PRONOUNS

What is a Pronoun?

In grammar, a pronoun is defined as a word or phrase that may be substituted for a noun or noun phrase, which once replaced, is known as the pronoun’s antecedent. How is this possible? In a nutshell, it’s because pronouns can do everything that nouns can do. A pronoun can act as a subject, direct object, indirect object, object of the preposition, and more.

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

    Who

As mentioned, pronouns are usually used to replace nouns, however they can also stand in for certain adverbs, adjectives, and other pronouns. Anytime you want to talk about a person, animal, place or thing, you can use pronouns to make your speech or writing flow better.

Here are some examples:

    INSTEAD OF: Luma is a good athlete.

    She is a good athlete. (The pronoun she replaces Luma.)

    INSTEAD OF: The beans and tomatoes are fresh-picked.

    They are fresh-picked. (The pronoun they replaces the beans and tomatoes.)

Often a pronoun takes the place of a particular noun. This noun is known as the antecedent. A pronoun "refers to," or directs your thoughts toward, its antecedent.

    Let's call Luma and ask her to join the team. (Her is a pronoun; Luma is its antecedent.)

To find a pronoun's antecedent, ask yourself what that pronoun refers to. What does her refer to in the sentence above—that is, who is the her? The her in the sentence is Luma; therefore, Luma is the antecedent.

Types of Pronouns

Subjective Pronouns

Pronouns

A subjective pronoun acts as the subject of a sentence—it performs the action of the verb. The subjective pronouns are he, I, it, she, they, we, and you.

    He spends ages looking out the window.

    After lunch, she and I went to the planetarium.

Objective Pronouns

An objective pronoun acts as the object of a sentence—it receives the action of the verb. The objective pronouns are her, him, it, me, them, us, and you.

    Cousin Eldred gave me a trombone.

    Take a picture of him, not us!

Possessive Pronouns

A possessive pronoun tells you who owns something. The possessive pronouns are hers, his, its, mine, ours, theirs, and yours.

    The red basket is mine.

    Yours is on the coffee table.

Demonstrative Pronouns

A demonstrative pronoun points out a noun. The demonstrative pronouns are that, these, this, and those.

    That is a good idea.

    These are hilarious cartoons.

A demonstrative pronoun may look like a demonstrative adjective, but it is used differently in a sentence: it acts as a pronoun, taking the place of a noun.

Interrogative Pronouns

An interrogative pronoun is used in a question. It helps to ask about something. The interrogative pronouns are what, which, who, whom, and compound words ending in "ever," such as whatever, whichever, whoever, and whomever.

    What on earth is that?

    Who ate the last Fig Newton?

An interrogative pronoun may look like an interrogative adjective, but it is used differently in a sentence: it acts as a pronoun, taking the place of a noun.

Indefinite Pronouns

An indefinite pronoun refers to an indefinite, or general, person or thing. Indefinite pronouns include all, any, both, each, everyone, few, many, neither, none, nothing, several, some, and somebody.

    Something smells good.

    Many like salsa with their chips.

An indefinite pronoun may look like an indefinite adjective, but it is used differently in a sentence: it acts as a pronoun, taking the place of a noun.

Relative Pronouns

A relative pronoun introduces a clause, or part of a sentence, that describes a noun. The relative pronouns are that, which, who, and whom.

    You should bring the book that you love most.

That introduces "you love most," which describes the book.

    Hector is a photographer who does great work.

Who introduces "does great work," which describes Hector.

Reflexive Pronouns

A reflexive pronoun refers back to the subject of a sentence. The reflexive pronouns are herself, himself, itself, myself, ourselves, themselves, and yourselves. Each of these words can also act as an intensive pronoun (see below).

    I learned a lot about myself at summer camp. (Myself refers back to I.)

    They should divide the berries among themselves. (Themselves refers back to they.)

Intensive Pronouns

An intensive pronoun emphasizes its antecedent (the noun that comes before it). The intensive pronouns are herself, himself, itself, myself, ourselves, themselves, and yourselves. Each of these words can also act as a reflective pronoun (see above).

    I myself don't like eggs.

    The queen herself visited our class.

Pronoun Rules

There are a few important rules for using pronouns. As you read through these rules and the examples in the next section, notice how the pronoun rules are followed. Soon you’ll see that pronouns are easy to work with.

    Subject pronouns may be used to begin sentences. For example: We did a great job.

    Subject pronouns may also be used to rename the subject. For example: It was she who decided we should go to Hawaii.

    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.

    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.

    Possessive pronouns show ownership. They do not need apostrophes. For example: The cat washed its whiskers.

Examples of Pronouns

In the following examples, the pronouns are italicized.

    We are going on vacation.

    Don’t tell me that you can’t go with us.

    Anybody who says it won’t be fun has no clue what they are talking about.

    These are terribly steep stairs.

    We ran into each other at the mall.

    I’m not sure which is worse: rain or snow.

    It is one of the nicest Italian restaurants in town.

    Richard stared at himself in the mirror.

    The laundry isn’t going to do itself.

    Someone spilled orange juice all over the countertop!

Pronoun Exercises

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.
1. John
2. He
3. He john
4. Am
2. Greg is as smart as __________ is.
1. I
2. me
3. she
4. we
3. The dog chewed on __________ favorite toy.
1. it’s
2. it is
3. its’
4. its
4. It could have been __________ .
1. Jerry
2. anyone
3. better
4. more difficult
5. Terry is taller than __________ am.
1. I
2. me
3. she
4. we

Answers

1. B. This is he speaking.
2. C. Greg is as smart as she is.
3. D. The dog chewed on its favorite toy.
4. B. It could have been anyone.
5. A. Terry is taller than I am.