PERSONAL PRONOUNS

Personal pronouns are used to replace nouns in a sentence. They can refer to people or
things and have different forms depending on whether they are a subject or an object.

SUBJECT PRONOUNS
Subject pronouns replace the subject of a sentence. They are used to avoid repetition, or
where a name is not known. There are no formal or informal forms of pronouns in English.
The subject pronoun “he” is used because the
- Who’s he? speaker doesn't know the person's name.
The verbs “be” and “have” are often contracted
with pronouns.
- That’s Andy. He’s a policeman.
“He” refers to Andy to
avoid repetition.
How to form:
The pronoun used depends on how many nouns it is replacing, and person (first, second, or
third.)

FIRST PERSON SECOND PERSON THIRD PERSON

SINGULAR I you he, she, it

PLURAL we you they

Further examples:
I’m turning 25 next week.
You are a great actor.
He likes driving fast.
Stuart and I are going climbing.
They complain every time.
You make a great team.

OBJECT PRONOUNS
Object pronouns replace the object of a sentence. Most of them have a different form from
the equivalent subject pronoun.

Animals love Lizzy. → Animals love her.

There is no difference between direct and indirect object pronouns.

“Her” is the indirect object
I gave her the puppy. TIP
“You” is the same
whether it is
The puppy loves her. singular, plural, a
“Her” is the direct object. subject, or an
object.
How to form:

SUBJECT

I we you he she it they

me us you him her it them

OBJECT

Further examples:
I want to tell you that I’m sorry.
Dave asked me to go with him.
It was a very difficult time for them.
Sam invited you all to the party.
We’re sad that he won’t come with us.
Georgia wanted it for Christmas.
 REFLEXIVE PRONOUNS
Reflexive pronouns show that the subject of a verb is the same as its object. They can also
be used in other situations to add emphasis.

REFLEXIVE PRONOUNS
Reflexive pronouns in English are formed by adding the suffix “-self” or “-selves” to simple
pronouns. The subject pronoun refers to the
person doing the action

He cut himself while chopping vegetables.

A reflexive pronoun is used when the
How to form: same person is affected by the action.

I you you her him it us them

myself yourself yourselves herself himself itself ourselves themselves

Further examples:
I left myself a reminder about the meeting.
You must prepare yourselves for this exam.
He introduced himself to the other guests.
Sarah sees herself as a natural team leader.
The door locks itself when you close it.
We pride ourselves on our customer service.
They’re teaching themselves to cook.

VERBS THAT CANNOT BE REFLEXIVE

Several verbs that are followed by reflexive pronouns in other languages are not normally
followed by a reflexive pronoun in English. The verb “relax” is not followed
by a reflexive pronoun.

I’m really stressed. I can’t relax.

I’m really stressed. I can’t relax myself.

Further examples:
I’ll turn my music down if you can’t concentrate.
He was sick, but he’s feeling better now.
Let’s meet at the café at 2:30.
I get up early every day.
He shaves every morning.
She goes to bed at the same time every night.
She washes her hair every evening.
I often hurry out of the house.

Common mistakes: Reflexive pronouns

A reflexive pronoun can only be used if the subject and object of the sentence are the
same. If the object is different from the subject, an object pronoun should be used
instead.
 The subject of the sentence is “my boss,”
so it is correct to use an object pronoun.

My boss invited Joe and me to the meeting.

My boss invited myself and Joe to the meeting.
“I” is not the subject of the sentence, so it is
wrong to use a reflexive pronoun.

USING REFLEXIVE PRONOUNS FOR EMPHASIS

Sometimes reflexive pronouns are not essential to the grammar of the sentence, but can
be used to add emphasis in different ways. This sentence makes sense without a
Adding the reflexive reflexive pronoun.
pronoun at the end of
The company director gave the talk.
the clause emphasizes
that the action was not
The company director gave the talk himself.
done by someone else.

(The company director have the talk, rather than getting someone else to do it).
Adding the reflexive
The company director himself gave the talk. pronoun directly
after the subject
(The company director, who is an important person, gave the talk).
emphasizes its
importance.
Further examples:
You don‘t have to do the dishes. i‘ll do them myself.
She‘s fixing her car herself. It‘s cheaper than taking it to the garage.
The meal itself wasn‘t very good, but it was a great evening.
The board members themselves will be at the meeting today.
I do my laundry myself, but my dad does my sister‘s for her.
I wanted us to build the furniture ourselves, but it‘s not going well.

REFLEXIVE COLLOCATIONS
Many collocations contain reflexive pronouns. They often follow the pattern verb plus
reflexive pronoun plus preposition.

