Pronouns

Pronouns

Pronouns are words that are used in place of nouns. Pronouns are used to avoid repetition or to discuss things that are not clearly defined.  When a pronoun refers to a noun that comes before it, that noun is considered the pronoun’s antecedent. Pronouns can either be direct pronouns, which have antecedents, or indirect pronouns, which do not have antecedents.

Here is an example of a direct pronoun.

• Example: James went to the store. James bought James’s favorite snacks.
• Example: James went to the store. He bought his favorite snacks.

Here is an example of an indirect pronoun:

• Example: Who wants to go to the party?

In the above example, there is no antecedent—the word Who does not refer to any noun in the sentence.

In this section, we will examine different types of pronouns.

Personal pronouns

Personal pronouns are used to refer to a noun (a person, place, thing, or idea). Three factors determine which personal pronoun should be used in a sentence: case, point of view, and whether the noun is singular or plural.

Case

Case refers to whether the pronoun is possessive and whether the pronoun is the sentence’s subject or one of its objects.

• Subject: The boy chased the father. He chased the father.
• Object: The boy chased the father. The boy chased him.
• Possessive: The boy is the father’s son. The boy is his son.

Point of view

Point of view refers to whether the pronoun is in first person, second person, or third person perspective.

• First person: I go to the store.
• Second person: You go to the store.
• Third person: He goes to the store. She goes to the store. They go to the store. It goes to the store.

Singular and plural forms

Singular pronouns refer to a single person, place, thing, or idea. Plural pronouns refer to multiple people, places, things, or ideas.

• Singular: Jack goes to the mall. He goes to the mall.
• Plural: Jack and I go to the mall. We go to the mall.

Reflexive and intensive pronouns

Reflexive pronouns

A reflexive pronoun is used when the object or complement in a sentence refers to the same noun that is in the subject. Use a reflexive pronoun when a noun is doing something to itself.

• Example: I looked in the mirror and examined myself.
• Example: Jack is teaching himself piano.

Intensive pronouns

An intensive pronoun is used immediately after a noun or pronoun for the purpose of emphasis. Reflexive and intensive pronouns use the same word form.

• Example: The Black Knight was none other than King Arthur himself.
• Example: Hemingway himself once sat at that very café table overlooking the sea.
• Example: She herself could not care less either way.

Personal pronoun

Singular Personal Pronoun Table

Tense	Subject	Object	Possessive	Reflexive/ Intensive
First person	I	me	my, mine	myself
Second person	you	you	you, yours	yourself
Third person	he, she, they, it	him, her, them, it	his, her, hers, their, theirs, its	himself, herself, themself, themselves

 

Plural Personal Prounoun Table

Tense	Subject	Object	Possessive	Reflexive/ Intensive
First person	we	us	our, ours	ourselves
Second person	you	you	your, yours	yourselves
Third person	they	them	their, theirs	themselves

 

Singular they

They can be used as either a singular or plural pronoun. The singular they should be treated as plural for the purposes of verb forms.

• Example: Sam has a pet cat. They have a pet cat.

The singular they takes the reflexive form of themselves. 

• Example: The student who caused this mess better clean up after themselves.

Nonbinary pronouns and neopronouns

Individuals who are nonbinary may use the singular they as a personal pronoun in place of she/her/hers or he/him/his. If a nonbinary individual uses they as a personal pronoun, the reflexive form themself may be used instead of themselves when referring to the nonbinary individual.

• Example: Sam treated themself to ice cream.
• Example: They treated themself to ice cream.

Neopronouns are personal pronouns that are used by some nonbinary individuals. Examples of neopronouns include zie/zir/zirs, sie/hir/hirs, and e/em/eir, among others. When referring to an individual who uses neopronouns, consult the source from which you are referring for guidance on which pronouns to use. You may choose to mention the individual’s preferred pronouns when introducing that individual within your text for the first time.

