Showing results for "ye"

• objective of thou.

ye

¹ American  

[yee] / ji /

pronoun

1. Archaic, except in some elevated or ecclesiastical prose Literary, or British Dialect.

   1. (used nominatively as the plural of thou especially in rhetorical, didactic, or poetic contexts, in addressing a group of persons or things).

      O ye of little faith; ye brooks and hills.

   2. (used nominatively for the second person singular, especially in polite address).

      Do ye not know me?

   3. (used objectively in the second person singular or plural).

      I have something to tell ye. Arise, the enemy is upon ye!

2. (used with mock seriousness in an invocation, mild oath, or the like).

   Ye gods and little fishes!

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ye ² American  

[thee, yee] / ði, ji /

definite article

Archaic.

1. the.

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ye ¹ British  

/ jɪ, jiː /

pronoun

1. archaic refers to more than one person including the person addressed but not including the speaker

2. Also: ee. dialect refers to one person addressed

   I tell ye

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ye ² British  

/ jiː /

determiner

1. a form of the, used in conjunction with other putative archaic spellings

   ye olde oake

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ye ³ British  

abbreviation

1. Yemen

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Spelling

The word ye2 , as in Ye Olde Booke Shoppe, is simply an archaic spelling of the definite article the. The use of the letter Y was a printer's adaptation of the thorn, þ, the character in the Old English alphabet representing the th- sounds (th) and (th̸) in Modern English; Y was the closest symbol in the Roman alphabet. Originally, the form would have been rendered as  or ye. The pronunciation today is a spelling pronunciation.

Etymology

Origin of ye

before 900; Middle English; Old English gē; cognate with Dutch gij, German ihr, Old Norse ēr, Gothic jus

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

ye

While foretelling his imminent death, Christ tells his followers: “Walk while ye have the light.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026

The book is signed on the inside front cover in black ballpoint pen by Sir Paul, reading: "All the best! to ye!"

From BBC ● Jun. 30, 2026

Here’s the tl;dr, Mr. President: That line about “Look upon my works, ye mighty, and despair!” sounds awesome but is meant to be ironic.

From Salon ● May 3, 2026

Founded in 1963, the fair has become known for ye olde trail of fyne, fanciful foods.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 10, 2026

“Magnus put ye up to this? Or do ye just think he wants you tracking down that key?”

From "Amari and the Night Brothers" by B.B. Alston