pronoun
UK /ˈpɹəʊ.naʊn/ · US /ˈpɹoʊ.naʊn/ noun
Forms pronouns pronoune
- noun (grammar) A part of speech that refers anaphorically to a noun or noun phrase, which cannot ordinarily be preceded by a determiner and rarely takes an attributive adjective.
- noun (chiefly in the plural, specifically) Any of the third-person pronouns by which a person prefers to be referred to, typically reflecting their gender identity; often communicated as a subject–object pair. “My pronouns are she/her. What are your pronouns?”
Etymology
From pro- + noun, modeled on Middle French pronom, from Latin pronomen, itself a calque of Ancient Greek ᾰ̓ντωνῠμῐ́ᾱ (ăntōnŭmĭ́ā).
Webster’s 1913
- noun A word used instead of a noun or name, to avoid the repetition of it. The personal pronouns in English are I, thou or you, he, she, it, we, ye, and they.
Etymology [Pref. pro- + noun: cf. F. pronom, L. pronomen. See Noun.]
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “pronoun”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details