Types of Pronouns

TYPES OF PRONOUNS
What is a pronoun?
A pronoun is defined as a word or phrase that is

used as a substitution for a noun or noun phrase,
which is known as the pronoun’s antecedent.
Pronouns are short words and can do everything
that nouns can do. A pronoun can act as a
subject, direct object, indirect object, object of
the preposition, and more
1. Personal pronouns
- represent people or things
• Subjective personal pronouns
- the versions used for the subjects of verbs
- I, you, he, she, it, we, they
Examples:
I am happy.
They won the league.
• Objective pronouns
- versions used when the personal
pronouns are objects (like direct
objects, indirect objects, and objects of
prepositions)
- me, you, her, him, it, us, them
Examples:
Paul knows her. (direct object)

Paul gave them the letter. (indirect object)
Paul went with him. (object of a preposition)
In selecting a personal pronoun, determine first its:
Number
Is the personal pronoun representing something singular or
plural?
Person
Is the personal pronoun representing something:
In the first person? (This is the speaker himself or a group that

includes the speaker, i.e., I, me, we, and us.)
In the second person? (This is the speaker's audience, i.e., you.)
In the third person? (This is everybody else, i.e., he, she,it, they.)
Gender
• Is the personal pronoun representing something male, female,
or neuter?
Case
• Is the personal pronoun representing something which is a
subject or an object?
2. Demonstrative Pronouns
- are used to replace specific people or things
that have been previously mentioned (or are
understood from context)
- this, these, that, those
This and That Represent Singular Nouns
• This and that replace singular nouns.
This represents something close by.

For example:This is very smelly.
That represents something farther away.

For example:You can smell that from here.
These and Those Represent Plural Nouns
• These and those replace plural nouns.
These represents something close by.

For example:These smell rotten.
Those represents something farther away.

For example:Do not paint those.
Demonstrative adjectives
- modify nouns or pronouns
- cannot stand alone to play the role of a noun.
For example:
This soup is very smelly.
You smell that factory from here.
These apples smell rotten.
Do not paint those fences.
3. Interrogative Pronouns
- are used to ask questions
- who, whom, whose, which, and what
(whoever, whomever, whichever, whatever )
Examples: Who won the race?
Whom shall we ask?
Whose did they take?
Which is the greater?
What is that?
Now look at this question:
Which feat is the greater?
This is not an interrogative pronoun.
It is an interrogative adjective.
The word Which modifies feat.
Therefore, it's an adjective.)
4. Indefinite Pronoun
- refer to non-specific person or thing
Singular Indefinite Pronouns

Another Each Everything
Anybody Either Nobody
Anyone Everybody Nothing
Anything Everyone Somebody
Somebody Someone
Something No one
Plural Indefinite Pronouns

Both Few
Many Several
Indefinite Pronouns Which Can be Singular
or Plural
All Any More

Most None Some
The Difference between Indefinite Pronouns and
Indefinite Adjectives
• When a word like all, any, anyone, etc. is used as
an adjective, it is known as an indefinite
adjective. (In the examples below, the indefinite
pronouns are shaded.)
All in the lobby must remain seated.
(This is an indefinite pronoun.)
All personnel in the lobby must remain seated.
(This is an indefinite adjective. It modifies personnel.)
Please take some to Mrs Chandler.
(indefinite pronoun)
Please take some lemons to Mrs Chandler.
(This is an indefinite adjective. It modifies lemons.)
5. Possessive Pronoun
- a word that replaces a noun (or a noun
phrase) in a sentence and shows ownership
- mine, yours, his, hers, ours, and theirs
my, your, his, her, its, our, and their
For example:
• Is that the Queen's hat? No, it's her crown.
• People who have given us their complete
confidence believe that they have a right to ours.
(ours replaces the noun phrase our complete
confidence)
• I always check if the art across the street is

better than mine.
(mine replaces the noun phrase my art)
6.Reciprocal Pronoun
- expresses a mutual action or
relationship
- each other, one another
Examples:
Jack and Jill hate each other.
(Note: Jack hates Jill, and Jill hates Jack. The
action is reciprocated.)
The crayfish started attacking one another.
The team members played their hearts out
for one another.
They gave each other presents.
Have you seen each other's solution?
(Note: Each other is treated as singular.
Therefore, the possessive apostrophe is
placed before the s.)
The competitors were deliberately
blocking one another's view to gain an
advantage.
(Note: One another is treated as singular.
Therefore, the possessive
apostrophe is placed before
the s.)
Each Other or One Another?
When the antecedent is two things (like in both
examples above), use each other as the reciprocal
pronoun. However, when the antecedent is three
or more things, use one another.
Examples:
Our dog and cat love each other.
They love one another.
•Each Other's Not Each Others'
The pronouns each other and one
another are singular entities (despite
having plural antecedents). Therefore,
when showing possession, the
apostrophe comes before the s. This is a
100% rule.
Examples:
Do you two admire each other’s courage?

Do you three admire one another’s courage?
7. Relative Pronoun
- introduces an adjective clause (follows
a noun to identify it or tell us
something interesting about it)
- That, Which, Who, Whom, Whose
Examples:
The girl who stole your phone is outside.
(The relative pronoun who heads an adjective
clause that identifies the girl.)
I rode the bike that Jack gave me back home.

(The relative pronoun that heads an adjective
clause that identifies the bike.)
8. Reflexive Pronouns
- words ending in -self or -selves that are
used when the subject and the object of a
sentence are the same
- reflect back upon a sentence’s subject
- myself, yourself, himself, herself, oneself,
itself, ourselves, yourselves, and themselves
• A reflexive pronoun can be a direct object in a
sentence when the subject and the direct object
are one and the same.
Jack decided to reward himself with a dinner

out.
(Jack, the subject, is the object
of reward in the second sentence, so
we use the pronoun himself.)
Reflexive pronouns can also play the indirect
object role in a sentence.
Cynthia pours a cup of tea for herself every

morning.
Cynthia pours herself a cup of tea every
morning.
Common Errors with Reflexive Pronouns
• the use of reflexive pronouns in compound

subjects or compound objects in a sentence
Andrew and myself will conduct today’s
meeting.
You may submit your expenses to Mr. Martin
or myself before Friday.
9. Intensive Pronouns
- used to emphasize the subject or
antecedent in a sentence, often in the sense
of “and not someone else”
Jack made his supper himself.

(No one else did it for him.)
I closed the store on Saturday myself.
(I didn’t have an employee to do it.)
We ourselves were forced to pilot the boat to

safety. (Perhaps the captain was indisposed.)
• You can tell when a word ending in -self or -
selves is being used as an intensive pronoun
because the sentence it is part of will not change
in meaning significantly if you remove it.

Types of Pronouns

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TYPES OF PRONOUNS

A pronoun is defined as a word or phrase that is

Paul knows her. (direct object)

In the first person? (This is the speaker himself or a group that

In the third person? (This is everybody else, i.e., he, she,it, they.)

This represents something close by.

That represents something farther away.

These represents something close by.

Those represents something farther away.

Singular Indefinite Pronouns

Plural Indefinite Pronouns

All Any More

• I always check if the art across the street is

Do you two admire each other’s courage?

I rode the bike that Jack gave me back home.

Jack decided to reward himself with a dinner

Cynthia pours a cup of tea for herself every

• the use of reflexive pronouns in compound

Jack made his supper himself.

We ourselves were forced to pilot the boat to

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