ellos mismos
/eʝos mismos/from spelling rules
In Spanish, 'themselves' is translated as ellos mismos.
Meaning: the reflexive case of they, the third-person plural personal pronoun (pron)
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of the third-person plural masculine pronoun ellos (they) and the intensive adjective mismos (themselves/same).
Which one should you use?
While ellos mismos emphasizes that they did it personally, the reflexive pronoun se is used to indicate the action is performed upon themselves (e.g., se lavan – they wash themselves).
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase must agree in gender with the group being referred to, using ellas mismas for a group of only females. The masculine form ellos mismos is used for a group of males or a mixed-gender group.
How do you pronounce it?
/eʝos mismos/
Did you know?
- While ellos mismos means 'themselves', the word mismo can also be used as a filler word to mean 'right now' or 'immediately' when paired with ahora, as in ahora mismo.
- The word ellos comes from the Latin 'illos', which was the accusative form of 'ille', meaning 'that' or 'that one'.
- The reflexive pronoun se used for 'themselves' is identical to the form used for 'himself', 'herself', and 'itself', meaning the context of the subject is the only way to tell the number apart.
Examples in context
- Que lo hagan ellos mismos.Let them do it themselves.Tatoeba #2267520 by cueyayotl, translation #2267519 by _undertoad
- No quieren hacerlo ellos mismos.They don't want to do it themselves.Tatoeba #2705156 by marcelostockle, translation #2018855 by CK
- Diles que se presenten ellos mismos.Tell them to introduce themselves.Tatoeba #6823847 by arh, translation #6823806 by CK
- Ellos mismos decidieron organizar la reunión.They themselves decided to organize the meeting.
- Ellas mismas se encargaron de la decoración.They themselves took care of the decoration.
- Ellos mismos se cocinaron la cena.They themselves cooked dinner.
- 9 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Elena and Daniel are discussing how their neighbors fixed a fence.
- ElenaEllos mismos repararon la cerca.They repaired the fence themselves.
- Daniel¿De verdad lo hicieron ellos mismos?Did they really do it themselves?
- ElenaSí, lo hicieron ellos mismos sin ayuda.Yes, they did it themselves without help.
- DanielEso es muy impresionante.That is very impressive.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries ellos, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
