herself

herself
[[t]hə(r)se̱lf[/t]]
♦
(Herself is a third person singular reflexive pronoun. Herself is used when the object of a verb or preposition refers to the same person as the subject of the verb, except in meaning 5.)
1) PRON-REFL: v PRON, prep PRON You use herself to refer to a woman, girl, or female animal.

She let herself out of the room...

Jennifer believes she will move out on her own when she is financially able to support herself...

Robin didn't feel good about herself.

2) PRON-REFL In written English, herself is sometimes used to refer to a person without saying whether that person is a man or a woman. Some people dislike this use and prefer to use `himself or herself' or `themselves'.

How can anyone believe stories for which she feels herself to be in no way responsible?

3) PRON-REFL Herself is sometimes used to refer to a country or nation. [FORMAL or WRITTEN]

Britain's dream of herself began to fade.

4) PRON-REFL People sometimes use herself to refer to a car, machine, or ship.

The ship adjusted herself to the roll and rhythm of the sea.

5) PRON-REFL-EMPH (emphasis) You use herself to emphasize the person or thing that you are referring to. Herself is sometimes used instead of `her' as the object of a verb or preposition.

She's so beautiful herself...

Has anyone thought of consulting Bethan herself?...

She herself was not a keen gardener.


English dictionary. 2008.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Herself — Her*self , pron. 1. An emphasized form of the third person feminine pronoun; used as a subject with she; as, she herself will bear the blame; also used alone in the predicate, either in the nominative or objective case; as, it is herself; she… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • herself — [hər self′] pron. [ME hire self < OE hire selfum, dat. sing. of hie self: see HER1 & SELF] a form of SHE, used: a) as an intensifier [she said so herself] b) as a reflexive [she hurt herself] …   English World dictionary

  • herself — herself, himself, itself These pronouns have two primary roles, (1) as reflexives (He was talking about himself / Mary was looking at herself in the mirror / He made himself a cup of coffee), and (2) as emphatic words in apposition to a noun or… …   Modern English usage

  • herself — O.E. hire self; see HER (Cf. her) (objective case) + SELF (Cf. self). Originally dative, but since 14c. often treated as genitive, hence her own sweet self, etc. Also see HIMSELF (Cf. himself) …   Etymology dictionary

  • herself — ► PRONOUN (third person sing. ) 1) (reflexive ) used as the object of a verb or preposition to refer to a female person or animal previously mentioned as the subject of the clause. 2) (emphatic ) she or her personally …   English terms dictionary

  • herself — her|self [ weak ər self, strong hər self ] pronoun *** Herself is a reflexive pronoun, being the reflexive form of she. It is used especially in the following ways: as an object that refers to the same female who is the subject of the sentence or …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • herself */*/*/ — strong UK [hə(r)ˈself] / US [hərˈself] weak UK [ə(r)ˈself] / US [ərˈself] pronoun Summary: Herself is a reflexive pronoun, being the reflexive form of she. It is used especially in the following ways: as an object that refers to the same female… …   English dictionary

  • herself — her|self W1S2 [ə self, hə strong hə: $ ər , hər strong hə:r ] pron [reflexive form of she ] 1.) used to show that the woman or girl who does something is affected by her own action ▪ She cut herself on some broken glass. ▪ She made herself a cup… …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • herself */*/*/ — weak [əˈself] , strong [həˈself] pronoun 1) the REFLEXIVE form of ‘she , used for showing that the woman, girl, or female animal that does something is also affected by what she does Lizzie had locked herself in the bathroom.[/ex] She s going to… …   Dictionary for writing and speaking English

  • herself — strong 1 reflexive form of she : She hurt herself. | She made herself a cup of coffee. 2 the strong form of she used to emphasize the subject or object of a sentence: It must be true that she s leaving because she told me so herself. | She… …   Longman dictionary of contemporary English

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