we

We don’t traditionally think of we as having synonyms, but there are several situations in which it can replace—or be replaced with—another word, phrase, or series of words.

_____ and I

We’s main job is to serve as a way of not having to name every person in a group of two or more people. Sometimes, though, it’s best to be clear by naming them. Instead of saying We walked home together, you could say Emily, Dave, and I walked home together. 

all of us

The phrase all of us can replace we as the subject of the sentence in some situations. This phrasing is often used to emphasize the entirety of the group that’s present, as in All of us wanted to be here to say goodbye. 

us

Sometimes, you can reword a sentence that uses the object form us to instead use the subject form we, or vice versa. For example, instead of saying Luckily, we weren’t affected by the storm, you could say Luckily, the storm didn’t affect us. 

ourselves

In some cases, the word ourselves is used as another way of saying we. For example, it’s common to say things like We should think for ourselves. Ourselves is also sometimes used in place of we after the words as, than, and but, as in children no older than ourselves. 

we ourselves

Sometimes, you might use the phrase we ourselves to emphasize that something was done by the group that you’re part of as opposed to others. For example, saying We cast the deciding votes may be a neutral statement, but saying We ourselves cast the deciding votes indicates that there was some significance to the fact that it was your group who did it.

you

We is sometimes used in place of you in a way that’s sometimes intended to be more polite, such as when giving someone an assignment, as in We should do that by Friday. It can also be used in place of you in a way that’s condescending or sarcastic, as in We don’t want to be too hasty, do we?

the royal we

The word we is famously used in some cases by sovereign rulers as a formal way of saying I, as if they are speaking for the entire nation. Some people use the royal we to be funny.

the editorial we

This is the we that we editors use when we’re speaking in a general voice, especially as a way to avoid I, which is often seen as too personal (especially when the writer’s voice, opinion, or identity is not relevant).

This is often similar in function to general use of you and one. (For an example, see the very first sentence in this section.)

In cases when you want to avoid speaking for a group, you can just say I. There are ways that you can acknowledge part of the group but not all of it. For example, you could say something like I believe—as many of us do—that this is a good idea.

We is a personal pronoun. Pronouns are used as substitutes for nouns—they’re another way of referring to a noun without using a specific name.

Personal pronouns are used to refer to the speaker (first person), to the person being addressed (second person), or the person being talked about (third person). We is categorized as a first person pronoun because it refers to the group of people who are speaking or writing—addressing others.