Thou

Thou

The word thou ( /ðaʊ/ in most dialects) is a second person singular pronoun in English. It is now largely archaic, having been replaced in almost all contexts by you. It is used in parts of Northern England and by Scots (/ðu/). Thou is the nominative form; the oblique/objective form is thee (functioning as both accusative and dative), and the possessive is thy or thine. When thou is the grammatical subject of a finite verb in the indicative mood, the verb form ends on t, most often with the ending -(e)st (e.g., "thou goest"; "thou dost"), but in some cases just -t (e.g., "thou art"; "thou shalt"). In Middle English, thou was sometimes abbreviated by putting a small "u" over the letter thorn: þͧ.

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Famous quotes containing the word thou:

    O thou Dirigible, enormous Lounger
    Of pendulous auroral beaches,—
    Hart Crane (1899–1932)

    Remember thee!
    Ay, thou poor ghost, while memory holds a seat
    In this distracted globe.
    William Shakespeare (1564–1616)

    Weep bitterly, and make great moan, and use lamentation, as he is worthy, and that a day or two, lest thou be evil spoken of: and then comfort thyself for thy heaviness. For of heaviness cometh death, and the heaviness of the heart breaketh strength.
    Apocrypha. Ecclesiasticus 38:17-18.