Unit 2: Pronouns

PRONOUNS

Pronouns are words that stand in for or replace nouns. There are nine categories of pronouns:

1. Subject Pronouns
2. Objective Pronouns
3. Indefinite Pronouns
4. Relative Pronouns
5. Demonstrative Pronouns
6. Possessive Pronouns
7. Interrogative Pronouns
8. Reflexive Pronouns
9. Intensive Pronouns

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Subject pronouns include I, you, he, she, it, we, and they. As their name implies, subject pronouns always function as subjects of a sentence.

Number	Person	Case (subjective)
Singular	1st	I
	2nd	You
	3rd	She  He  It
Plural	1st	We
	2nd	You
	3rd	They

This category of subject pronouns is a closed category. In other words, the pronouns listed are the complete set. No changes or additions exist.

Below are sentences that use each of the subject pronouns as subjects.

Singular

• I ate the last piece of pizza.
• You are a very fast runner.
• She left a book in my car.
• He bought a hamburger.
• It had begun to rain.

Plural

• We always work together.
• You get bonuses every month.
• They joined the choir.

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Objective pronouns include me, you, him, her, it, us, and them. Objective pronouns always function as objects in a sentence, for example, the direct object, the indirect object, or the object of a preposition.

Number	Person	Case (objective)
Singular	1st	Me
	2nd	You
	3rd	Him  Her  It
Plural	1st	Us
	2nd	You
	3rd	Them

This category of object pronouns is a closed category. In other words, the pronouns listed are the complete set. No changes or additions occur.

Below are sentences that use each of the object pronouns as different types of objects.

Singular

• She gave the award to me. (indirect object)
• I baked that batch of cookies sitting near you. (object of the preposition near)
• Mr. Jones met him for lunch. (direct object)
• He picked out flowers especially for her. (indirect object)
• Open the door and walk through it. (object of the preposition)

Plural

• The usher led us to our seats. (direct object)
• The company sent the merchandise directly to you. (indirect object)
• The teacher gave them more time to finish the quiz. (indirect object)

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Indefinite pronouns can function as either subjects or objects. Also, they can be singular or plural or both (depending on the context in which they are used). The reason this is most important is that the number of the pronoun determines the number of the verb to be used, which you will study in the next unit. Singular indefinite pronouns use singular verbs. Plural indefinite pronouns use plural verbs.

• Indefinite pronouns that end in –one are always singular. These words include anyone, everyone, someone, and one.
• Indefinite pronouns that end in –body are always singular. These words include anybody, somebody, and nobody.
• Indefinite pronouns like both, many, others, and several are always plural.
• Indefinite pronouns like any, more, most, and some can be singular or plural, depending on how they are used.

Singular  Indefinite	Plural  Indefinite	Singular or  Plural
another  anyone  each one  everyone  everybody  everything  much  nobody  nothing  other  someone  anybody  anything  either  little  neither  no one  somebody  something	both  few  many  others  several	all  any  more  most  none  some

This category of indefinite pronouns is a closed category. In other words, the pronouns listed are the complete set. No changes or additions exist.

Below are several examples of the indefinite pronouns as both subjects and objects.

• Everyone seems to have a social media account. (subject)
• Cheryl gave the tomato seed packages to everyone who attended. (object)
• Somebody needs to dust the furniture and mop the floor. (subject)
• We gave the boxes to somebody at the shop. (object)

Below are sentence examples of singular and plural indefinite pronouns.

• Most of the pie has been eaten. (Singular)
• Most of the pies have been eaten. (Plural)
• None of the light enters the bedroom. (Singular)
• None of the lights seem to be working. (Plural)
• Both of the men run quickly out of the room. (Plural)
• Several of the children play hop-scotch during recess. (Plural)

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Relative pronouns include, most commonly, that, which, who, whom, whoever, whomever, and where. Relative pronouns introduce relative clauses, which you will study in Week 4.

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Demonstrative pronouns include This, That, These, and Those and can function as subjects, objects, and adjectives.

Number	Near in Distance or Time	Far in Distance or Time
Singular	This	That
Plural	These	Those

This category of demonstrative pronouns is a closed category. In other words, the ones listed are the complete set. No changes or additions occur.

Below are several examples of sentences using demonstrative pronouns as subjects.

• This is the best place to park.
• These are the strawberries that are on sale.
• That really got to me.
• Those fell off the truck.

The following sentences use demonstrative pronouns as objects.

• “Get as close as you can to that,” he stated, pointing to the loading dock.
• “I want a handful of these,” she laughed, picking up the strawberries.

Below are two sentences that use demonstrative pronouns as adjectives.

• I need a picture of those flowers.
• This phone is the one I truly want.

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Possessive pronouns are pronouns used to refer to subjects in sentences that are specific person/people or thing/things belonging to a person/people [and sometimes to an animal(s) or thing(s)]. Possessive pronouns function as subjects, objects, and adjectives.

Number	Person	Possessive  Pronoun
Singular	1st	My/Mine
	2nd	Your/Yours
	3rd	His  Her/Hers  Its
Plural	1st	Our/Ours
	2nd	Your/Yours
	3rd	Their/Theirs

This category of possessive pronouns is a closed category. In other words, the ones listed are the complete set. No changes or additions exist.

Following are sentences that use possessive pronouns as subjects.

Singular

• Mine is the last cake on the table.
• Yours was left in the car.
• Hers came with the card attached.
• His was a mighty blow.

Plural

• Ours describe ways others might interpret art.
• Yours were the last to arrive.
• Theirs won first place.

Sentence examples using possessive pronouns as objects include.

• That backpack looks like mine.
• The restaurant’s bouillabaisse tastes similar to ours.

The following examples use possessive pronouns as adjectives.

• That is my seat in which you are sitting.
• Your seat is at the end of the row.

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Interrogative pronouns are used to ask questions. These pronouns represent the thing that isn’t known (what the question is asking about). Interrogative pronouns can stand in for subjects.

If the Subject is a ...	Use this pronoun...
Person	Who
Thing	What
Person/thing	Which
Person	Whose

This category of interrogative pronouns is a closed category. In other words, the ones listed are the complete set. There will be no changes or additions.

The sentences below use interrogative pronouns as subjects.

• Who borrowed my pencil?
• What is the name of the café’?
• Which seems to be the most popular?
• Whose is the red blanket?

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Reflexive and Intensive pronouns each use the same forms.

Number	Person	Reflexive  Pronoun	Intensive  Pronoun
Singular	1st	Myself	Myself
	2nd	Yourself	Yourself
	3rd	Himself  Herself  Itself	Himself  Herself  Itself
Plural	1st	Ourselves	Ourselves
	2nd	Yourselves	Yourselves
	3rd	Themselves	Themselves

This category of reflexive and intensive pronouns is a closed category. In other words, the ones listed are the complete set. There will be no changes or additions.

Reflexive pronouns function as objects in a sentence; they show subjects performing actions on themselves.

Below are two sentences using reflexive pronouns as objects.

• He enjoyed himself painting the shed.
• Chandra and Wallace watched themselves on video prepare the meal.

Intensive pronouns emphasize another noun or pronoun. See the following examples.

• You yourself will be responsible for the delivery.
• Raul and I ourselves seem to be the only people who want to hike the gorge.