themself
themself Lexical Profile
themself Game Scores & Validity
• pronoun
Used as the object of a verb or preposition to refer to a single person of unspecified gender, or a person whose gender identity is non-binary, previously mentioned as the subject of the clause.
"Every applicant must prepare themself for a rigorous technical interview."
Used for emphasis to refer to a single person of unspecified gender or a non-binary individual.
"The author themself attended the book club meeting to answer questions."
Word Nuance & Usage
While "themselves" remains more common in formal edited prose even with singular antecedents, "themself" is widely used and increasingly accepted in modern English when referring specifically to a single non-binary person or an unspecified individual (analogous to singular "yourself").
• Rhymes for themself
Word Origin & Etymology
Attested in Middle English from the 14th century alongside "themselven" before "themselves" became standardized in the 16th century; it was revived in the late 20th century as a dedicated singular reflexive counterpart to singular "they".