What are Personal Pronouns
A pronoun is a word that takes the place of a noun. Personal pronouns represent specific people or things. They are the most common types of pronouns. A personal pronoun takes various forms according to number, person, case and natural gender. There are two Numbers (singular and plural), three Persons (first, second, third) and two Cases (subjective and objective) in English. Therefore, the personal pronouns take various forms depending on these grammatical differences.
The table below will help you to identify different pronouns according to their grammatical number, person, case and natural gender.
|
Person, Number, and Gender |
Subjective Case |
Object Case |
|
First Person Singular |
I |
me |
|
Second Person Singular |
You |
you |
|
Third Person Singular Masculine |
He |
him |
|
Third Person Singular Feminine |
She |
her |
|
Third Person Singular Neutral |
It |
it |
|
First Person Plural |
We |
us |
|
Second Person Plural |
You |
you |
|
Third Person Plural |
They |
them |
Subjective Personal Pronouns
Subjective personal pronouns are the pronouns that act as the subject of a verb. Subjective personal pronouns include I, you, she, he, it, we, you, and they. They can replace the subject of a sentence.
Mary went to the bazaar. She went to the bazaar.
The mother and children were killed in an accident. They were killed in an accident.
This is my brother Jack. He lives in Delhi.
Objective Personal Pronouns
Subjective personal pronouns are the pronouns that act as the object of a verb. They can also replace the object of a verb. Objective personal pronouns include me, you, him, her, it, us, you and them.
Macbeth killed King Duncan. Macbeth killed him.
We have heard of your grandmother. We have heard of her.
I gave it to my mother. You can get if from her.
Examples of Personal Pronouns
Here are some examples of personal pronouns. The personal pronoun is underlined.
The Mad King ruled the country for a long time because nobody dared to go against him.
I gave them the letter, but they refused to accept it.
She was told that there was no cure for his disease.
Can you please help me?
We bought this computer just last week, but it doesn’t work.
These roses are so pretty; they liven up the garden.
She blamed herself for the accident.
The teacher entered the classroom; the students did not see her.
Did you clean your room?
He didn’t hear the sound of water.
Personal Pronouns – Summary
- Personal pronouns are the pronouns that replace the subjects and objects in a sentence.
- Personal pronouns are of two groups: subjective personal pronouns and objective personal pronouns.
- Subjective personal pronouns include I, you, she, he, it, we, you, and they.
- Objective personal pronouns include me, you, him, her, it, us, you and them.
