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il — meaning in English

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English meaning

  • he pron Used to refer to a male person or animal already mentioned or understood.
  • it pron Used to refer to a thing, animal, or abstract idea that has already been mentioned or is understood.

Senses

il is used for these senses in English:

  • he (personal, sometimes, _, proscribed, see usage notes) They; he or she (a person whose gender is unknown or irrelevant).
  • it The third-person singular neuter personal pronoun used to refer to an inanimate object, abstract entity, or non-human living thing.
  • it The impersonal pronoun, used without referent as the subject of an impersonal verb or statement (known as the dummy pronoun, dummy it or weather it).
  • it The impersonal pronoun, used without referent, or with unstated but contextually implied referent, in various short idioms or expressions.

it — full definition

  1. pron Used to refer to a thing, animal, or abstract idea that has already been mentioned or is understood.
  2. pron Used as a placeholder subject in sentences describing weather, time, or general conditions.

Related French words