• Example: Maia Kobabe (who uses e/em/eir pronouns) is a nonbinary cartoonist. Eir graphic memoir, Gender Queer, has been frequently challenged and banned in United States schools.

Reciprocal pronouns

A reciprocal pronoun is used when multiple people, places, things, or ideas are engaged in an exchange with one another. A reciprocal pronoun is used when nouns are doing something among themselves.

Here is a list of reciprocal pronouns:

• each other
• one another

Use each other or one another when one plural noun is involved in an exchange.

• Example: The girls did each other’s braids.
• Example: The bitter enemies fought one another to the death.

Use each other or one another when multiple nouns are involved in an exchange.

• Example: Robin and Claire shared baking tips with one another.
• Example: The tenant, the landlady, and the real estate company were all angry at each other.

Each other and one another may be used interchangeably.

Indefinite pronouns

An indefinite pronoun is used to talk about something that is not clearly defined. Some indefinite pronouns are singular and some are plural. There are also indefinite pronouns that may be singular or plural depending on context.

There are too many indefinite pronouns to list in this guide. Here are some common ones:

• One
• All
• None
• Some
• Every
• Few
• Several
• Many
• More
• Most
• Nothing
• Nowhere
• Everywhere
• Either
• Neither

Some indefinite pronouns are singular:

• Example: One can never be too careful these days.
• Example: Nothing is set in stone.

Some indefinite pronouns are plural:

• Example: Few are more dedicated than Jamie.
• Example: Several attend the festival each year.

Some indefinite pronouns may be used in either singular or plural form, depending on context:

• Example: All are accounted for.
• Example: All is well.

Interrogative pronouns

Interrogative pronouns ask questions about a noun. Unlike personal pronouns, these pronouns do not have noun antecedents.

Listed below are the five (5) interrogative pronouns:

• who
• whom
• whose
• what
• which

The interrogative pronouns who and whom are only used to refer to people.

Use who as the subject form in a sentence.

• Example: Sally threw the ball to Jack.
• Example: Who threw the ball to Jack?

Use whom as the object form in a sentence.

• Example: Sally threw the ball to Jack.
• Example: Sally threw the ball to whom?

Use whose as the possessive form in a sentence.

• Example: Sally threw Nadine’s ball to Jack.
• Example: Sally threw whose ball to Jack?

Use what as either the subject or object form in a sentence.

• Example: The monkey threw the ball.
• Example: What threw the ball?
• Example: The monkey threw what?

Use which as either the subject or object form in a sentence.

• Example: Which is the better model?
• Example: Which did Jackie pick?

Relative pronouns

Relative pronouns connect the main clause of a sentence with a relative clause that modifies it. Relative pronouns are usually direct pronouns and have a noun antecedent in the sentence’s subject.

Here is a list of relative pronouns:

• who
• whom
• whose
• that
• which

Use who when the noun antecedent is in the sentence’s subject. Use who to refer only to people.

• Example: My brother took all the blame for the broken window.
• Example: It was my brother who took all the blame for the broken window.

Use whom when the noun antecedent is one of the sentence’s objects. Use whom to refer only to people.

• Example: Claire wrote a fan letter to Billie Eilish.
• Example: It was Billie Eilish to whom Claire wrote a fan letter.
• Example: The committee revealed the chess grandmaster to be a cheater.
• Example: The chess grandmaster, whom the committee revealed to be a cheater, was banned for life.

Use whose when the relative clause indicates possession. Use whose to refer to people, places, things, or ideas.

• Example: The boy’s lunch money was stolen by a bully.
• Example: The boy, whose lunch money was stolen by a bully, has been crying all day.
• Example: She couldn’t remember the musical’s name.
• Example: She asked me if I knew about the musical whose name she couldn’t remember.

Use that when the relative clause is restrictive (also known as defining) and contains necessary information about the noun antecedent. Use that to refer to people, places, things, or ideas.

• Example: He drank from the cup.
• Example: He drank from the cup that wasn’t poisoned.

