I ran into a Word Confusion of yew versus you, and I suspect the problem was that the author meant ye . . . and that the spell-check decided ye was incomplete and grew it a bit. Oh, well.
Then I read a story that involved sheep, and I was struck by the similar pronunciation, so ewe got thrown in. So next time ewe, I mean you, get in too deep, pull the dang ewe out of the muck. Use a yew branch if you must . . .
Exploring Later . . .
You may also want to explore “You and Its Plural” and/or “Ewes vs Use vs Yews“.
Word Confusions . . .
. . . started as my way of dealing with a professional frustration with properly spelled words that were out of context in manuscripts I was editing as well as books I was reviewing. It evolved into a sharing of information with y’all. I’m hoping you’ll share with us words that have been a bête noire for you from either end.
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| Ewe | Yew | You |
|---|---|---|
 |
 — |
 — |
| Part of Grammar: | ||
| Adjective 2; Noun 1; Proper noun 2
Plural for the noun: ewes |
Noun
Plural for the noun: yews Also yew tree |
Noun; Pronoun, second person
Plural: you |
| Adjective: Relating to the Ewe or their language 2 Noun: Proper noun: The Kwa language of the Ewe 2 |
Any of several evergreen, coniferous trees and shrubs of the genera Taxus and Torreya, constituting the family Taxaceae, of the Old World, North America, and Japan, having needlelike or scalelike foliage and red berrylike fruits enclosed in a fleshy aril, most parts of which are highly poisonous
The fine-grained, elastic wood of any of these trees [Archery] An archer’s bow made of this wood This tree or its branches as a symbol of sorrow, death, or resurrection |
Noun: Something or someone closely identified with or resembling the person addressed
A person or thing that the speaker cannot or does not want to specify Pronoun:
Refers to any person in general [Archaic; Dialect] Thou (its plural form is ye and is the singular subject of a verb) [Archaic; Dialect] Thee (functions as the singular object of a verb or preposition) [Dialectical] Yourself, yourselves |
| Examples: | ||
| Adjective: Ewe kente cloth is achieving a reputation. In Ewe culture, we believe that if there is something on your mind, it sits on the stomach, making you sick. In unit 2, “The Making and Design of Kente Cloth”, Avins and Quick chronicle the evolution of the Asante and Ewe weaving and describe the delicate and time-consuming processes of putting the cloth together. Noun: Keep stress to a minimum for a nursing ewe. Although many ewes have already dropped their lambs, some producers have ewes lambing through to August. Proper noun: Drums are the principal instrument for the Ewe. Intricately decorated and culturally rich, the 15 drums are native to the Ewe of southeastern Ghana. The Ewe live in southeastern Ghana as well as the southern regions of neighboring countries Togo and Benin. |
It makes sense that the Latin name for yew is Taxus baccata.
In S.M. Stirling’s Emberverse science fiction/apocalyptic series, yew is highly prized for making bows. The ability of yews to regenerate from almost nothing has given it a reputation for resurrection. It’s probably why yews were popular around churchyards! Yew trees can grow to an immense size and an incredible age, up to 5,000 years or more. Timber from the yew is used in cabinetmaking. |
Noun: Try to discover the hidden you. That red shirt just isn’t you. It was like seeing another you. Pronoun: Are you listening? I hate you. You know better, the culprit is among you. All you Americans are alike. Hey, you! You know what they say, you can’t take it with you. Hey buddy, you name it, just name it. You know something. Spill it. After a while, you get used to it. We beseech thee, O Lord O’, thou great and wondrous spirit . . . Oh, he acts all holier-than-thou. You should get you a wife. |
| Derivatives: | ||
| Adjective: ewe-necked | ||
| History of the Word: | ||
|
Old English īw and ēow are of Germanic origin. | Old English ēow is both accusative and dative of gē and is related to the Dutch u and the German euch.
During the 14th century you began to replace ye, thou, and thee. By the 17th century, you had become the ordinary second person pronoun for any number and case. |
C’mon, get it out of your system, bitch, whine, moan . . . which words are your pet peeves? Also, please note that I try to be as accurate as I can, but mistakes happen or I miss something. Email me if you find errors, so I can fix them . . . and we’ll all benefit!
Satisfy your curiosity about other Word Confusions on its homepage or more generally explore the index of self-editing posts. You may also want to explore Book Layout & Formatting Ideas, Formatting Tips, Grammar Explanations, Linguistics, Publishing Tips, the Properly Punctuated, Writing Ideas and Resources, and Working Your Website.
Resources for Ewe vs Yew vs You
Apple Dictionary.com
Pinterest Photo Credits
Graveyard Yew Tree at South-east at Church of St Mary, High Easter, Essex, England, is Acabashi’s own work under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license, Marine Parade Garden, Napier is QFSE Media‘s own work under the CC BY-SA 3.0 nz license, and Romney Ewe with Triplet Lambs in New Zealand by Pam (Flickr: Triplet lambs) is under the CC BY 2.0 license. All three are via Wikimedia Commons.
Revised as of 11 Apr 2024
By: Kathy Davie