ye

¹ American  

[yee] / yi /

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, yi /

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, ðiː /

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

The former is known for promoting evangelism, as seen in Jesus’ directive in Mark 16:15: “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.”

From The Wall Street Journal • May 7, 2026

Beloved ye are come unto the church of the living God.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 21, 2024

They all listened as the sergeant at arms announced “hear ye, hear ye, all persons are commanded to keep silent under pain of imprisonment” during the course of the impeachment trial.

From Slate • Apr. 19, 2024

Another letter from James between the lovers in 1623 said, "God bless you, my sweet child and wife, and grant that ye may ever be a comfort to your dear father and husband."

From Salon • Apr. 16, 2024

But if ye do pass this tryout, then all you’ll need to worry about is the finale next week.

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