In the above examples, the restrictive relative clause that wasn’t poisoned is necessary information for the meaning of the sentence. He drank from the cup may function as a complete sentence, but the meaning is fundamentally changed without the relative clause that wasn’t poisoned.

Use which when the relative clause is non-restrictive (also known as non-defining) and does not contain necessary information about the noun antecedent. Use which to refer to places, things, or ideas, but not people.

• Example: The snake bit him in the ankle.
• Example: The snake, which had very colorful scales, bit him in the ankle.

In the above examples, the non-restrictive relative clause which had very colorful scales is not necessary information for the meaning of the sentence. Excluding which had very colorful scales does not fundamentally change the meaning of the sentence, as shown in the second example.

Demonstrative pronouns

Demonstrative pronouns are used instead of a noun when conveying specificity or location. Demonstrative pronouns may be singular or plural and may point to something close or something far.

Here is a list of demonstrative pronouns:

• This
• These
• That
• Those

Use this to convey closeness for a singular noun.

• Example: The kitten in my arms is my kitten.
• Example: This is my kitten.

Use these to convey closeness for a plural noun.

• Example: The kittens in my arms are my kittens.
• Example: These are my kittens.

Use that to convey distance for a singular noun.

• Example: The kitten you are holding is my kitten.
• Example: That is my kitten you are holding.

Use those to convey distance for a plural form.

• Example: The kittens you are holding are my kittens.
• Example: Those are my kittens you are holding.

Expletive pronouns

Expletive pronouns are vague indirect pronouns that are used in a subject or clause instead of a regular noun. Expletive pronouns fill the grammatical role of a noun while providing no extra meaning. Expletive pronouns are often used when describing the weather.

Here is a list of expletive pronouns:

• It
• There

Use it or there instead of a noun in a sentence’s subject:

• Example: It is raining.
• Example: There is a thunderstorm.

Use it or there instead of a noun in a sentence’s clause:

• Example: Julie studied because it was the only way to become a better artist.
• Example: Gollum knew there was no possible answer to Bilbo’s riddle.

Difficulties with pronouns

In this section, we will examine some of the common issues writers have with pronoun usage and explain how to avoid making errors.

I or me

The word I is used in a sentence’s subject. The word me is used in a sentence’s object. This remains true even in compound structures.

• Example: Aiden and I gave the present to Julie.
• Example: Julie gave the present to Aiden and me.

If you are unsure if you should use I or me because of a compound structure, try removing that compound structure to determine which form to use.

• Example: Aiden and I gave the present to Julie.
• Example: I gave the present to Julie.
• Example: Julie gave the present to Aiden and me.
• Example: Julie gave the present to me.

I or me for comparisons

The phrases than I and than me are both grammatically correct. The word than can be used as a conjunction for subjects or as a preposition for objects.

• Example: Cynthia is faster than I.
• Example: Cynthia is faster than I am.

In the above examples, the word than is being used as a conjunction, so the use of the subject-form I is acceptable. Note that the sentence Cynthia is faster than I omits the implied word am.

• Example: Cynthia is faster than me.

In the above example, Cynthia is the subject of the sentence and me is the object of the sentence.

Who or whom

The word who is used in a sentence’s subject. The word whom is used in a sentence’s object. If you are unsure if you should use who or whom, try rephrasing the sentence so the subject and object of the sentence are easier to identify.

• Example: Who caught the ball?
• Example: Julie caught the ball.

In the above example, Julie is the subject of the sentence, so the word who should be used.

• Example: To whom did you send the email?
• Example: You sent the email to Alex.

In the above example, Alex is the indirect object of the sentence, so the word whom should be used.

• Example: Whom did I help?
• Example: I helped Nathan.

In the above example, Nathan is the direct object of the sentence, so the word whom should be used.

In informal speech and writing, the word who is more frequently used than whom, even as a sentence’s object. However, in academic and formal writing, use who for subjects and whom for objects.