Adjacent Words

His definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

HIS, pron. possessive of he,and pronounced hiz.
1. Of him. Thus in Alfred's Orosius, "Sume for his ege ne dorstan." Some for fear of his durst not; literally, for his awe, for awe of him. Lib.3.8. In this instance, his does not express what belongs to the antecedent of his, [Philip,] but the fear which others entertained of him.
2. The present use of his is as a pronominal adjective, in any case indifferently, corresponding to the L. suus. Thus, tell John his papers are ready. I will deliver his papers to his messenger. He may take his son's books. When the noun is omitted, his stands as its substitute, either in the nominative or objective case. Tell John this book is his. He may take mine and I will take his.
3. His was formerly used for its, but improperly, and the use has ceased.
4. It was formerly used as the sign of the possessive. The man his ground, for the man's ground. This use has also ceased.
5. His is still used as a substitute for a noun, preceded by of; as all ye saints of his; he ministers of his.
Hisself is no longer used.

Merriam Webster's

I. adjective Etymology: Middle English, from Old English, genitive of h? he Date: before 12th century of or relating to him or himself especially as possessor, agent, or object of an action <his house> <his writings> <his confirmation> — compare he I II. pronoun, singular or plural in construction Date: before 12th century that which belongs to him — used without a following noun as a pronoun equivalent in meaning to the adjective his

Oxford Reference Dictionary

poss.pron. 1 (attrib.) of or belonging to him or himself (his house; his own business). 2 (His) (attrib.) (in titles) that he is (His Majesty). 3 the one or ones belonging to or associated with him (it is his; his are over there). Phrases and idioms: his and hers joc. (of matching items) for husband and wife, or men and women. of his of or belonging to him (a friend of his). Etymology: OE, genit. of HE, IT(1)

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

He He (h[=e]), pron. [nom. He; poss. His (h[i^]z); obj. Him (h[i^]m); pl. nom. They ([th][=a]); poss. Their or Theirs ([th][^a]rz or [th][=a]rz); obj. Them ([th][e^]m).] [AS. h?, masc., he['o], fem., hit, neut.; pl. h[=i], or hie, hig; akin to Ofries. hi, D. hij, OS. he, hi, G. heute to-day, Goth. himma, dat. masc., this, hina, accus. masc., and hita, accus. neut., and prob. to L. his this. [root]183. Cf. It.] 1. The man or male being (or object personified to which the masculine gender is assigned), previously designated; a pronoun of the masculine gender, usually referring to a specified subject already indicated. Thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee. --Gen. iii. 16. Thou shalt fear the Lord thy God; him shalt thou serve. --Deut. x. 20. 2. Any one; the man or person; -- used indefinitely, and usually followed by a relative pronoun. He that walketh with wise men shall be wise. --Prov. xiii. 20. 3. Man; a male; any male person; -- in this sense used substantively. --Chaucer. I stand to answer thee, Or any he, the proudest of thy sort. --Shak. Note: When a collective noun or a class is referred to, he is of common gender. In early English, he referred to a feminine or neuter noun, or to one in the plural, as well as to noun in the masculine singular. In composition, he denotes a male animal; as, a he-goat.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

His His, pron. [AS. his of him, his, gen. masc. & neut. of h?, neut. hit. See He.] 1. Belonging or pertaining to him; -- used as a pronominal adjective or adjective pronoun; as, tell John his papers are ready; formerly used also for its, but this use is now obsolete. No comfortable star did lend his light. --Shak. Who can impress the forest, bid the tree Unfix his earth-bound root? --Shak. Note: Also formerly used in connection with a noun simply as a sign of the possessive. ``The king his son.'' --Shak. ``By young Telemachus his blooming years.'' --Pope. This his is probably a corruption of the old possessive ending -is or -es, which, being written as a separate word, was at length confounded with the pronoun his. 2. The possessive of he; as, the book is his. ``The sea is his, and he made it.'' --Ps. xcv. 5.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

Frequency: The word is one of the 700 most common words in English. Note: 'His' is a third person singular possessive determiner. 'His' is also a possessive pronoun. 1. You use his to indicate that something belongs or relates to a man, boy, or male animal. Brian splashed water on his face, then brushed his teeth... He spent a large part of his career in Hollywood... The dog let his head thump on the floor again. DET • His is also a possessive pronoun. Anna reached out her hand to him and clasped his. PRON 2. In written English, his is sometimes used to refer to a person without saying whether that person is a man or a woman. Some people dislike this use and prefer to use 'his or her' or 'their'. Formerly, the relations between a teacher and his pupils were dominated by fear on the part of the pupils... DET • His is also a possessive pronoun. The student going to art or drama school will be very enthusiastic about further education. His is not a narrow mind, but one eager to grasp every facet of anything he studies. PRON

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

hiz: Used often in the King James Version with reference to a neuter or inanimate thing, or to a lower animal (Ge 1:11, "after his kind"; Le 1:16, "pluck away his crop"; Ac 12:10, "of his own accord"; 1Co 15:38, "his own body"), etc. the Revised Version (British and American) substitutes "its."