we
/wiː
/pronoun [first person plural]
1Used by a speaker to refer to himself or herself and one or more other people considered together: shall we have a drink?...
- Two weeks later Clare was moved to a children's home and we didn't see her any more.
- We're hoping to do that this year.
1.1Used to refer to the speaker together with other people regarded in the same category: nobody knows kids better than we teachers do...
- A problem also touched upon in Ben's comments is the fact that we ex-pats are not allowed to vote in our countries of residence either.
- Can't we politicians all just get along?
1.2People in general: we should eat as varied and well-balanced a diet as possible...
- We all have to die some day.
- We all need someone we can talk to.
1.3West Indian Us or our: thought you wasn’t coming to look for we...
- Police used to give we a hard time on the road.
2Used in formal contexts for or by a royal person, or by a writer or editor, to refer to himself or herself: in this section we discuss the reasons for this decision...
- Next we shall analyse the influence of economic status on various aspects of life, such as standard of living and education of children.
- Still others say the queen was disposed to say ‘We are not amused’ whenever the conversation took a ribald turn.
3Used condescendingly to refer to the person being addressed: how are we today?...
- ‘My my, aren't we looking nice today,’ she said and got his attention.
- Now are we going to get dressed and go to school?
- ‘Hello, Brian. How are we feeling today?’
Origin
Old English, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch wij and German wir.