thou
1 of 3pronoun
ˈt͟hau̇ 
archaic
: the one addressed
thou shalt have no other gods before me 
Exodus 20:3 (King James Version)
—used especially in ecclesiastical or literary language and by Friends as the universal form of address to one person compare thee, thine, thy, ye, you Exodus 20:3 (King James Version)thou
2 of 3verb
thoued; thouing; thous
transitive verb
: to address as thou
thou
3 of 3noun
ˈthau̇
plural thou
: a thousand of something (such as dollars)
paid 25 thou for the car
Example Sentences
Noun She earns more than a hundred thou a year.
Recent Examples on the Web Quanta Magazine, 22 Mar. 2019 Arizona Renaissance Festival Would thou wish to partake in a giant, greasy turkey leg whilst watching a live jousting tournament? Sonja Haller, azcentral, 18 Feb. 2015 Anabel Pasarow, refinery29.com, 10 Mar. 2020 And the Lord God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? Madeleine Kearns, National Review, 29 Feb. 2020 Eventually non-royal individuals started to see it as a respectful way to refer to one another as well, and despite much booing and hooing among those who would preserve thou, the practice took. Time, 17 Jan. 2020 Others accused the vegetarians of being hypocrites and holier-than-thou. Adrienne Bitar, Time, 28 Nov. 2019 And the flaws within this oppressive, holier-than-thou type of fandom can also help explain just why Game of Thrones itself was such a disappointment to many in its final two seasons. Aja Romano, Vox, 20 July 2019 Of all the things thou shalt not covet under the Tenth Commandment, thy brother’s bankruptcy theory may be the least of your temptations. Mary Beth Mccauley, The Christian Science Monitor, 23 Dec. 2019 Hold fast the form of sound words, which thou hast heard of me, in faith and love which is in Christ Jesus. Andrew Theen | The Oregonian/oregonlive, oregonlive, 26 Nov. 2019 This book is mostly free of the holier-than-thou attitude of some zealous naturalistas. Washington Post, 22 Nov. 2019 See More
Verb
Now must thou return to the gallows and walk to the pine counting thy steps. Quanta Magazine, 22 Mar. 2019 Arizona Renaissance Festival Would thou wish to partake in a giant, greasy turkey leg whilst watching a live jousting tournament? Sonja Haller, azcentral, 18 Feb. 2015 Noun
If thou wishest to make it to the final rose ceremony, thou shalt have wavy ombré hair and be a white woman named Lauren. Anabel Pasarow, refinery29.com, 10 Mar. 2020 And the Lord God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? Madeleine Kearns, National Review, 29 Feb. 2020 Eventually non-royal individuals started to see it as a respectful way to refer to one another as well, and despite much booing and hooing among those who would preserve thou, the practice took. Time, 17 Jan. 2020 Others accused the vegetarians of being hypocrites and holier-than-thou. Adrienne Bitar, Time, 28 Nov. 2019 And the flaws within this oppressive, holier-than-thou type of fandom can also help explain just why Game of Thrones itself was such a disappointment to many in its final two seasons. Aja Romano, Vox, 20 July 2019 Of all the things thou shalt not covet under the Tenth Commandment, thy brother’s bankruptcy theory may be the least of your temptations. Mary Beth Mccauley, The Christian Science Monitor, 23 Dec. 2019 Hold fast the form of sound words, which thou hast heard of me, in faith and love which is in Christ Jesus. Andrew Theen | The Oregonian/oregonlive, oregonlive, 26 Nov. 2019 This book is mostly free of the holier-than-thou attitude of some zealous naturalistas. Washington Post, 22 Nov. 2019 See More Word History
Etymology
Pronoun
Middle English, from Old English thū; akin to Old High German dū thou, Latin tu, Greek sy
Noun
short for thousand
First Known Use
Pronoun
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above
Verb
15th century, in the meaning defined above
Noun
1867, in the meaning defined above
Phrases Containing thou
Kids Definition
thou
pronoun
ˈt͟hau̇
: you
"But can thou do a true enchantment?" Jon Scieszka, Knights of the Kitchen Table
Jon Scieszka, Knights of the Kitchen TableHint: Thou is a very old word that still appears in books and sayings from long ago. People also use it to imitate that old way of speaking.