11 Personal Pronouns
Personal pronouns are what most people think of when they see the word pronoun. Personal pronouns include words like he, she, and they. The following sentences give examples of personal pronouns used with antecedents (remember, an antecedent is the noun that a pronoun refers to!):
- That man looks as if he needs a new coat. (the noun phrase that man is the antecedent of he)
- Kat arrived yesterday. I met her at the station. (Kat is the antecedent of her)
- When they saw us, the lions began roaring (the lions is the antecedent of they)
- Adam and I were hoping no one would find us. (Adam and I is the antecedent of us)
Pronouns may be classified by three categories: person, number, and case.
Person
Person refers to the relationship that an author has with the text that he or she writes, and with the reader of that text. English has three persons (first, second, and third):
- First-person is the speaker or writer him- or herself. The first person is personal (I, we, etc.)
- Second-person is the person who is being directly addressed. The speaker or author is saying this is about you, the listener or reader.
- Third-person is the most common person used in academic writing. The author is saying this is about other people. In the third person singular there are distinct pronoun forms for male, female, and neutral gender.
| Person | Pronouns | |
|---|---|---|
| First | I, me, we, us | |
| Second | you | |
| Third | Male | he, him |
| Female | she, her | |
| Neutral | it, they, them |
Practice
Select the response from the list that best completes the sentence.
- Sandra often put other people’s needs before her own. That’s why people loved (her / me) so much.
- Vindira and Frank always let us know when (he / they) were coming into town.
- I told Bruno (he / it) will need three things in order to be successful: determination, discipline, and dexterity.
Show Answers
- Sandra often put other people’s needs before her own. That’s why people loved her so much.
- Her is the correct choice because it is a singular feminine third-person pronoun.
- Vindira and Frank always let us know when they were coming into town.
- They is the correct choice because it is a plural third-person pronoun.
- I told Bruno he will need three things in order to be successful: determination, discipline, and dexterity.
- He is the correct choice because it is a singular masculine third-person pronoun.
Number
There are two numbers: singular and plural. As we learned in nouns, singular words refer to only one a thing while plural words refer to more than one of a thing (I stood alone while they walked together).
| Person | Number | Pronouns |
|---|---|---|
| First | Singular | I, me |
| Plural | we, us | |
| Second | Singular | you |
| Plural | you | |
| Third | Singular | he, him |
| she, her | ||
| it | ||
| Plural | they, them |
Case
English personal pronouns have two cases: subject and object (there are also possessive pronouns, which we’ll discuss next). Subject-case pronouns are used when the pronoun is doing the action. (I like to eat chips, but she does not). Object-case pronouns are used when something is being done to the pronoun (John likes me but not her). This video will further clarify the difference between subject- and object-case:
Practice
Select the response from the list that best completes the sentence.
- I don’t know if I should talk to (he / him). (He / Him) looks really angry today.
- Enrico and Brenna are coming over for dinner tomorrow night. (They / Them) will be here at 6:00.
- Melissa loves music. (She / Her) listens to it when I drive (she / her) to work.
Show Answer
- I don’t know if I should talk to him. He looks really angry today.
- Enrico and Brenna are coming over for dinner tomorrow night. They will be here at 6:00.
- Melissa loves music. She listens to it when I drive her to work.
Reflexive Pronouns
Reflexive pronouns are a kind of pronoun that are used when the subject and the object of the sentence are the same.
- Jason hurt himself. (Jason is the antecedent of himself)
- We were teasing each other. (we is the antecedent of each other)
This is true even if the subject is only implied, as in the sentence “Don’t hurt yourself.” You is the unstated subject of this sentence.
Practice
Read at the following sentences. Should the reflexive pronoun be used? Why or why not?
- Aisha let (her / herself) in when she arrived.
- Feel free to let (you / yourself) in when you get here!
- Andrés asked Jada if she would let (him / himself) in when (she / herself) arrived.
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Show Answer
- Aisha let herself in when she arrived.
- Aisha is the subject and object of the sentence.
- Feel free to let yourself in when you get here!
- You is the implied subject of the sentence, so the reflexive yourself is appropriate as the object of the sentence.
- Andrés asked Jada if she would let him in when she arrived.
- While Andrés is the subject of the sentence, Andrés is not the subject of the dependent clause that him appears in (if she would let him in). In this clause, she is the subject, so the reflexive pronoun cannot be used here.
- She is the subject of the clause “when she arrived.” Since it’s a subject, the reflexive cannot be used.
Possessive Pronouns
Possessive pronouns are used to indicate possession (in a broad sense). Some occur as independent phrases: mine, yours, hers, ours, yours, theirs. For example, “Those clothes are mine.” Others must be accompanied by a noun: my, your, her, our, your, their, as in “I lost my wallet.” His and its can fall into either category, although its is nearly always found in the second.
Both types replace possessive noun phrases. As an example, “Their crusade to capture our attention” could replace “The advertisers’ crusade to capture our attention.”
This video provides another explanation of possessive pronouns:
Practice
Select the response from the list that best completes the sentence.
- Hey, that’s (my / mine)!
- Carla gave Peter (her / hers) phone number.
- Remember to leave (their / theirs) papers on the table.
Show Answer
- Hey, that’s mine!
- Carla gave Peter her phone number.
- Remember to leave their papers on the table.
Review
The table below includes all of the personal pronouns in the English language. They are organized by person, number, and case:
| Person | Number | Subject | Object | Reflexive | Possessive | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First | Singular | I | me | myself | my | mine |
| Plural | we | us | ourselves | our | ours | |
| Second | Singular | you | you | yourself | your | yours |
| Plural | you | you | yourselves | your | yours | |
| Third | Singular | he | him | himself | his | his |
| she | her | herself | her | hers | ||
| it | it | itself | its | its | ||
| Plural | they | them | themselves | their | theirs |