# herself

Pronunciation: say "hur-SELF" US /hɝˈsɛlf/, UK /hɜːˈsɛlf/

## Pronoun

1. Refers back to a female subject as the object of a verb or preposition when subject and object are the same person.
   - Simple: Used when a woman or girl is both the one doing something and the one it happens to.
   - _She taught herself to play the piano over the summer._
   - _Maria caught sight of herself in the shop window._
2. Used to emphasize the female person just mentioned, often stressing that she did or experienced something in person or without help.
   - Simple: Used to add force when talking about a certain woman or girl, often to show she did something without help.
   - _The queen herself opened the new children's hospital._
   - _Though others offered to help, she finished the report herself._
3. Her normal state: the way she usually is in health, mood, or behavior.
   - Simple: Her usual self: how she normally is in her health, mood, or the way she acts.
   - _Maria hasn't been herself since her father went into the hospital._
   - _A week at the lake was all it took for her to seem like herself again._
4. Used to refer to the woman who runs a household or a lady of importance, often mockingly of a self-important woman. *(Ireland)*
   - Simple: A way of saying 'she' for the lady in charge, or as a joke about a woman who acts too important.
   - _Herself will be down for tea at four, so mind the kettle is on._
   - _Once she got the promotion, herself could barely be bothered to say hello._

## Origin

From Middle English, formed from "her" combined with "-self."

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/herself (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).