thou

thou (tou) , pronoun

[Old English thou, þu, Anglo-Saxon eū, eu; akin to Old Saxon & OFries. thu, German, Danish & Swedish du, Icelandic þū, Gothic þu, Russ. tui, Ir. & Gael. tu, Welsh ti, Latin tu, Greek sy`, Dor. <i>ty`</i>, Sanskrit tvam. r185. Compare Thee, Thine, Te Deum.]

The second personal pronoun, in the singular number, denoting the person addressed; thyself; the pronoun which is used in addressing persons in the solemn or poetical style.

Art thou he that should come? — Matt. xi. 3

“In Old English, generally, thou is the language of a lord to a servant, of an equal to an equal, and expresses also companionship, love, permission, defiance, scorn, threatening: whilst ye is the language of a servant to a lord, and of compliment, and further expresses honor, submission, or entreaty.”

Thou is now sometimes used by the Friends, or Quakers, in familiar discourse, though most of them corruptly say thee instead of thou.

Thou , transitive verb

To address as thou, esp. to do so in order to treat with insolent familiarity or contempt.

If thou thouest him some thrice, it shall not be amiss. — Shakespeare

Thou , intransitive verb

To use the words thou and thee in discourse after the manner of the Friends. [Rare]