Etymology From Middle English we, from Old English wē (“we”), from Proto-West Germanic *wiʀ, from Proto-Germanic *wīz, *wiz (“we”), from Proto-Indo-European *wéy (“we (plural)”). Cognate with Scots wee, we (“we”), North Frisian we (“we”), West Frisian wy (“we”), Low German wi (“we”), Dutch we, wij (“we”), German wir (“we”), Danish, Swedish and Norwegian vi (“we”), Icelandic vér, við (“we”), Avestan 𐬬𐬀𐬉𐬨 (vaēm), Sanskrit वयम् (vayám).
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Designates the speaker(s)/writer(s) as belonging to or constituting the stated category of people.
We Canadians like to think of ourselves as different.
We the undersigned wish to express our disapproval.
We
pron
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Honorific Honorific alternative letter-case form of of we, sometimes used when speaking as an important figure or figures.
“It seems to me that we are losing sight of the fact that we are artists,” said Miss Madder to Mr. Ehrlebach one evening about a week later, during one of his calls. / “We, with a capital ‘W,’” laughed Miss Larkin, mimicking Rose’s conscious air. / “Well, Mr. Ehrlebach is, anyway, and he ought to be doing some grave artistic studying.”[1883 May, Minimum [pseudonym], “A Flying Dutchman”, in The Wheelman: An Illustrated Magazine of Cycling Literature and News, volume II, number 2, Boston, Mass.: The Wheelman Company […], →OCLC, chapter XIX (Touring), page 133, columns 1–2:
Yet when Diaz talks one would think he had never achieved anything. He never uses the first pronoun singular, always speaking as “we,” but not the “we” with a capital W habitual to Royalty; just simply we, meaning others in preference to himself. That is why it has been so difficult to draw his picture, to show the modesty lying behind his giant strength.[1906, Mrs. Alec Tweedie [i.e., Ethel Brilliana Tweedie], “The Legislature and a Vice-President”, in Porfirio Diaz, Seven Times President of Mexico, London: Hurst and Blackett, […], →OCLC, page 390:
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But meanwhile, We say frankly that so far We do not have sufficient reason to regard the norms given by Pope Pius XII in this matter as surpassed and therefore not binding; they must therefore be considered valid, at least until we feel in conscience bound to modify them.1964, Pope Paul VI, quotee, The Catholic Mind, New York, N.Y.: America Press, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 59:
It may be well to begin by introducing each other. Who are We? You are not, perhaps led astray by the opinion held of Us by certain contemporaries; We are a weak and little man like other men, perhaps more so than other men. Have under standing^([sic]) for Our personal littleness. But We make so bold as to présent^([sic]) Ourself to you under a twofold title: one title is Our own—it is the great love We have for Africa, for you, and for the Peoples you gövern^([sic]) and represent; the other title is not Our own—it was conferred upon Us, and it makes Us humble and bold as We come among you: you know it well, it is the title of Pope, which means Father; and We inherited it from Saint Peter, whose unworthy but authentic successor We are.1969 August 1, “Ad honorabiles Viros e publico Legumlatorum Coetu Reipublicae Ugandensis”, in Acta Apostolicae Sedis, volume LXI (overall work in Latin), Vatican City: Typis Polyglottis Vaticanis, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 580:
“You mean it was luck?” replied Jason. / “Well…in a way,” replied Berger. “It really means more than that. In a sense, We with a capital “W” are favoring your undertakings. We are watching over all. God sees all. We see all.”2000, Ronald Turco, “Book”, in Walk East on Burnside, Portland, Ore.: Imago Books, →ISBN, page 135:
“I too love it,” said Eddie. “Y’gotta be very delicate with cancer patients, and the ‘we’ works like a charm.” He seemed sincere. Naidoo looked worried. “I see the ‘we’ with a capital ‘W,’ the royal ‘We.’ My cancer patients can’t argue with King Eddie—”[2019 November, Samuel Shem [pseudonym; Stephen Joseph Bergman], “The Sick Empire”, in Man’s 4th Best Hospital, New York, N.Y.: Berkley, →ISBN, page 319:
Related terms
He, She, They, Thou, You
we
pron
Etymology From Middle English we, from Old English wē (“we”), from Proto-West Germanic *wiʀ, from Proto-Germanic *wīz, *wiz (“we”), from Proto-Indo-European *wéy (“we (plural)”). Cognate with Scots wee, we (“we”), North Frisian we (“we”), West Frisian wy (“we”), Low German wi (“we”), Dutch we, wij (“we”), German wir (“we”), Danish, Swedish and Norwegian vi (“we”), Icelandic vér, við (“we”), Avestan 𐬬𐬀𐬉𐬨 (vaēm), Sanskrit वयम् (vayám).
