thee

The word “thee” means archaic form of "you," used as the object of a verb or preposition (the object form of "thou"). In plain terms, an old-fashioned word for "you," still seen in poetry, prayer, and Shakespeare.

“Thee” is pronounced thee (/ðiː/ in IPA).

Here is “thee” used in a sentence: “I give thee my word.”

“Thee” is a pronoun.

The word “thee” comes from Old English. From Old English þē, the object form of "thou," related to modern "thee/thou/thy.".

“Thee” is a fairly common word in modern English.

Thou is the subject form and thee is the object form of the same archaic pronoun. Thou performs the action ("thou art kind"), while thee receives it or follows a preposition ("I thank thee," "peace be with thee"). They work the way "he" and "him" do in modern English.

Use thee wherever modern English would use "you" as an object: after a verb ("I give thee my word") or after a preposition ("to thee," "for thee"). Use thou when the pronoun is the subject of the verb ("thou knowest"). Mixing them up is the most common error in mock-archaic writing.

Historically, thee and thou were the familiar, intimate forms, used with family, close friends, and children, while "you" was the polite or plural choice. Because thee now survives mainly in prayers and older literature, modern readers often assume it was the formal option — the reverse of its original role.

Members of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) traditionally used thee and thou with everyone as part of "plain speech," declining to address social superiors with the politer "you." In some Quaker communities this usage lasted long after the pronoun faded from general English.