Simple Guide To Archaic English (Thees, Thou, and Thine)

Thee=you

Thee is the second person objective pronoun, so it’s only used when it’s the object of a sentence. Examples:

“I yield my sword to thee.”=“I yield my sword to you.”
“Where shall we meet thee?”=“Where shall we meet you?”
“The money shall be given to thee tonight.”=“The money shall be given to you tonight.”

Thou=you

Thou is what linguists refer to as the second person nominative pronoun. In everyday terms, that means that thou is the term you pick for the subject of a sentence. Examples:

“Thou art a liar!”=“You are a liar!”
“Thou hast the most beautiful eyes.”=“You have the most beautiful eyes.”
“Thou must not disobey your mother.”=“You must not disobey your mother.”

Thy=your
Thine=your or yours

Thy and thine are both possessive. The easiest way to explain the distinction is to call up the use of the words “my” and “mine” in present day English. By the time of early modern English, my and mine pretty much had their modern uses. Examples:

“Is that thy sword?”=”Is that your sword?”
“That is thine sword.” =”That is your sword.“
Also “Is that sword thine?” =”Is that sword yours?“

Mine=my or mine

“Mine sword is heavy.”=”My sword is heavy.”

“EST” and “ETH”=”s”

“eth” is the third-person singular form of a verb. Example:

“Love thy neighbor, sayeth the Lord.”=”Love your neighbor, says the Lord.”

“est” is the second-person singular form of a verb. Example:

“All that thou sayest unto me I will do.”=”All that you say unto me I will do.”