hem
Them, or sometimes him, depending on how the sentence lands.
Also called 'em, them.
Updated September 24, 2026
hem pronunciation
/HEM/
Meaning
In country talk and dialect writing, hem often stands in for them, especially the soft object form you hear in "give it to hem." Older English already used hem for them, and Southern speech kept that sound alive. Around here, hem and him can also sound nearly the same, so you lean on the rest of the sentence to know which one somebody meant.
How folks use it
- “Tell hem I'll be down directly.”
- “I seen hem out by the barn this morning.”
Origin and etymology
Middle English used hem as the object form of they, the ancestor of modern them. Rural Southern and Appalachian speech kept related forms, and writers spell them as hem to catch the sound. Southern talk also often makes words like hem and him sound alike before an m, which adds to the mix-up.
Frequently asked questions
Is hem the same as them?
Usually yes. Sometimes the sound can also pass for him, so the sentence around it does the clarifying.