V form

A form of V-form — A second-person pronoun used in formal situations, to address unfamiliar people and superiors.

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Meanings

noun
  1. alternativeAlternative form of V-form.

    In most Romance languages, the “intimate” T form is believed to be semantically more basic than the “formal” V form (Wierzbicka 1992:320).

    2002, Cliff Goddard, Anna Wierzbicka, editors, Meaning and Universal Grammar
    3 more examples

    In general, the V form (Sie) is employed in German where interlocutors use a title and surname to refer nominally to each other, whereas the T form (du) is employed among interlocutors on first name terms (cf. Wein-rich, 1993: 822).

    2006, Anne Barron, “Learning to say 'You' in German”, in Language Learners in Study Abroad Contexts

    Historically, deciding whether to use the V or T form was determined by the power relationship between the interlocutors. Lower status persons addressed higher status persons with the V form; conversely higher status persons addressed lower status with the T form.

    2010, Anna Trosborg, editor, Pragmatics across Languages and Cultures

    The T form is sometimes described as the 'familiar' form and the V form as the 'polite' one, although the social meanings of these forms are in reality much more complex than that.

    2015, Ronald Wardhaugh, Janet M. Fuller, An Introduction to Sociolinguistics
Cite this entry
APA

V form. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/V%20form

MLA

“V form.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/V%20form. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “V form,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/V%20form.

Source: V form on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.