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

Faced with exposing people "who rely on us, sometimes in the context of life or death, to surveillance that could be weaponised against them", she says, "we would leave the market".

From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026

“We have a friend who needs a house, and we always give a lot to Doctors Without Borders,” she said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 9, 2026

"If they had that conversation in the kitchen and their bro snitched, would it be: 'What are we doing about kitchens?'" she asks.

From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026

White told the BBC: "I won't stop until we get justice for Toby."

From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026

Both me and your dad are hardheaded, but we still family.

From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold

Olena Konoplia tells us she spent weeks looking for a suitable location before settling on a cottage in a rural community two hours outside the capital.

From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026

"Granting rights and moral protections to a technological entity, one that looks to be on a path to be seismically more capable and intelligent than us, is a recipe for disaster," he wrote.

From Barron's ● Oct. 8, 2026

The ensuing camera shots—we all know the vocabulary—tell us that the three of them are being surveilled from above and followed at street level into the L.A. crowds.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026

RBC analyst Logan Reich, in a note on Thursday, said the rationale behind a combined Starbucks-Chipotle “isn’t apparent to us given limited overlap between the businesses.”

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 8, 2026

He says everyone in the house has a job, and Arlo and I are full-time employees at High School Inc. That’s his bad dad joke, letting us know we are not allowed to slack off.

From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold

"This is our Eiffel Tower. I think without football, the brand value would not be this big," he told AFP.

From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2026

This is all going on high up in the stratosphere, far above the troposphere - where our weather actually happens.

From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026

Let’s not throw any more complications our way.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 8, 2026

Emily, John, and David ponder unsolved questions about ourselves and our world.

From Slate ● Oct. 8, 2026

“We should avoid town,” says Caesar, riding beside our wagon.

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

“And because nearly 2,000 people are still inside who have not died, and whose lives are still ours to fight for.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 8, 2026

I tracked down two New Jersey record stores whose sites said they’d purchase all types of albums, so we carted ours to them.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 8, 2026

That we engineered dogs to communicate successfully with us doesn’t mean the machinery inside their heads works like ours.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026

"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

Like most private telephones ours had been disconnected early in the occupation.

From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom

we

Frequently Asked Questions

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Related Words