her

¹ American

[hur, her, er] / hɜr, hər, ər /

pronoun

the objective case of she.

We saw her this morning. Give this book to her.
the possessive case of she (used as an attributive adjective).

Her coat is the one on the chair. I'm sorry about her leaving.
the dative case of she.

I gave her the book.
Informal. (used instead of the pronoun she in the predicate after the verbto be ).

It's her. It isn't her.

noun

Slang. a female.

Is the new baby a her or a him?

her. ² American

abbreviation

heraldic.
heraldry.

her ¹ British

/ hɜː, hə, ə /

pronoun

refers to a female person or animal

he loves her
they sold her a bag
something odd about her
lucky her!
refers to things personified as feminine or traditionally to ships and nations
a dialect word for herself

she needs to get her a better job

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

determiner

of, belonging to, or associated with her

her silly ideas
her hair
her smoking annoys me

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

her. ² British

abbreviation

heraldic
heraldry

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Gender

See he ¹, me.

Etymology

Origin of her

before 900; Middle English her ( e ), Old English hire, genitive and dative of hēo she (feminine of hē he ¹ )

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

At 5-2 down, Gauff saved two set points before clawing her way back to level at 5-5, but lost the tie-break as unforced errors and double faults punctuated her game.

From BBC • May 30, 2026

Also Zoe Thompson is just 14, so you can’t expect her to drive herself.

From Los Angeles Times • May 30, 2026

"Marcia was a force," her family said in a statement to US media on Friday.

From BBC • May 30, 2026

This year’s roster includes more than two dozen Division I college players, meaning Zoe Thompson will be playing with and against women much older than her.

From Los Angeles Times • May 30, 2026

I take a perverse satisfaction in rushing off toward Dara, planning to drop her food and finally find my escape route.

From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023