In grammar, a
pronoun is defined as a word or phrase that may be substituted for a noun
or noun phrase.
Without
pronouns, we’d have to keep on repeating nouns, and that would make our speech
and writing repetitive, not to mention cumbersome. Most pronouns are very short
words. Examples include:
§
He
§
She
§
They
§
It
§
We
TYPES OF PRONOUNS
Ø
Indefinite pronouns – those
referring to one or more unspecified objects, beings, or places
Ø
Personal pronouns – those
associated with a certain person, thing, or group; all except you have distinct
forms that indicate singular or plural number
Ø
Reflexive pronouns – those
preceded by the adverb, adjective, pronoun, or noun to which they refer, and
ending in –self or –selves
Ø
Demonstrative pronouns – those
used to point to something specific within a sentence
Ø
Possessive pronouns – those
designating possession or ownership
Ø
Relative pronouns – those which
refer to nouns mentioned previously, acting to introduce an adjective
(relative) clause
Ø
Interrogative pronouns – those
which introduce a question
Ø
Reciprocal pronouns – those
expressing mutual actions or relationship; i.e. one another
Ø
Intensive pronouns – those ending
in –self or –selves and that serve to emphasize their antecedents
PRONOUN RULES
Ø
Subject pronouns may be used to begin sentences.
For example: We did a great job.
Ø
Subject pronouns may also be used to rename the
subject. For example: It was she
who decided we should go to Hawaii.
Ø
Indefinite pronouns don’t have antecedents. They
are capable of standing on their own. For example: No one likes
the sound of fingernails on a chalkboard.
Ø
Object pronouns are used as direct objects,
indirect objects, and objects of prepositions. These include: you, me, him,
her, us, them, and it. For example: David talked to her about the mistake.
Ø
Possessive pronouns show ownership. They do not
need apostrophes. For example: The cat washed its whiskers.
More Examples
Ø
We are going on vacation.
Ø
Don’t tell me that you can’t go with us.
Ø
Anybody who says it won’t be fun has no clue what
they are talking about.
Ø
These are terribly steep stairs.
Ø
We ran into each other at the mall.
Exercise
Ø
I’m not sure which is worse: rain or snow.
Ø
It is one of the nicest Italian restaurants in
town.
Ø
Richard stared at himself in the mirror.
Ø
The laundry isn’t going to do itself.
Ø
Someone spilled orange juice all over the
countertop!
The following exercises will help
you gain greater understanding about how pronouns work. Choose the best answer
to complete each sentence.
1. This is __________ speaking.
a. John
b. He
c. He
john
d. Am
2. Greg is as smart as __________
is.
a. I
b. me
c. she
d. we
3. The dog chewed on __________
favorite toy.
a. it’s
b. it
is
c. its’
d. its
DEMONSTRATIVE PRONOUNS
A demonstrative pronoun is a
pronoun that is used to point to something specific within a sentence. These
pronouns can indicate items in space or time, and they can be either singular
or plural.
When used to represent a thing or
things, demonstrative pronouns can be either near or far in distance or time:
Ø
Near in time or distance: this, these
Ø
Far in time or distance: that, those
RULES IN USING DEMONSTRATIVE PRONOUNS
Ø
Demonstrative pronouns always identify nouns,
whether those nouns are named specifically or not.
Ø
For example: “I can’t believe this.” We have no
idea what “this” is, but it’s definitely something the writer cannot believe.
It exists, even though we don’t know what it is.
Ø
Demonstrative pronouns are usually used to
describe animals, places, or things, however they can be used to describe
people when the person is identified.
Example:This sounds like Mary singing.
Examples
Ø
This was my mother’s ring.
Ø
That looks like the car I used to drive.
Ø
These are nice shoes, but they look
uncomfortable.
Ø
Those look like riper than the apples on
my tree.
Ø
Such was her command over the English
language.
Ø
None of these answers are correct.
Ø
Neither of the horses can be ridden.
Exercises
1. ____________
was such an interesting experience.
That
These
Those
Such
2. Are ___________ your shoes?
That
Them
Those
This
3. You’ll have to get your own pen. ______________ is mine.
That
Those
Such
This
4. Because
of their bad behavior, ____________ of the children were given allowances.
None
That
Those
Them
RELATIVE PRONOUNS
A relative pronoun is one which is used to refer to nouns mentioned previously, whether they are people, places, things, animals, or ideas. Relative pronouns can be used to join two sentences.
There are only a few relative pronouns in the English language. The most
common are which, that, whose, whoever, whomever, who, and whom.
