What is a pronoun?
Pronouns are the words we substitute for nouns.
Examples: They, I ,You, Who, Themselves,…..
“I have a dog. He’s brown and white.” There’s no need to clarify that you’re describing your dog in the second sentence because you already mentioned him in the first.
Personal pronouns:
Personal pronouns are pronouns that refer to specific individuals and groups.
Antecedents:
In order to use a pronoun, we need to introduce the noun first. That noun has a name: an antecedent. Antecedents are necessary because pronouns are versatile. Think about it—“it” can refer to a bike, a tree, a car, or a city. However, Antecedents aren’t necessary when the reader/listener knows who or what you’re discussing. Generally, you don’t need an antecedent for pronouns likeI, you, we, our, and me.
Example:The sign was too far away for Jorge to read it.
Relative Pronouns:
Relative Pronouns connect relative clauses to independent clauses. Often, they introduce additional information about something mentioned in the sentence.
Example: All the dogs that got adopted today will be loved.
Who vs. whom—subject and object pronouns:
Who is for the subject of a sentence, and whom is for the object of a verb or preposition. Who is a subject pronoun. It’s in the same category as I, he, she, they, and we. Whom is an object pronoun, which puts it in the same category as me, him, her, them and us.
Here’s a quick example: Who mailed this package?
To whom was this package sent?
Demonstrative pronouns:
Demonstrative Pronouns take the place of a noun or noun phrase that has already been mentioned or is clear through context, either in written or verbal communication.
This is used for singular items that are nearby. These is used for multiple items that are nearby. That is used for singular items that are far away. Those is used for multiple items that are far away.
Example: What a fantastic idea! This is the best thing I’ve heard all day.
A house like that would be a nice place to live.
Indefinite Pronouns:
Indefinite pronouns are used when you need to refer to a person or thing that doesn’t need to be specifically identified. When indefinite pronouns function as subjects of a sentence or clause, they usually take singular verbs.
Example: Nobody knows the trouble I’ve seen.
Reflexive pronouns:
Use a reflexive pronoun when both the subject and object of a verb refer to the same person or thing. Reflexive pronouns end in-selfor-selves: Using myself when you mean me is a common mistake. Reflexive pronouns are only correct when the subject and object of a sentence are the same.
Example: Take care of yourselves.
Intensive pronouns:
Intensive pronouns look the same as reflexive pronouns, but their purpose is different. Intensive pronouns add emphasis.
Example: I told them I could do it myself.
If you can remove a pronoun from a sentence and it loses emphasis but its meaning stays the same, it’s most likely an intensive pronoun. Compare these two sentences:
I built this house.
I built this house myself.
Possessive pronouns:
Possessive pronouns are pronouns that show possession. These can also be called possessive adjectives if they modify a noun in a sentence. Take a look at these examples of possessive adjectives in action:
I crashed my bike into a telephone pole.
Your house is always decorated so nicely.
When you use an independent possessive pronoun, you drop the noun it’s referring to. Here are a few examples:
She forgot her jacket, so I gave her mine. I had no idea whose bid won the auction, then my cousins told me theirs did.
Interrogative pronouns:
Interrogative pronouns are used in questions. The interrogative pronouns are who, what, which, and whose.
Example: Who wants a bag of jelly beans?
Reciprocal pronouns:
These pronouns refer to two or more people who are both the subject of the sentence. Each other is used for two subjects, whereas One another is used for more than two subjects.
Example:
Xavier and Peter, the two top salespeople on our team, are competing with each other for Salesperson of the Year.
All my siblings are blaming one another for letting the boa constrictor out last Thanksgiving.
Distributive pronouns:
Distributive pronouns refer to people, animals, and objects as individuals within larger groups. They enable you to single out individuals while acknowledging that they’re part of a larger group.
Example:
All of my friends entered the costume contest and none of them won.
Cookies and muffins are available for dessert. Neither is appealing to me.
Tabular Form
| Type | Pronouns in this category | Example sentences |
| Personal | I/me, they/them, he/him, she/her, it, we/us, you | I brought all the snacks.We weren’t planning on staying over. |
| Relative | That, what, which, who, whom | My car, which is twenty years old, doesn’t connect to Bluetooth.The professor who ran the meeting ended it promptly |
| Demonstrative | That, this, these, those | I ordered Hawaiian pizza. I like that a lot.You’ve seen clear quartz and smoky quartz, but have you seen these stones? |
| Indefinite | One, other, some, none, everybody, anybody, no one, nobody, both | We need cashiers up front. Anybody who’s available, please report to the front end.“Why can’t we fix this?” I asked nobody in particular. |
| Reflexive | Myself, yourself/yourselves, themself/themselves, herself, himself, oneself, itself, ourselves | The car began to swerve, then corrected itself.He made himself a sandwich. |
| Intensive | Myself, yourself/yourselves, themself/themselves, herself, himself, oneself, itself, ourselves | You did all of this yourself?She did the entire group project by herself. |
| Possessive | My, your, his, her, their, our, its, whose | We’re lounging out by our pool.His car is green. |
| Interrogative | Who, what, which, whose | Whose bike is this?What is the answer? |
| Reciprocal | Each other, one another | We ran into each other on the subway.They’ve been fighting with one another for decades. |
| Distributive | Either, each, neither, any, none | Peanut butter or chocolate? I’m good with either. There were four cats, and none had long hair. |