She still has to familiarize herself with company policy.

Reflexive pronouns are often used in
Further examples: the imperative. Here, “yourself”
implies that “you” is the subject. TIP
Are you leaving early today? Enjoy yourself!
Sometimes the
The manager don’t concern themselves with minor issues. subject is not
Remember to behave yourselves when you are in public. included, but is
implied by the
Try to tear yourself away from the computer as often as possible. reflexive pronoun.
He was sitting by himself in the café.
“By” is used with a reflexive pronoun
“EACH OTHER” to mean “alone.”

When two or more people or things perform the same action to the other, “each other” is
used instead of a reflexive pronoun.

Amy and Raj looked at each other.

(Amy looked at Raj and Raj looked at Amy)

Amy and Raj looked at themselves in the mirror.

(Amy looked herself in the mirror and Raj looked at himself in the mirror).
 INDEFINITE PRONOUNS
Indefinite pronouns, such as “anyone,” “someone,” and “everyone,” are used to refer to a
person or object, or a group of people or objects, without explaining who or what they are.

“ANYONE“ AND “SOMEONE“

“Someone” and “somebody” refer to an unspecified person in a positive statement or
question. “Anyone” and “anybody” refer to an unspecified person in a question or negative
statement.
“Somebody” means the same as
- Did anyone call me this morning? “someone,” but is more informal.
- Yes, someone called you at 11 o’clock.

"Anybody" means the same as

- Do you want to talk to somebody? "anyone," but is more informal.
- No, I don’t want to talk to anybody.

Further examples:
Is someone working late?
Can somebody carry my bag?
I gave somebody a flower.
Someone gave me a present.
I didn’t give anybody your name.
Did anyone buy a gift for Mrs. Tan?
I don’t know anyone in this town.
Did anybody here send me this letter?

“EVERYONE” AND “NO ONE”

“Everyone” refers to a whole group of people. “No one” means no person in a group.

- Why is there no one in the office?

- Everyone is at the big meeting. The singular form of the verb is used
with “everyone” and “everybody
“Everybody” means the same as
“everyone,” but is less formal. - Where’s everybody?
- I don’t know, there’s nobody here.
The singular form of the
“Nobody” means the
verb is used with “nobody”
same as “no one.”
Further examples: and “no one.”

Nobody want to come with me.

I’m at the park with everyone if you’d like to join us.
Everybody has some kind of special skill.
There was nobody but me at work until 10am.

Common mistakes: “No one” and “anyone”

“No one” and “nobody” go in positive statements and questions. “Anyone” and
“anybody” go in negative statements and questions.
This is a negative statement, so “anyone”
This is a negative statement,
so “no one” is incorrect. There isn’t anyone here. or “anybody” is used.

There isn’t no one here.

 “SOMETHING“ AND “ANYTHING“
“Something” and “anything” refer to an unspecified or unnamed object or thing.
“Something” can only be used in questions and positive statements, whereas “anything”
can be used in negative statements as well as questions and positive statements.
Here “something” has a
Here “something” refers to a specific,
more general meaning, as
unnamed thing that the speaker has - Can I have something to eat?
the speaker may not have a
in mind. - Yes, have something from the cupboard. specific thing in mind.

The singular form of the verb is

- Is there anything I can help with?
used with “anything” and
“something.” - No, there isn’t anything you can do.
“Anything” used in positive This statement is negative, so
Further examples: statements shows the “anything” is used, not “something.”
Have anything you want. possibilities are unlimited.
Anything baked by my grandmother tastes delicious.
There’s something I need to tell you.
We don’t have anything in common.
Something that I’ve always enjoyed is kayaking with my friends.
I know I’ve forgotten something, but I can’t think what it is.
I’d do anything to be able to sing like her.
Something spooky happened last night.

“NOTHING” AND “EVERYTHING”

“Nothing” means that there are no available objects or things.
There is no single thing that Tim and James
have in common.
Tim and James have nothing in common.

“Everything” means all the possible objects or things are available.

Tim and Dan do everything together.

Where “nothing” is used in a positive statement, “anything” can be used in a negative

statement with the same meaning. There is no single thing that Tim
and James have in common.
There’s nothing I want to buy here.
(There isn’t anything I want to buy here).

Further examples:
There’s nothing I love more than a sunny day.
Everything is going well at the moment.
Nothing at the exhibition was any good.
I love that new Italian restaurant. Everything tastes so good
I want to see everything at the museum.
I know absolutely nothing about Geography.
I do everything to the best of my ability.
Nothing interests me about politics.