Before we get into the different types of pronouns, let’s look at how they work in sentences.
In a sentence, an antecedent is the noun that a pronoun refers back to.
Jason likes it when people look to him for leadership.
(Here, the pronoun “him” refers back to Jason.)
Trini does her hair and makeup every day—with no exceptions.
(Here, the pronoun “her” refers back to Trini.)
Personal pronouns are what most people think of when they hear the word pronoun. These pronouns replace specific nouns and refer to people or things. Common personal pronouns include he, she, and they.
Examples: Personal Pronouns
Danny and Sam decided that they didn’t want to go to the zoo on Saturday.
(Here, “Danny and Sam” is the antecedent of “they.”)
Ibrahim thought that he would rather turn in incomplete homework than pull another all-nighter.
(Here, “Ibrahim” is the antecedent of “he.”)
Reflexive pronouns are used when the subject and the object of the sentence are the same. These pronouns reflect back to the subject. Common reflexive pronouns include: myself, ourselves, yourself, yourselves, himself, herself, itself, themselves.
Examples: Reflexive Pronouns
Jason hurt himself.
(Here, “Jason” is the antecedent of “himself.”)
This rule applies even when the subject is only implied:
“Don’t hurt yourself.”
(In this sentence, “you” is the unstated subject.)
English personal pronouns have two cases: subject and object.
Subject-case pronouns are used when the pronoun is doing the action (I like to eat chips, but she does not).
Object-case pronouns are used when something is being done to the pronoun (John likes me but not her).
Possessive pronouns are used to indicate possession (in a broad sense). Some must be accompanied by a noun: e.g., my or your, as in “I lost my wallet.” This category of pronouns behaves similarly to adjectives. Others occur as independent phrases: e.g., mine or yours. For example, “Those clothes are mine.”
Demonstrative pronouns substitute for things being pointed out. They include this, that, these, and those. This and that are singular; these and those are plural.
The difference between this and that and between these and those is a little more subtle. This and these refer to something that is “close” to the speaker, whether this closeness is physical, emotional, or temporal. That and those are the opposite: they refer to something that is “far.”
Examples: This & That, These and Those
Do I really have to read all of this?
By using “this,” the speaker is indicating a text that is close to her.
That is not coming anywhere near me.
The speaker is distancing himself from the object in question, which he doesn’t want to get any closer. The far pronoun helps indicate that.
You’re telling me you sewed all of these?
The speaker and her audience are likely looking directly at the clothes in question, so the close pronoun is appropriate.
Those are all gross.
The speaker wants to remain away from the gross items in question, by using the far “those.”
Note: These pronouns are often combined with a noun.
Do I really have to read all of this contract?
That thing is not coming anywhere near me.
You’re telling me you sewed all of these dresses?
Those recipes are all gross.
The antecedents of demonstrative pronouns (and sometimes the pronoun it) can be more complex than those of personal pronouns.
Animal Planet’s puppy cam has been taken down for maintenance. I never wanted this to happen.
I love Animal Planet’s panda cam. I watched a panda eat bamboo for half an hour. It was amazing.
In the first example, the antecedent for this is the entire idea of the puppy cam being taken down. In the second example, the antecedent for it is the experience of watching the panda. In both cases, the antecedents aren’t explicitly stated and must be inferred by the reader.
Indefinite pronouns, the largest group of pronouns, refer to one or more unspecified persons or things. These pronouns can be used in several ways:
Examples: Indefinite Pronouns
A dotted line outline of a person.To refer to an unspecified person.
Anyone can do that.
To refer to members of a group separately rather than collectively.
To each his own.
To indicate the nonexistence of people or things.
Nobody thinks that.
To refer to a person without specifying first, second, or third person, unlike personal pronouns.
One does not clean one’s own windows.
There are five relative pronouns in English: who, whom, whose, that, and which.
First, don’t confuse who and that. We use who for people and that for things.
Examples: Who vs. THAT
Belen, who had starred in six plays before she turned seventeen, knew that she wanted to act on Broadway someday.
My daughter wants to adopt the dog that doesn’t have a tail.
Note: Some people consider animals to be almost like people, so the following sentence might be considered correct:
I love my dog, who sleeps in my bed the same way a child might. (You can see why who works better than that here.)
As the video below explains, the rules for that and which are somewhat in flux and debatable. But there is a simple rule of thumb, as explained in the video below, that helps.
Which is bad with people. That doesn’t like commas.
Correct: The lady who runs every morning is my aunt.
Incorrect: The lady which runs every morning is my aunt.
Incorrect: The lady that runs every morning is my aunt.
Correct: The carrot that is tasty is in the salad.
Correct: The carrot, which is tasty, is in the salad.
Incorrect: The carrot, that is tasty, is in the salad.
Like that and which, who and whom are evolving in usage. As the video below explains, who is becoming more and more acceptable, and whom is being used less.
Correct: The student who aced her exams.
Incorrect: The student whom aced her exams.
Correct: The teacher whom I learned from.
Once considered incorrect but now ok: The teacher who I learned from.
So, you really only need to worry about using whom incorrectly. If you understand about subjects and objects, great. If not, here’s a trick.
“The teacher whom I learned from” can be rearranged as “I learned from the teacher” or “I learned from him.” Him and whom both end in “m.”
Let’s test it with the incorrect example above: “The student whom aced her exams.” That can be rearranged as “aced her exams the teacher.” That makes no sense. Similarly, “aced her exams him” makes no sense.
Adapted from "Pronouns" by Lumen Learning. Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).
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Basic Patterns and Elements of the Sentence. Authored by: David McMurrey. Located at: https://www.prismnet.com/~hcexres/textbook/twsent.html. License: CC BY: Attribution
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That versus which. Authored by: David Rheinstrom. Provided by: Khan Academy. Located at: https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/grammar/partsofspeech/the-pronoun/v/that-versus-which-the-parts-of-speech-grammar. License: CC BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike
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Vacancy. Authored by: Pablo Rozenberg. Provided by: The Noun Project. Located at: https://thenounproject.com/search/?q=nobody&i=105997. License: CC BY: Attribution
Pronouns. Authored by: Excelsior OWL. Located at: https://owl.excelsior.edu/grammar-essentials/parts-of-speech/pronouns/pronouns-try-it-out/. License: CC BY: Attribution