Meanings
reflexive case of we
- reflexiveUs; the group including the speaker as the object of a verb or preposition when that group also is the subject.
We should keep this for ourselves.
1 more example
Let's not beat ourselves up over this.
- emphaticIntensifies the subject as the group including the speaker, especially to indicate that no one else satisfies the predicate or needs to be included.
We did it ourselves.
- colloquialReferring to everyone being addressed.
Come on everyone! Let's get ourselves up and out of bed, please.
1 more example
Now then children, I'm not going to help you with the next problem. We should be able to work this one out ourselves.
- colloquialmay seem patronisingReferring to an individual person being addressed, especially a person in the speaker's care; also ourself.
Coordinate term: nurse's we
2 more examples
Hello Mrs Miggins. Did we manage to wash ourselves this morning?
Well done Timmy! Did we make that model ourselves?
Synonyms & antonyms
Origin
Morphologically our + -selves.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Arabic أَنْفُسَنَا, أَنْفُسَنَا
- أَنْفُسَنَا (ʔanfusanā)reflexive: us
- أَنْفُسَنَا (ʔanfusanā)emphatic: we
Catalan ens, mateixos
- ensreflexive: us
- mateixosemphatic: we
Chinese Mandarin 我們自己 /我们自己, 我们自己
- 我們自己 /我们自己reflexive: us
- 我们自己 (wǒmén zìjǐ)reflexive: us
- 我們自己 /我们自己emphatic: we
- 我们自己 (wǒmén zìjǐ)emphatic: we
Esperanto ni, nin
- nireflexive: us
- ninreflexive: us
- ni mememphatic: we
Finnish itsemme, itse
- itsemmereflexive: us
- itseemphatic: we
Hungarian magunk, magunkat
- magunkreflexive: us
- magunkatreflexive: us
Irish sinn féin, sinn féin
- sinn féinreflexive: us
- sinn féinemphatic: we
Italian ci, noi stessi
- cireflexive: us
- noi stessireflexive: us
- noi stessereflexive: us
Latin nōsmet
- nōsmetreflexive: us
Latvian mēs paši, mēs pašas
- mēs pašiemphatic: we
- mēs pašasemphatic: we
Portuguese nos, nós
- nosreflexive: us
- nósreflexive: us
- nós mesmosemphatic: we
Romanian noi înșine, noi însene
- noi înșinereflexive: us
- noi însenereflexive: us
Russian себя́, са́ми
- себя́ (sebjá)reflexive: us
- са́ми (sámi)emphatic: we
Slovak my sami, my same
- my samiemphatic: we
- my sameemphatic: we
Spanish nos, nosotros
- nosreflexive: us
- nosotrosreflexive: us
- nosotros mismosemphatic: we
Swedish oss själva, (vi) själva
- oss självareflexive: us
- (vi) självaemphatic: we
Ukrainian себе́, собі́
- себе́ (sebé)reflexive: us
- собі́ (sobí)reflexive: us
- ми сами́ (my samý)emphatic: we
- ми самі́ (my samí)emphatic: we
Welsh ein hun, ein hunan
- ein hunreflexive: us
- ein hunanreflexive: us
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with ourselves
All rhymes →Cite this entry
ourselves. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ourselves
“ourselves.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ourselves. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “ourselves,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ourselves.
Source: ourselves on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.