Questions tagged [thou-thee-thy]
"Thou/thee/thy" is an archaic English pronoun.
26 questions
0
votes
1
answer
274
views
Is it acceptable to conjugate the second person singular (thou's -st -est), analogically to the third person's -s -es?
I am writing my own tales and poems and in those I often need to use the pronoun THOU, to mark clearly the difference between plural and singular second person. There seems to be many intricacies and ...
10
votes
1
answer
1k
views
Was “thee” ever used as a nominative?
In The Witch of Blackbird Pond, a youth novel written in the 1950s and set in late-17th century Connecticut, the title character uses thee as a nominative throughout, moreover with third-person ...
13
votes
2
answers
2k
views
Omitting "thou" after "hast" or "art" in questions (as in "Hast seen the White Whale?")
My understanding is that in standard modern English, an explicit grammatical subject is required in all sentences other than imperatives.
However, I've come across across a few examples where the ...
0
votes
2
answers
139
views
Why do we keep using the conjugated form of the verb "to do" before other verbs? [duplicate]
This seriously has me perplexed. I feel examples would better explain my question:
"What did you eat?" vs "What ate you?" *
Where did you go? vs "Where went you"?
using ...
3
votes
2
answers
516
views
Wouldst thou like or likest?
The phrase "wouldst thou like" seems more appropriate to me, for the following reason:
As far as I know, "thou wilt like" is correct, and "thou wilt likest" is not, ...
11
votes
4
answers
4k
views
Can you correct this “old English” quote?
There’s an “influencer” that came across my page who posted a quote (attributed to themselves) and I know it’s wrong but I’m not informed enough to know how wrong it is. I’m not going to do anything ...
0
votes
0
answers
50
views
shalt: used with the pronoun thou or its relative equivalent
Shalt is used with the pronoun thou or its relative equivalent https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/shalt
What does relative equivalent mean here?
16
votes
12
answers
7k
views
Does English use the word ‘thou’ in any situations nowadays? [closed]
Does English use the word thou in situations nowadays? For example, to humiliate an opponent by being overly familiar?
4
votes
1
answer
1k
views
What's the proper antique equivalent to "Don't you dare"? [closed]
What's the proper antique (using "thee") equivalent to "Don't you dare"? Dare thee not? Dare not thee? Something else?
0
votes
2
answers
933
views
Verb contractions with thou
I know there are a lot of commonly accepted contractions (verb + not): aren't, haven't, isn't, don't, won't, shan't, etc.
But do the contractions for art not, hast not, dost not, wilt not, shalt not, ...
21
votes
2
answers
6k
views
Meaning of "I thou thee"?
What is the meaning of "thou thee" from the quotation below referenced in this Quora answer? (Attributed to the attorney-general at Sir Walter Raleigh’s trial.)
All that he did was at thy ...
1
vote
2
answers
1k
views
Are the pronouns "Thee" and "Thy" considered archaisms in 19th Century poetry? [closed]
Are the pronouns "Thee" and "Thy" considered archaisms in Romantic poetry? I have La Belle Dame sans Merci by Keats in mind.
5
votes
1
answer
13k
views
"Obscene yourself" (literally) in Hemingway's "For Whom The Bell Tolls"
I am reading Hemingway's "For Whom The Bell Tolls" (an edition from 1960). Throughout the book, strong words and obscenities are replaced literally by the term "obscenity" or similar. For example (...
5
votes
2
answers
300
views
Translating a text that requires 'T-V distinction'
I'm translating a historical fiction novel set in Medieval times. The formal and informal forms of treatment (T-V distinction) play an important role in the plot so I considered the best option was to ...
-2
votes
1
answer
477
views
What does the translator mean in English in this translation of a verse by the Urdu poet Ghalib? [closed]
Here is the translation of a verse by Ghalib [1797–1869], originally written1 in the Urdu language:
Neither Asad besought cruelty,
nor was thy tyranny fond of the insanity;
to whatever extent I ...