# yourself

Pronunciation: US say "yuur-SELF" /jʊɹˈsɛlf/; UK say "yaw-SELF" /jɔːˈsɛlf/

## Pronoun

1. Used to refer back to the one person addressed as the object of an action they perform.
   - Simple: Used when the person doing something and the person it affects are both you.
   - _You should take better care of yourself during exam season._
   - _Pour yourself a drink and relax after the long drive._
2. Used to add emphasis to 'you', stressing that the person addressed takes part personally, often without anyone's help.
   - Simple: Used to stress that you did something personally, often with no help.
   - _You yourself admitted that the plan had serious flaws._
   - _Did you write the entire report yourself?_
3. Used after verbs like be, feel and seem to refer to your ordinary, natural character and condition.
   - Simple: After words like be, feel or seem, it means you as you usually are.
   - _Take a few days off until you feel yourself again._
   - _At the interview, relax and be yourself rather than reciting rehearsed answers._
4. Used to mean simply 'you' (singular), even in places where 'you' has not appeared earlier in the sentence. *(nonstandard, Ireland)*
   - Simple: Used to mean 'you', even when 'you' was not said earlier.
   - _If yourself and the solicitor could sign here, we'll have the paperwork finished by Friday._
   - _Would the table this evening be for yourself?_

## Origin

From Middle English yourself, equivalent to "your" combined with "-self".

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