Pronouns in English

Introduction

In English grammar, pronouns are essential because they make sentences shorter, clearer, and less repetitive. Imagine if we had to say:

“Ravi went to Ravi’s house, and Ravi took Ravi’s bag with Ravi.”

It sounds awkward, right? Instead, we can use pronouns:

“Ravi went to his house, and he took his bag with him.”

Here, the words his, he, and him are pronouns because they replace the noun “Ravi.” In this article, we will explore what pronouns are, their types, and how to use them correctly in sentences.

What is a Pronoun?

A pronoun is a word that replaces a noun in a sentence to avoid repetition.

Examples in Sentences:

She is my best friend. (instead of “Aisha is my best friend.”)
They are going to the park. (instead of “Ram and Shyam are going to the park.”)
It is a beautiful day. (instead of “The weather is beautiful today.”)

Pronouns make sentences more concise and natural.

Types of Pronouns

Pronouns are classified into different types based on their functions

Personal Pronouns

Personal pronouns refer to specific people or things and are used as the subject or object of a sentence.

Person	Subject Pronouns (Do the action)	Object Pronouns (Receive the action)
1st Person (Speaker)	I, We	Me, Us
2nd Person (Listener)	You	You
3rd Person (Others)	He, She, It, They	Him, Her, It, Them

Sentence Examples:

I love reading books. (Subject Pronoun)
She gave the book to me. (Object Pronoun)
They are coming to the party. (Subject Pronoun)
The teacher called us. (Object Pronoun)

Possessive Pronouns

Possessive pronouns show ownership or possession.

Person	Possessive Adjectives (Before a noun)	Possessive Pronouns (Replace a noun)
1st Person	My, Our	Mine, Ours
2nd Person	Your	Yours
3rd Person	His, Her, Its, Their	His, Hers, Theirs

Sentence examples:

This is my book. (Possessive Adjective)
This book is mine. (Possessive Pronoun)
That is their house. (Possessive Adjective)
That house is theirs. (Possessive Pronoun)

Common Mistake: Never use an apostrophe in “its” when showing possession.
Correct: The cat licked its paw.
Incorrect: The cat licked it’s paw. (It’s means it is, not possession.)

Reflexive Pronouns

Reflexive pronouns are used when the subject and the object are the same person. They end in -self (singular) or -selves (plural).

Person	Reflexive Pronoun
1st Person	Myself, Ourselves
2nd Person	Yourself, Yourselves
3rd Person	Himself, Herself, Itself, Themselves

Sentence examples:

I hurt myself while playing.
She taught herself to play the guitar.
We enjoyed ourselves at the party.

Common Mistake: Do not use reflexive pronouns unnecessarily.
Incorrect: Please contact myself if you need help.
Correct: Please contact me if you need help.

Demonstrative Pronouns

Demonstrative pronouns point to specific things. They help us indicate whether something is near or far.

Singular (One thing)	Plural (More than one)
This (near)	These (near)
That (far)	Those (far)

Sentence examples :

This is my pen. (Near)
That is a beautiful house. (Far)
These are my books. (Near)
Those are my friends. (Far)

Interrogative Pronouns

Interrogative pronouns are used to ask questions.

Interrogative Pronouns List:

Who – (Used for people, subject) → Who is your best friend?
Whom – (Used for people, object) → Whom did you meet yesterday?
What – (Used for things) → What is your favorite color
Which – (Used for choice) → Which dress do you like
Whose – (Shows possession) → Whose bag is this?

Common Mistake: Who vs. Whom
Correct: Who called you? (Subject)
Correct: To whom did you give the book? (Object)

Indefinite Pronouns

Indefinite pronouns refer to unspecified people or things.

Indefinite Pronouns List:

For People: Someone, Somebody, Anyone, Anybody, No one, Nobody, Everyone, Everybody
For Things: Something, Anything, Nothing, Everything

Sentence example:

Someone is knocking at the door.
Is there anything I can do to help
Everybody enjoyed the party.

Common Mistake:
Incorrect: Everybody are happy.
Correct: Everybody is happy. (Indefinite pronouns take singular verbs.)

Reciprocal Pronouns

Reciprocal pronouns are used when two or more people perform the same action toward each other. There are only two reciprocal pronouns:

Reciprocal Pronouns List:

Each other (Used for two people)
One another (Used for more than two people)

Sentence example:

Ravi and Ankit help each other with homework. (Two people)
The team members congratulated one another after winning the match. (More than two people)

Common Mistake:
Incorrect: They helped each other in the competition.
Correct: They helped one another in the competition. (If more than two people)

Summary

Type	Purpose	Examples
Personal Pronouns	Replace specific people or things	I, You, He, She, We, They, It
Possessive Pronouns	Show ownership	Mine, Yours, His, Hers, Ours, Theirs
Reflexive Pronouns	Refer back to the subject	Myself, Yourself, Ourselves
Demonstrative Pronouns	Point to things	This, That, These, Those
Interrogative Pronouns	Ask questions	Who, What, Which, Whom, Whose
Indefinite Pronouns	Refer to unspecified things or people	Someone, Anything, Everybody
Reciprocal Pronouns	Show mutual actions	Each other, One another

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