we

[wee] / wi /

PRONOUN

nominative plural pronoun

Synonyms

STRONGEST

they you

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a synonym for we?

We don’t traditionally think of we as having synonyms, but there are several situations in which it can replace—or be replaced with—another word, phrase, or series of words. _____ and I We’s main job is to serve as a way of not having to name every person in a group of two or more people. Sometimes, though, it’s best to be clear by naming them. Instead of saying We walked home together, you could say Emily, Dave, and I walked home together. all of us The phrase all of us can replace we as the subject of the sentence in some situations. This phrasing is often used to emphasize the entirety of the group that’s present, as in All of us wanted to be here to say goodbye. us Sometimes, you can reword a sentence that uses the object form us to instead use the subject form we, or vice versa. For example, instead of saying Luckily, we weren’t affected by the storm, you could say Luckily, the storm didn’t affect us. ourselves In some cases, the word ourselves is used as another way of saying we. For example, it’s common to say things like We should think for ourselves. Ourselves is also sometimes used in place of we after the words as, than, and but, as in children no older than ourselves. we ourselves Sometimes, you might use the phrase we ourselves to emphasize that something was done by the group that you’re part of as opposed to others. For example, saying We cast the deciding votes may be a neutral statement, but saying We ourselves cast the deciding votes indicates that there was some significance to the fact that it was your group who did it. you We is sometimes used in place of you in a way that’s sometimes intended to be more polite, such as when giving someone an assignment, as in We should do that by Friday. It can also be used in place of you in a way that’s condescending or sarcastic, as in We don’t want to be too hasty, do we? the royal we The word we is famously used in some cases by sovereign rulers as a formal way of saying I, as if they are speaking for the entire nation. Some people use the royal we to be funny. the editorial we This is the we that we editors use when we’re speaking in a general voice, especially as a way to avoid I, which is often seen as too personal (especially when the writer’s voice, opinion, or identity is not relevant). This is often similar in function to general use of you and one. (For an example, see the very first sentence in this section.)

What can you use instead of the word we?

In cases when you want to avoid speaking for a group, you can just say I. There are ways that you can acknowledge part of the group but not all of it. For example, you could say something like I believe—as many of us do—that this is a good idea.

What kind of pronoun is we?

We is a personal pronoun. Pronouns are used as substitutes for nouns—they’re another way of referring to a noun without using a specific name. Personal pronouns are used to refer to the speaker (first person), to the person being addressed (second person), or the person being talked about (third person). We is categorized as a first person pronoun because it refers to the group of people who are speaking or writing—addressing others.

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

we us our ours

“Our bottom up work suggests consensus is overestimating the hybrid bonding opportunity in both memory and logic applications, and we see downside risk to numbers,” analysts say.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026

“As much as we all enjoy mainstream cinema and film as entertainment, that’s a way of making you sleep better after a week of work,” he says.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026

Sir David Attenborough has promised to "venture even further" and uncover marine life that is "more precious than we ever realised" in Blue Planet III.

From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026

“These Days” comes next in the track listing, with the beautiful lyric: We are young despite the years/ we are old despite the times.

From Salon ● Oct. 7, 2026

In our time, we control most epileptic symptoms with powerful drugs called "anticonvulsants," because uncontrolled seizures can cause their own brain damage.

From "Phineas Gage" by John Fleischman

“The reasonable thing to do considering the value in the curve, which I see, would lead us to have a shorter maturity,” Lescure said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026

And they told us, ‘But you’re in Norway.’

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026

They gave us reason to trust them almost instantly.

From Salon ● Oct. 7, 2026

Is the answer already in front of us - or could it be someone yet to even emerge?

From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026

I can’t imagine a time when Caesar hasn’t been with us.

From "Will’s Race for Home" by Jewell Parker Rhodes

In my last few years as a teacher before I retired in 2022, I—along with my fellow educators—were called into the administration office to discuss our grading policies.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026

It’s not about what we tell our children — they see how we behave.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026

Yet for too long, division has fractured our football family.

From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026

"We couldn't see pair density waves in our earlier data because of material impurities that obscured our data," Madhavan said.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 7, 2026

“Look, I know you give money to our causes, and that’s great, big brother, but sometimes you need to be on the front line.”

From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold

"Just imagine: having to stop right in the middle of the season like that. It's unbearable for a company like ours," he said.

From Barron's ● Oct. 4, 2026

My wife essentially says that because we’re married, our retirement savings are ours, not mine.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 1, 2026

Whenever he seems confused, I’m delighted; it’s reassuring to see someone so smart still struggle to fathom this thing of ours.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026

“It looked like this newsroom has money and ours doesn’t,” Koman adds.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026

At first I worried that they might belong to somebody, but then I remembered that the farm is ours, so these flowers must belong to us too.

From "Unusual Chickens for the Exceptional Poultry Farmer" by Kelly Jones

we

Frequently Asked Questions

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Related Words