First person, Nominative, Personal, Pronoun Excluding the person(s) being addressed. (This is the exclusive we.)
We are here to arrest you.
It’s time to overcome queasiness and restraint. We, the liberal and progressive people of the world, are at war with the far right to save the earth.2017 February 20, Paul Mason, “Climate scepticism is a far-right badge of honour – even in sweltering Australia”, in the Guardian:
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First person, Nominative, Personal, Pronoun Including the person(s) being addressed. (This is the inclusive we.)
We need to have a talk, you and me.
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First person, Nominative, Personal, Pronoun The institution which the speaker/writer is acting for. (This is the editorial we, used by writers and others when speaking with the authority of their publication or organisation.)
We will in due course state our reasons for publishing the name of the accused.
As the government, we have a duty to ensure public safety.
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In light of the promulgation of the aforementioned laws and decisions, we (the administration) propose to make the following amendments to local legislation to implement the relevant requirements on oath taking by public officers.2021, Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau, “Paper No. CMAB C4/9/1”, in Documents of the Hong Kong Legislative Council, page 1:
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First person, Nominative, Personal, Pronoun Any other entity that the speaker is a part of or identifies with, such as place of employment or education, nation, region, language, etc.
I went to watch our school football match against Puddletown High. We lost 2-0.
In English, we do not inflect adjectives for gender.
We still have much to learn about quantum mechanics.
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As we age, the major arteries of our bodies frequently become thickened with plaque, a fatty material with an oatmeal-like consistency that builds up along the inner lining of blood vessels.2013 July-August, Stephen P. Lownie, David M. Pelz, “Stents to Prevent Stroke”, in American Scientist:
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First person, Nominative, Personal, Pronoun The sovereign alone in his or her capacity as monarch. (This is the royal we. The reflexive case of this sense of we is ourself.)
We are Queen of all these Isles.
Everything we do is so wholesome.1953, Dalton Trumbo, Ian McLellan Hunter, John Dighton, Roman Holiday, spoken by Princess Ann (Audrey Hepburn):
Colloquial, First person, Nominative, Personal, Pronoun An individual being addressed; used especially to a person in the speaker's care, or to whom advice or instruction is being given. (Sometimes called the nurse's we or the doctor's we.)
May sometimes seem patronising
Hello Mrs Miggins. How are we feeling this morning?
You've been spending all your money boozing when you have a wife and family to support. I think we need to get our priorities straight.
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“Well, my dear ma’am, and how are we?” inquired Wosky in a soothing tone. / “Very ill, doctor—very ill,” said Mrs. Bloss in a whisper.1836, “Boz” [pseudonym; Charles Dickens], “The Boarding-House”, in Sketches by “Boz,” Illustrative of Every-day Life, and Every-day People. […], volume I, London: John Macrone, […], →OCLC, chapter II, page 204:
Are we ready to go to bed, sweetie?2008 May 13, Tom Armstrong, Marvin (comic):
"I've just been to see Mrs Miggins." — "And how is she?" — "I'm afraid we aren't too good today."
› Used to connect to or include readers or listeners.
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Colloquial, First person, Nominative, Personal, Pronoun Used to imply connection between the speaker's experiences or activities and a group of listeners. (Compare the plural of modesty.)
Hey guys, in this video I'll show you how I make my upside-down sponge cake. First we take 200 g of butter and we whisk in 200 g of sugar. Next, we ...
All Vice President [Mike] Pence has to do is send it back to the states to recertify and we become president and you are the happiest people.2021 January 6, 3:38:03 from the start, in Rally on Electoral College Vote Certification (television broadcast), spoken by Donald Trump, Cable-Satellite Public Affairs Network (C-SPAN):
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[Today is] not a day to think about fishing so we will get back to working on the shelter. [cut in video] Cool, so I guess the best analogy for this, then, is that we've basically framed the house, and now we get to shingle.2021 June 24, “Far from Home” (3:07 from the start), in Alone, season 9, episode 4 (televison production), spoken by Theresa Emmerich Kamper, via HISTORY Channel:
The elephant in the room, you know, we had a stroke back in May.2022 October 25, 32:11 from the start, Vote 2022, in Joseph Camp, director, PBS NewsHour (television production), spoken by John Fetterman, via Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), archived from the original on 25 Oct 2022:
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First person, Nominative, Personal, Pronoun Used in explanatory or procedural writing, such as mathematical explanations, to imply inclusion of the reader in the undertaking.
To solve the equation, we first collect all the terms in x on one side.