Possessive
Subject Object Possessive Reflexive or
adjective
pronoun pronoun pronoun intensive pronoun
(determiner)
1st person
singular I me my mine myself
2nd person
singular you you your yours yourself
3rd person
singular, male he him his his himself
3rd person
singular, she her her hers herself
female
3rd person
singular, it it its itself
neutral
1st person
plural we us our ours ourselves
2nd person
plural you you your yours yourselves
3rd person
plural they them their theirs themselves
Subject pronouns
Subject pronouns replace nouns that are the subject of their clause. In the 3rd person, subject pronouns are often
used to avoid repetition of the subject's name.
Examples
I am 16.
You seem lost.
Jim is angry, and he wants Sally to apologize.
This table is old. It needs to be repainted.
We aren't coming.
They don't like pancakes.
Object pronouns
Object pronouns are used to replace nouns that are the direct or indirect object of a clause.
Examples
Give the book to me.
The teacher wants to talk to you.
Jake is hurt because Bill hit him.
Rachid recieved a letter from her last week.
Mark can't find it.
Don't be angry with us.
Tell them to hurry up!
Possessive adjectives (determiners)
Possessive adjectives are not pronouns, but rather determiners. It is useful to learn them at the same time as
pronouns, however, because they are similar in form to the possessive pronouns. Possessive adjectives function
as adjectives, so they appear before the noun they modify. They do not replace a noun as pronouns do.
Examples
Did mother find my shoes?
Mrs. Baker wants to see your homework.
Can Jake bring over his baseball cards?
Samantha will fix her bike tomorrow.
The cat broke its leg.
This is our house.
Where is their school?
Possessive pronouns
Possessive pronouns replace possessive nouns as either the subject or the object of a clause. Because the noun
being replaced doesn't appear in the sentence, it must be clear from the context.
Examples
This bag is mine.
Yours is not blue.
That bag looks like his.
These shoes are not hers.
That car is ours.
Theirs is parked in the garage.
Reflexive & intensive pronouns
Reflexive and intensive pronouns are the same set of words but they have different functions in a sentence.
Reflexive pronouns refer back to the subject of the clause because the subject of the action is also the direct or
indirect object. Only certain types of verbs can be reflexive. You cannot remove a reflexive pronoun from a
sentence because the remaining sentence would be grammatically incorrect.
Examples
I told myself to calm down.
You cut yourself on this nail?
He hurt himself on the stairs.
She found herself in a dangerous part of town.
The cat threw itself under my car!
We blame ourselves for the fire.
The children can take care of themselves.
Intensive pronouns emphasize the subject of a clause. They are not the object of the action. The intensive
pronoun can always be removed from a sentence without changing the meaning significantly, although the
emphasis on the subject will be removed. Intensive pronouns can be placed immediately after the subject of the
clause, or at the end of the clause.
Examples
I made these cookies myself.
You yourself asked Jake to come.
The Pope himself pardoned Mr. Brown.
My teacher didn't know the answer herself.
The test itself wasn't scary, but my teacher certainly is.
We would like to finish the renovation before Christmas ourselves.
They themselves told me the lost shoe wasn't a problem.