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Etymology data from Wiktionary via Wiktextract (CC BY-SA 4.0). Chinese character data from the 說文解字, the Taiwan MOE 國語辭典簡編本 (CC BY-ND 3.0 TW) and HSK/TOCFL lists.

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English

they

/ˈðeɪ̯/
A group of entities previously mentioned.

    Etymology graph

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    • derived
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    • meaning component
    • sound component
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    Origin

    Etymology 1

    From Middle English þei, borrowed in the 1200s from Old Norse þeir, plural of the demonstrative sá which acted as a plural pronoun. Displaced native Middle English he from Old English hīe — which vowel changes had left indistinct from he (“he”) — by the 1400s, being readily incorporated alongside native words beginning with the same sound (the, that, this). Used as a singular pronoun since 1300, e.g. in the 1325 Cursor Mundi.

    The Norse term (whence also Icelandic þeir (“they”), Faroese teir (“they”), Danish de (“they”), Swedish de (“they”), Norwegian Nynorsk dei (“they”)) is from Proto-Germanic *þai (“those”) (from Proto-Indo-European *to- (“that”)), whence also Old English þā (“those”) (whence obsolete English tho), Scots thae, thai, thay (“they; those”), Swabian dia (“they”).

    The origin of the determiner they (“the, those”) is unclear. The OED, English Dialect Dictionary and Middle English Dictionary define it and its Middle English predecessor thei as a demonstrative determiner or adjective meaning “those” or “the”. This could be a continuation of the use of the English pronoun they's Old Norse etymon þeir as a demonstrative meaning “those”, but the OED and EDD say it is limited to southern, especially southwestern, England, specifically outside the region of Norse contact.

    Etymology 2

    From earlier the'e, from there.

    From Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.

    Lineage

    • inheritedMiddle Englishþei
      • borrowedOld Norseþeir
        • inheritedProto-Norse*ᚦᚨᛁᛉ
          • inheritedProto-Germanic*þai “those”
            • inheritedProto-Indo-European*tóy
    • derivedEnglishearlier “occurring previously”
      • derivedEnglishthere “In or at a place or location (stated, implied or otherwise indicated) that is perceived to be away …”
        • inheritedMiddle Englishthere
          • inheritedOld Englishþēr

    Related: English tho (doublet), Icelandic þeir, Faroese teir, Danish de, Swedish de, Norwegian Nynorsk dei, Old English þā, Scots thae, Swabian dia

    Meanings

    pron
    1. A group of entities previously mentioned.
    2. One whose gender is unknown, irrelevant, or both.
    3. One who is nonbinary.
    4. People; some people; people in general; someone, excluding the speaker.
    5. The authorities, the (power) elites, the powers that be, the establishment, the man, the system: government, police, employers, etc.
    6. The opponents of the side which is keeping score.
    det
    1. The, those.
    2. Their.
    verb
    1. To refer to (someone, sometimes especially someone who does not use gender-neutral pronouns) using they/them pronouns.
    noun
    1. A non-binary person.

    Sources

    • Wiktionary (via Wiktextract / kaikki.org) — CC BY-SA 4.0
    • Wiktionary: they