’t fit in anywhere, so we made a place for ourselves where we did fit in,” she said.
From Los Angeles Times • May 18, 2026
Former Manchester United captain Roy Keane said the implementation of the current handball rule has left ex-professionals "scratching ourselves" confused.
From BBC • May 17, 2026
Last week, I wrote about the overuse of the slang-suffix “-maxxing” in nutritional spaces, underscoring why the rhetoric we use to define how we nourish ourselves matters so greatly.
From Salon • May 17, 2026
"I think that it's time that we weaned ourselves from the remaining military support," he told CBS News's 60 Minutes.
From Barron's • May 16, 2026
“Come on,” I said, darting out of the shadows and toward the dorm rooms the past versions of ourselves had just left.
From "Glitch" by Laura Martin
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.
