# itself

> English word · Pronoun · IPA /ɪtˈsɛlf/ · frequency rank #830

## Definitions
1. it; A thing as the object of a verb or preposition that also appears as the subject
2. it; used to intensify the subject, especially to emphasize that it is the only participant in the predicate
3. it; used to refer back to an earlier subject

## Etymology
From Middle English hit-self, equivalent to it + -self.

## Common misspellings (9)
`istelf`, `iteslf`, `itsefl`, `itselff`, `itsellf`, `itslef`, `itsself`, `ittself`, `tiself`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-09-03.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/itself