she

1 of 3

pronoun (1)

ˈshē 

1

: that female one who is neither speaker nor hearer

she is my wife

compare he, her, hers, it, they

2

—used to refer to one regarded as feminine (as by personification)

she was a fine ship

3

—used as an alternative to he to refer to a person of unspecified gender

allow anyone to do whatever she wants

—D. J. Callahan

she

2 of 3

noun

: a female person or animal

—often used in combination

she-cat

she-cousin

s/he

3 of 3

pronoun (2)

ˈshē-ˈhē  ˈshē-ər-ˈhē 

ˈshē-ˌslash-ˈhē

: she or he

—used in writing as a pronoun of common gender

Examples of she in a Sentence

Noun

“Somebody called when you were out, but I can't remember who.” “Was it a he or a she?”

Word History

Etymology

Pronoun (1)

Middle English, probably alteration of hye, alteration of Old English hēo she — more at he

First Known Use

Pronoun (1)

12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Pronoun (2)

1973, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing she

• if he/she is day
• I'm/he's/she's your man
• know something or someone for what it/he/she is
• she-crab
• she-oak
• someone doesn't know what he/she is missing
• you/he/she must be joking
• you're/he's/she's joking
• you're/he's/she's on

Kids Definition

she

1 of 2 pronoun

(ˈ)shē 

: that female one

she is my wife

she

2 of 2 noun

ˈshē

: a female person or animal

—often used in combination

she-cat