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Pronoun

Explanation

What is a pronoun?

A pronoun is a word that is used to replace a noun or noun phrase.

 

Personal pronoun

	Singular					Plural
Subject pronouns	I	you	he	She	It	We	You	They
Object pronouns	Me	You	Him	Her	It	Us	You	Them
Possessive adjectives	My	Your	His	her	its	Our	Your	Their
Possessive pronouns	mine	Yours	His	Hers	-	Ours	Yours	Theirs
Reflexive pronouns	Myself	Yourself	Himself	Herself	Itself	Ourselves	Yourselves	Themselves

 

Subject and object pronouns

We use subject pronouns before the verb, object pronouns after the verb

Example:

• Amy loves Ben. —> She loves him
• Ben loves Amy too. —> He loves her too.
• I love the children. —> I love them.
• The children love me too. —> They love me too.

 

Possessive adjectives

We use possessive adjectives to show who things belong to. It is used before a noun.

Example:

• I hurt my legs.
• I moved your chair.
• I borrow Amy’s pen. —> I borrow her pen.
• Ben builds the dog’s house. —> Ben builds its house.
• Amy takes Ben and Cherry’s books. —> Amy takes their books.

 

Possessive pronouns

We use possessive pronouns to replace possessive adjectives with noun.

Example:

• I moved your chair. —> I moved yours.
• I borrow Amy’s pen. —> I borrow hers.
• Amy takes Ben and Cherry’s books. —> Amy takes theirs.

 

Example in dialogue:

Q: I purse is gone.

A: No worries, I found yours.

Q: Have you seen Amy’s bag?

A: Yes, the staff members have pack hers.

 

Reflexive pronouns

We use reflexive pronouns when the subject and object are the same person/ thing.

Example:

• I live by myself.
• You should treat yourself better.
• The young girl can behave herself in the new school.
• My air conditioner turns off itself last night.
• The kids can go to school by themselves.

 

Demonstrative pronoun

	Singular	Plural
Near	This	These
Far	That	Those

 

This, These vs That, Those

We use this and these for things that are near us, that and those for things that are far away.

Example:

• Is this drink free?
• I am holding some books. These are my books.
• That tree on the mountain is tall.
• Those birds are flying in the sky.

 

We also use this and these for a time that is near us, that and those for a past situation.

Example:

• I am having computer lesson now. I like this course.
• It is summer now. It is hot and humid these days.
• Do you enjoy that activity yesterday?
• I live in Canada when I was small. I miss those childhood days.

 

Indefinite pronoun

People	Someone	Anyone	Everyone	No one
Object	Something	Anything	Everything	Nothing
Places	Somewhere	Anywhere	Everywhere	Nowhere

 

We use indefinite pronoun to talk about a person, object or place, when the exact person, object or place is not important.

 

Some vs Any

We use some- for positive sentences, when we ask for or offer something, or when suggesting something.

Example:

• I want to put something on the desk.
• Can I have something to eat?
• He hide the wedding ring somewhere in the flat.
  

We use any- for negative sentences and most other sentences.

Example:

• I can’t find anything in the fridge.
• Are there anyone in the classroom?
  

Reciprocal pronoun

We use each other/ one another when the subject and object are different.

Example:

• Amy and Ben appreciate each other.
• We will be seeing each other next week.
• They are holding hands with one another.