Plural of “self”

The plural of self is selves.

Why

Rather than naming a concrete object the way 'knife' or 'wolf' does, 'self' (Old English 'self' or 'seolf') is an abstract noun that nonetheless inherited the identical f-to-v voicing shift in its plural 'selves,' the final consonant voicing once it sat between two vowels in the old plural ending, the same mechanical sound change behind every other word in this family.

"Self" also serves as the base for the entire English reflexive pronoun system (myself, yourself, himself, herself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, themselves), and the plural forms in that system ("ourselves," "yourselves," "themselves") all inherit the same -selves ending directly from the noun's own irregular plural, rather than each being independently formed. Philosophical writing on personal identity frequently debates whether a person genuinely has multiple "selves" across different contexts and life stages, or whether this is simply a useful metaphor for describing change over time within a single continuous identity, a substantive philosophical question distinct from, though grammatically dependent on, the noun's own irregular plural form.

Usage note

"Selves" appears constantly in psychology and philosophy writing describing multiple aspects of a single person's identity ("her professional and personal selves") as well as in ordinary speech about groups of people ("they pushed themselves to the limit"), with no distinction in form between the abstract and everyday senses.

"Selfie," the extremely recent coinage for a self-taken photograph, pluralizes fully regularly as "selfies," sharing no irregularity at all with its root word "self" despite the obvious connection in meaning, since it was formed as a wholly new, informal noun rather than inheriting any grammar from the older word. Psychology distinguishes an "ideal self" from an "actual self" and a "feared self" in some influential theoretical frameworks, using "selves" when discussing more than one of these constructs together within the same theoretical model or clinical discussion. Meditation and mindfulness literature often encourages practitioners to observe their thoughts without judgment, treating the self as something to be studied rather than simply assumed, language that frequently shifts between singular and plural depending on which philosophical tradition is being discussed.

Common real mistakes

Writing "selfs" instead of "selves" is a real but relatively rare error, more often seen in reflexive-pronoun compounds among English learners ("themself" for standard "themselves" in older usage, though "themself" has recently gained some acceptance specifically as a singular gender-neutral form). A further point worth noting: "selfish" and "selfless," both adjectives derived from "self," are fully regular and never inflect for number, unlike the countable noun they're built from, which takes the irregular "selves" whenever more than one person's identity or aspect is being discussed.

The wider pattern

Because 'self' is the root of English's entire reflexive-pronoun system, its f-to-v shift, shared with 'knife,' 'half,' 'life,' and 'wolf,' echoes constantly through everyday speech every time someone says 'ourselves' or 'themselves' rather than an unmarked 'ourself' or 'themself.'

Examples

• They pushed themselves harder than ever during training.
• The therapist helped her reconcile her different selves.
• We reminded ourselves to stay calm during the emergency.
• Both former selves seemed almost unrecognizable in the old photographs.
• The twins constantly compared their better selves to each other.
• They convinced themselves the plan would work despite the risks.
• Her earlier and later selves held surprisingly different values.
• The team pushed themselves through the final grueling mile.
• We found ourselves lost within minutes of leaving the trail.
• The actors lost themselves completely in their roles.
• The support group encouraged members to accept their past selves without judgment.
• They dedicated themselves fully to finishing the project on time.
• The therapy sessions helped her integrate conflicting parts of herself.
• They found themselves agreeing on almost every major decision.
• The workshop asked participants to write letters to their future selves.
• She reminded herself to breathe slowly before the interview began.
• He pushed himself to finish the race despite the injury.