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From earlier hem, from Middle Englishhem, from Old Englishheom(“them”, dative) of hie,[1] originally a dative plural form but in Middle English coming to serve as an accusative plural as well. Cognate with Dutchhun(“them”), Germanihnen(“them”).
Now often treated as a form of them, which however derives from Old Norse rather than Old English.
Some are become great, ſome atcheeues greatneſſe, and ſome haue greatneſſe thruſt vppon em.
1685, Pierre Duval, “Aſia”, in Ferrand Spence, transl., Geographia Universalis: The Present State Of the Whole World, →OCLC, pages 158–159:
All China is divided into ſixteen Provinces, each of which are worth more than large Kingdoms. Ten of ’em lye towards the South; Yunnan, Quanſi, Canton, Fuquiem, Chequiam, Nanxin, Kiamſi, Huquam, Suſcuem and Quicheu. The ſix towards the North are Xenſi, Scianſi, Honan, Xantung, Pekin and Leaorung, which ſeveral have called Cathai, whereas they give the name of Mangi to the Southern Provinces.
1699, Robert Barret, A Companion for Midwives, Child-Bearing Women, and Nurses., London, Preface:
We cannot reasonably ſuppoſe that Adam, who was ſo univerſally Skill'd in the Natures of all Plants, ſhould have been ignorant of their Vulnerary Qualities: Or that he would not employ this his Skill in endeavouring to cure Wounds, or Hurts, when any of his new-planted Stock had the Misfortune te receive 'em.
Then there came a reg'lar terror of a sou'wester, same as you don't get one summer in a thousand, and blowed the shanty flat and ripped about half of the weir poles out of the sand. We spent consider'ble money getting ’em reset, and then a swordfish got into the pound and tore the nets all to slathers, right in the middle of the squiteague season.
Harkin: I spent twenty years working cases here on the Citadel. People on this station love to talk. Secrets are like herpes. If you got 'em, you might as well spread 'em around.
2010 December 3, John Baron, The Guardian:
We've literally had dozens of your photographs submitted this week – keep ’em coming!
For more quotations using this term, see Citations:'em.
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