In some situations, the words what, when, and where can also
function as relative pronouns.
EXAMPLES
Ø
The cyclist who won the race trained hard.
Ø
The pants that I bought yesterday are already
stained.
Ø
The four team leaders, whomever the committee
selects, will be at tomorrow’s meeting.
Ø
Spaghetti, which we eat at least twice a week,
is one of my family’s favorite meals.
Ø
Where did you buy the dress that you wore last
week?
EXERCISES
1. The
festival, ______________ lasted all day, ended
with a banquet.
That
Who
Which
What
2. I
am looking for someone __________ can watch my dog while I go on vacation.
Which
Who
Whom
Whoever
3. The police needed details _____________ could help identify the robber.
Who
Whatever
That
What
4. I’d
like to take you to a café _______________ serves excellent coffee.
What
Whatever
Which
Whichever
REFLEXIVE PRONOUNS
A reflexive pronoun is a type of pronoun that is preceded by the adverb, adjective, pronoun, or noun to which it refers, so long as that antecedent is located within the same clause.
Examples
Ø
I was in a hurry, so I washed the car myself.
Ø
You’re going to have to drive yourself to school
today.
Ø
He wanted to impress her, so he baked a cake
himself.
Ø
Jennifer does chores herself because she doesn’t
trust others to do them right.
Ø
That car is in a class all by itself.
1. Each
morning, I brush my teeth and stare at ______________ in the mirror.
Himself
Herself
Myself
Itself
2.
Dad and I painted the trailer _______________.
Myself
Himself
Itself
Ourselves
3. Dad and I painted the trailer _______________.
Myself
Himself
Itself
Ourselves
4. Paul copies his friend’s homework instead of doing it _______________.
Itself
Himself
Myself
Yourself
POSSESSIVE PRONOUNS
A
possessive pronoun is used to avoid repeating information that has already been
made clear. These useful pronouns make sentences less confusing,
as you’ll see when you read the following sentences containing examples of
possessive pronouns
EXAMPLES
Ø This
is my cat, not your cat. (Sounds repetitive)
Ø This
cat is mine, not yours.
Ø I
didn’t have my book so Jenny lent me her book. (Sounds
repetitive)
Ø I
didn’t have my book, so Jenny lent me hers.
Ø Your
car is a lot faster than my car. (Sounds repetitive)
Ø Your
car is a lot faster than mine.
EXERCISES
1. The
mother cat and __________ kittens napped in the sunshine.
His
Your
Hers
Her
2.
I like cream cheese on _________ bagels.
My
Mine
Your
Our
3.
________ grandfather used to take us fishing.
Mine
My
Our
Ours
4.
Elaine bought ________ dress at the mall.
Yours
Mine
Her
Hers
PERSONAL PRONOUNS
(SUBJECT PRONOUNS AND OBJECT
PROUNOUNS)
A personal pronoun is a
pronoun that is associated primarily with a particular person, in the
grammatical sense.
When discussing “person” in
terms of the grammatical, the following rules apply:
§ First
person, as in “I”
§ Second
person, as in “you”
§ Third
person, as in “It, he, she”
|
PERSONAL
PRONOUNS |
||||
|
PERSON |
SINGULAR |
PLURAL |
||
|
|
Subject |
Object |
Subject |
Object |
|
First |
I |
Me |
We |
Us |
|
Second |
You |
You |
You |
You |
|
Third |
He She It |
Him Her It |
They |
Them |
In the following examples,
personal pronouns are italicized.
Ø You
need to stop lying to me.
Ø We
would love for you to join us.
Ø Come
look at my cat! He has climbed to the top of that tree.
1.
__________ often reads until late at night.
He
Alan
Mary
They
2.
__________ is running up and down the stairs.
The cat
She
My brother
You
3.
We enjoy the roses so much. __________ really
liven up the garden.
They
Its
Someone
Flowers
4.
Melissa isn’t an architect; __________ is an
engineer.
He
They
It
She
OBJECT PRONOUNS
An object pronoun is a type of personal pronoun that is normally used as a grammatical object, either as the direct or indirect object of a verb, or as the object of a preposition. These pronouns always take the objective case, whether they are indirect object pronouns or direct object pronouns.
The seven
basic pronouns take on different forms when used as object pronouns rather than
as subject pronouns:
Ø I
becomes Me
Ø You
becomes You (this rule applies for singular and plural use)
Ø He
becomes Him
Ø She
becomes Her
Ø It
becomes It
Ø We
becomes Us
Ø They
becomes Them
Examples
Bob took
her to work Monday.
