Etymologically
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yourself

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 15 October 2026 at 13:18. This address is a permanent link to this version.
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Pronunciation

  • IPA: UK /jɔːˈself/, /jʊəˈself/, US /jʊrˈself/[1]

Etymology

It is a compound, from English your + self,[2][3][4] though the Shorter Oxford notes that your was originally the pronoun and self an adjective, later understood as a possessive and a noun.[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Emphatic or reflexive form of you: by the early 14th century.[2][5]

Semantic evolution

The plural yourselves is recorded by the 1520s.[2] The spelling as two words, your self, is now rare.[4] Yourself in the sense “your individuality, your own person” is found from about 1405.[6]

Timeline

  • early 14th century – yourself.[2]
  • c. 1405 – one's own person.[6]
  • 1520s – yourselves.[2]

Modern meaning

Pronoun

  1. Used reflexively as the object of a verb or preposition: help yourself.
  2. Used for emphasis: you said so yourself.
  3. Your normal or healthy state.

Word family

  • do-it-yourself

References

  1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
  2. ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  4. ^ a b c Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  5. ^ Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ a b Kay, Christian; Roberts, Jane; Samuels, Michael; Wotherspoon, Irené, eds. (2009), Historical Thesaurus of the Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford: Oxford University Press; online edition (2024)