ENGLISH
REFERENCE

them

pron.
A1 Beginner Oxford US //ˈðɛm// UK //ðˈɛm// them Dialect General-service Informal

pron. the group of people, animals, or things you are talking about. You use this word when they are the ones receiving an action.

pron. the third-person plural object pronoun. Used as the direct or indirect object of a verb or the object of a preposition to refer to two or more people or things previously mentioned.


SIMPLE

I saw my friends and waved to them.

CONTEXTUAL

If you find the keys on the table, please bring them to me in the kitchen.

COMPLEX

The manager interviewed several candidates yesterday and plans to contact them regarding the final decision by the end of the week.

Origin

Etymology tree Old Norse þeimbor. Middle English þem English them From Middle English þem, from Old Norse þeim.

Usage

Acts as the object form of 'they'; also increasingly used as a gender-neutral singular object pronoun.

Pitfall

I gave it to they.I gave it to them.Learners sometimes use the subject pronoun 'they' after a preposition instead of the object pronoun 'them'.

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