Thyself

Thyself is the second-person singular reflexive pronoun used with thou in Early Modern English to refer back to the same person as the subject. It combines thy, the possessive determiner for thou, with self, mirroring forms such as himself and herself. Its function is to denote reflexive reference or to serve as an intensive pronoun for emphasis, and it appears most often in religious, poetic, or dramatic contexts rather than in everyday speech.

In modern English, thou and thy have largely faded from common use, replaced by you and your, and thyself is now rare outside of stylized or archaic language. It can still function as a reflexive pronoun, as in Thou hast harmed thyself, and it also appears in idiomatic phrases such as Do it thyself, meaning to do something without help. The general modern equivalent in everyday language is yourself.

Historically, thyself appears in texts from Old English onward, though the specific form is most associated with Middle and Early Modern English. It remains notable in biblical translations, classic literature, and period drama for its archaic tone. Contemporary references to thyself are typically intentional stylistic choices rather than standard usage, with the word serving to evoke historical speech patterns or literary flavor.