What are subject pronouns?
A subject pronoun, also called subjective or subject personal pronoun, is used as substitute for proper and common nouns.
Examples John is a doctor - He is a doctor The laptop is on the desk - It is on the desk A subject pronoun is used when the pronoun is the subject of the sentence. Example ______ did the job. I, you, he, she, it, we, and they all fit into the blank and are, therefore, subject pronouns. A subject pronoun indicates: number: singular or plural, gender: male or female, person: first, second or third person.
Examples
I (first person singular) you (second person singular) She (third person singular female) He (third person singular male) It (third person singular inanimate ) We (first person plural) You (second person plural) They (third person plural) The words "I, you, he, she, it, we, you, they" are subject pronouns. They refer to a person or thing in speech or in writing.
What are object pronouns?
An object pronoun, also called objective pronoun, functions as the object of a verb or preposition, as distinguished from a subject or subjective pronoun, which is the subject of a verb. Examples: He begged her to live with him. (her is the object of the verb begged and him is the object of the preposition with) She told them the truth. (them is the object of the verb told) Object pronouns are used instead of object nouns, usually because we already know what the object is. She's my friend. I really enjoy being with her. I like this film. I saw it last week. Object Pronouns Object pronouns in English are the following: me, you, him, her, it, us, them Object pronouns come after either a verb (e.g "like") or a preposition (e.g "to"). Examples: I like you but you don't like me. Do you really hate her? She loves sitting next to him. She always writes e-mails to us.
What are possessive adjectives?
Possessive adjectives - my, your, his, her, its, our, your, their - modify the noun following it in order to show possession. Examples: I'll get my bag. Is this your luggage?
Possessive adjectives are often confused with possessive pronouns. Examples: Your bike is blue. (your is an adjective which modifies bike) Mine is yellow. (mine is a pronoun which functions as the subject of the verb is)
Subject Pronouns
I
you
he
she
it
we
you
they
Possessive Adjectives
my
your
his
her
its
our
your
their
Examples •Why didn't you clean your room? (your modifies the noun room) •Mary doesn't like her dress. (her modifies the noun dress) •The chameleon can change its color. (its modifies the noun color)
Things to remember:
1. Possessive adjectives are different from possesive pronouns. This is your (possessive adjective) book and this is mine (possessive pronoun). 2. its, their are possessive adjectives. Its color is beautiful. Their car is in their garage. 3. it's, they're and there are not possessive adjectives — its is a contraction of it is or it has; they're is a contraction of they are; there is an adverb of place. It's not my book = It is not my book. My house is big. It's got five bedrooms = It has got five bedrooms. Nancy and Alan are from New York. They're my friends = They are my friends. Please, put the chair there. (adverb)
What are reflexive pronouns?
Reflexive pronouns are used when the object is the same as the subject. For example, in the sentence "he hurt himself", he and himself refer to the same person.
Reflexive pronouns are also used for emphasis. In this case, they are referred to as intensive pronouns. For example, in the sentence "I spoke to the president himself", the speaker emphasizes that he spoke to the president personally NOT somebody else.
"I always do my homework myself. Nobody helps me."
"He never does his homework himself. The teacher always helps him."
In the above examples, the reflexive/intensive pronouns can be removed without changing the meaning.
List of reflexive pronouns
Subject Pronouns
Reflexive Pronouns
I
myself
you
yourself
he
himself
she
herself
it
itself
we
ourselves
you
yourselves
they
themselves
ď ˝
Grammar Exercises. Use the correct personal pronoun.
1. ____ often reads books. (Leila) 2. ____ is watching TV. (Alan) 3. ____ is green. (the dress) 4. ____ are on the wall. (the pictures) 5. ____ is running. (the cat) 6. ____ are watching TV. (my sister and I) 7. ____ are in the garden. (the roses) 8. ____ is driving his car. (John) 9. ____ is from Bristol. (Liza) 10. ____has got a brother. (Diana) 11. ____Have got a car, Sue?
Grammar Exercise - Object Pronouns. Choose the right pronoun
1. "Is he marrying Leila?" "Yes, he is in love with _____!“ (him, her, his)
2. "Your son is making a lot of noise!" "I'll ask ______to be quiet.“ (it, its, him) 3. "Please will you ask Robert to come in." "Sorry, I don't know _______.“ (him, she, her, it) 4. "Do you like apples?" "I love _______ !“ (her, them, it) 5. "Why is he always talking about Liza?" "He obviously likes _______ !“ (her, him, she) 6. "Where is my book? Oh, dear! I've lost _____!“ (his, it, its, him) 7. "Is that Nancy's new boyfriend?" "Don't ask me, ask______!“ (her, his, it) 8. "What is the title of that article?" "I'm afraid I can't remember_______ .“ (him, it, them)
9. "Look at John! He seems so happy?" "His friends offered ______a guitar for his birthday!“ (him, it, them) 10. "What are you going to do with those old papers?" "I'm going to recycle _________.“ (them, their, they)
ď ˝
Grammar Exercise - Choose the right answer (possessive adjective or possessive pronoun):
1. Jane has already eaten her lunch , but I'm saving______ until later. (hers, her, mine, my) 2. She has broken __________leg. (hers, her, his) 3. My mobile needs to be fixed, but _______is working. (mine, his, our, their)
4. ______computer is a Mac, but is a PC. (you, yours, mine, my) 5. We gave them_______ telephone number, and they gave us_______. (our, mine, ours, yours) (their, theirs, ours, mine)
6. ______pencil is broken. Can I borrow __________? (mine, my, yours, you) (you, yours, him, its) 7. _______car is cheap, ____________but is expensive. (ours, our, your, my) (you, your, yours, my) 8. You can't have any chocolate! It's all_____________________! (mine, my, our, your)
Grammar Exercise - Choose the correct reflexive pronouns: (myself, yourself, herself, himself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, themselves) 1. Alan made this dish __________. (myself, yourself, herself, himself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, themselves) 2. Laura sent the email__________. (myself, yourself, herself, himself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, themselves) 3. We shall not quarrel easily among __________ , and forget our common objective. (myself, yourself, herself, himself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, themselves)
4. Sara, did you write this poem_________? (myself, yourself, herself, himself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, themselves) 5. Yes, I called her _________. (myself, yourself, herself, himself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, themselves) 6. He cut ________ with the knife while he was sharpening it. (myself, yourself, herself, himself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, themselves)
7. My computer often crashes and turns off by __________. (myself, yourself, herself, himself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, themselves)
8. She often talks to _____________when she is upset. (myself, yourself, herself, himself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, themselves) 9. John and Alan, I am not going to do the homework for you. You have to do it __________. (myself, yourself, herself, himself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, themselves)
10. The students were so noisy. Even Nancy and Leila were making a lot of noise. (myself, yourself, herself, himself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, themselves)