Will you
please tell them to come in?
He told you
a lie about where he was Saturday.
Our grandparents
gave us candy and our teeth are just fine.
Exercise
1. Mary wants to talk to __________ about your homework.
Him
Her
You
Them
2. The plate shattered when John dropped __________ on the floor.
Him
Her
Them
It
3. Be careful; he lied to __________ before and he may do it again.
Us
It
We
They
4. Where are Jill and Cherie? Didn’t you invite __________?
Us
Them
They
Her
SUBJECT PRONOUNS
What is a
Subject Pronoun?
A subject pronoun
is exactly what it sounds like: a pronoun that takes the place of a noun
as the subject of a sentence. Remember, a sentence’s subject is the person or
thing that performs the action of a verb. When you take an even closer look,
you’ll see that a subject pronoun is used as the subject of a
verb, while an object pronoun is usually used as a grammatical
object.
EXAMPLES
Ø We
gave them a head start in the race.
Ø You
told Jerry that his score was among the best; that made him feel better.
Ø She
lost weight by cutting out junk food.
Ø They
drank water from a spring that ran right out of the mountainside.
EXERCISES
1. __________
kicked the ball so hard that his shoe came off.
She
They
He
It
2. __________ prefer hiking to movies.
She
He
We
It
3. You can have ice cream after __________ finish your dinner.
We
You
It
She
INDEFINITE PRONOUNS
Indefinite
pronouns are those referring to one or more unspecified objects, beings, or
places. They are called “indefinite” simply because they do not indicate the
exact object, being, or place to which they refer.
EXAMPLES
Ø Many
are called, but few are chosen.
Ø Somebody
ate my sandwich!
Ø Everyone
says she is beautiful inside and out.
Ø No
one wants to hear about my health problems.
Ø Either
choice has its advantages.
EXERCISES
1. __________________ is making my computer act up.
Anyone
Something
Each
Everyone
2. Does _______________ know what’s happening tonight?
Anybody
Anyone
Someone
A, B, and C
3. ____________ happens for a reason.
Anybody
Everything
Some
Somebody
RECIPROCAL PRONOUNS
A reciprocal
pronoun is a pronoun which is used to indicate that two or more
people are carrying out or have carried out an action of some type, with both
receiving the benefits or consequences of that action simultaneously. Any time
something is done or given in return, reciprocal pronouns are used. The same is
true any time mutual action is expressed.
There are only
two reciprocal pronouns. Both of them allow you to make sentences simpler. They
are especially useful when you need to express the same general idea more than
once.
Ø
Each other
Ø
One another
EXAMPLES
Ø
Maria and Juan gave each other gold rings on
their wedding day.
Ø
The students congratulated one another after
giving practice speeches.
There are only two reciprocal
pronouns. Both of them allow you to make sentences simpler. They are especially
useful when you need to express the same general idea more than once.
Ø
Each other
Ø
One another
EXAMPLES
Ø
Maria and Juan gave each other gold rings on
their wedding day.
Ø
The students congratulated one another after
giving practice speeches.
INTENSIVE PRONOUN
An intensive
pronoun is almost identical to a reflexive pronoun. It is defined
as a pronoun that ends in self or selves and places emphasis on
its antecedent by referring back to another noun or pronoun used earlier in the
sentence. For this reason, intensive pronouns are sometimes called emphatic
pronouns.
REFLEXIVE VS INTENSIVE
You can tell the difference between a reflexive pronoun and an intensive pronoun easily: Intensive pronouns aren’t essential to a sentence’s basic meaning
EXAMPLE
REFLEXIVE
Jim made himself coffee.
Without the
reflexive pronoun himself, it would be impossible for the reader to know who
Jim made coffee for.
INTENSIVE
Jim made coffee for the king
himself.
Here, himself refers to the king rather than to Jim. The reader is meant to be impressed that Jim made coffee for the king.
Ø
Jesse wondered aloud whether he himself was the
only one seeing what was happening.
Ø
Maria knew that she herself could make a
positive impact on the world, if only she put her mind to it.
Ø
You yourself can easily transform your body: All
it takes is a proper diet and plenty of exercise.
EXERCISES
1. We
built a garden shed by ______________.
Ø
Myself
Ø
Ourselves
Ø
Themselves
Ø
Himself
2. I’m
a little nervous about walking by _____________ after dark.
Ø
Myself
Ø
Ourselves
Ø
Themselves
Ø
Herself
3. The
twins are growing up fast; they’re already walking by _____________.
Ø
Myself
Ø
Ourselves
Ø
Himself
Ø
Themselves