It
History: From Middle English it, hit ( > dialectal English hit (“it”)), from Old English hit (“it”), from Proto-West Germanic *hit, from Proto-Germanic *hit (“this, this one”), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱe (“here; here”). Cognates Cognate with Yola it, t', yt (“it”), North Frisian at, et, 't (“it”), Saterland Frisian et (“it”), West Frisian it (“it”), Dutch het (“it”), Luxembourgish hatt (“her, it, she”), Elfdalian eð (“it”); also Primitive Irish ᚕᚑᚔ (koi, “here”), Latin cis (“short of; before”), hic (“this”), Greek εκείνος (ekeínos, “that; those”). Compare Cimbrian es, is, 's, 'z (“it”), German es, 's (“it, there”), Mòcheno and Vilamovian s (“it”), Yiddish עס (es, “it”), Faroese ið (“that, which, who”), Gothic 𐌹𐍄𐌰 (ita, “it”), which instead descends from Proto-Germanic *it (“it”). More at he.
Origin: pron
Definition: 1. The third-person singular neuter personal pronoun used to refer to an inanimate object, abstract entity, or non-human living thing. 2. A third-person singular personal pronoun used to refer to a baby or child, especially of unknown gender. 3. A third-person singular pronoun used to refer to an unspecified person. 4. An affectionate third-person singular personal pronoun. 5. A third-person singular personal pronoun used to refer to an animate referent who is transgender or non-binary. 6. Refers to someone being identified, often on the phone, but not limited to this situation. 7. The impersonal pronoun, used without referent as the subject of an impersonal verb or statement (known as the dummy pronoun, dummy it or weather it). 8. The impersonal pronoun, used without referent, or with unstated but contextually implied referent, in various short idioms or expressions.
Art-ı Artificial Mind Analysis
BETAOrigin and History
The pronoun it descends from the Old English hit, itself a reflexive form of the Proto‑Germanic *hita, a neuter pronoun used for inanimate objects and abstract concepts. In the earliest stages of English, hit was a true third‑person singular neuter pronoun, much like the modern German es. Over time, the vowel shift that produced Modern English gradually turned hit into it, while the grammatical case system collapsed, leaving a single form for all neuter referents. By the 16th century, it had also begun to serve as a placeholder in syntactic constructions—what linguists call the dummy it—a role that has expanded to include weather expressions, impersonal clauses, and idiomatic phrases.
Depth of Meaning
At first glance, it seems impersonal and devoid of emotion. Yet its semantic range is surprisingly rich. When used to refer to an inanimate object, it carries a neutral tone, but when employed as a dummy, it can convey uncertainty or inevitability: “It will be fine.” The pronoun can also acquire a tender quality when addressing a child or animal: “It’s your turn, little one.”
In contemporary discourse, it has become a vessel for social nuance. For instance, referring to a non‑binary individual as “it” is generally considered disrespectful; instead, gender‑neutral pronouns such as they are preferred. This shift illustrates how language reflects evolving attitudes toward identity and respect.
The impersonal it, especially in weather expressions, evokes a sense of universality—an acknowledgment that the phenomenon affects all observers equally: “It’s raining.” Here, it functions as a linguistic bridge between the external world and human perception.
Usage Example
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times,” wrote Charles Dickens in A Tale of Two Cities, using the pronoun to underscore the paradoxical nature of a single moment that encapsulates both hope and despair.
This was produced by an artificial mind: capricious, and not entirely serious.
Most-read poems featuring this word
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The Crack-Up F. Scott Fitzgerald360 reads
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Turkish-Greek Poem Bülent Ecevit112 reads
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This is it? Bülent Somay108 reads
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The Raven Edgar Allan Poe104 reads
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Wake Up, Sir! Jonathan Ames98 reads
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The Face of Garbo Roland Barthes94 reads
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The Waste Land Thomas Stearns Eliot93 reads
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Childe Roland To The Dark Tower Came Robert Browning89 reads
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Sone 151 William Shakespeare85 reads
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Rabbi Ben Ezra Robert Browning78 reads