Personal Pronouns

The essential words that replace nouns in sentences

A personal pronoun is a short word that substitutes for a proper name or noun phrase referring to people or things. These change form according to their grammatical person, number, gender, and case.

Key Characteristics

Core Features:
  • Replace nouns: Avoid repetition ("John" → "he")
  • Change form: Different forms for subject/object
  • Show person: 1st (speaker), 2nd (listener), 3rd (others)
  • Indicate number: Singular or plural
  • Reflect gender: In 3rd person singular (he/she/it)

The Personal Pronoun System

1. Subject Pronouns (Nominative Case)

First Person:

Singular: I ("I love grammar.")

Plural: we ("We are studying pronouns.")

Second Person:

Singular/Plural: you ("You should pay attention.")

Third Person:

Singular: he, she, it ("He reads; she writes.")

Plural: they ("They work together.")

2. Object Pronouns (Accusative/Dative Case)

First Person:

Singular: me ("The teacher called me.")

Plural: us ("She gave us the assignment.")

Second Person:

Singular/Plural: you ("I'll email you the details.")

Third Person:

Singular: him, her, it ("We invited her.")

Plural: them ("Please pass the salt to them.")

3. Possessive Pronouns

First Person:

Singular: mine ("This book is mine.")

Plural: ours ("Ours is the house on the corner.")

Second Person:

Singular/Plural: yours ("Is this pen yours?")

Third Person:

Singular: his, hers, its ("The blue car is hers.")

Plural: theirs ("The decision is theirs.")

4. Reflexive Pronouns

First Person:

Singular: myself ("I cut myself shaving.")

Plural: ourselves ("We organized the event ourselves.")

Second Person:

Singular: yourself ("Help yourself to snacks.")

Plural: yourselves ("Did you hurt yourselves?")

Third Person:

Singular: himself, herself, itself ("She taught herself piano.")

Plural: themselves ("They prepared themselves for the test.")

Advanced Usage Rules

1. Subject vs. Object Pronouns

Correct Usage:
  • "She and I went to the store." (subject position)
  • "The gift was for her and me." (object position)
Common Errors:
  • ❌ "Me and him went shopping." → ✅ "He and I went shopping."
  • ❌ "Between you and I..." → ✅ "Between you and me..."

2. Gender-Neutral Pronouns

Modern Usage:
  • Singular they: "Someone left their umbrella."
  • Preferred pronouns: "Alex uses they/them pronouns."

3. Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement

Rules:
  • "The team celebrated its victory." (singular)
  • "My sister forgot her keys." (gender agreement)

Special Cases & Exceptions

Royal/Editorial "We"

  • "We are not amused." (Queen Victoria)
  • "In this article, we will examine..."

Generic "You"

  • "You can't judge a book by its cover." (meaning 'one')

Impersonal "It"

  • "It is raining." (weather)
  • "It seems that we're lost."

Common Mistakes

Avoid these errors:
  • Subject-object confusion: ❌ "Her and me went shopping." → ✅ "She and I went shopping."
  • Reflexive misuse: ❌ "Contact myself with questions." → ✅ "Contact me with questions."

Practice Exercises

1. Identify Pronoun Types

What type of pronoun is each underlined word?

  • "They gave us the tickets." → subject, object
  • "The decision is yours." → possessive

2. Correct the Errors

  • ❌ "Me and him are friends." → ✅ "He and I are friends."
  • ❌ "Their going to the party." → ✅ "They're going to the party."