Pronoun Cases

Pronouns may be classified by three categories: person, number, and case.

Person

Icon of a personPerson refers to the relationship that an author has with the text that he or she writes, and with the reader of that text. English has three persons (first, second, and third).

First

First-person is the most informal.  The author is saying, this is about me and people I know.

  • First-person pronouns include I, me, we

Second

Second-person is also informal, though slightly more formal than first-person.  The author is saying, this is about you, the reader.

  • All second-person pronouns are variations of you, which is both singular and plural

Third

Third-person is the most formal.  The author is saying, this is about other people.

In the third person singular there are distinct pronoun forms for male, female, and neutral gender. Here is a short list of the most common pronouns and their gender:

Person Pronouns
First I, me, we, us
Second you
Third Male he, him
Female she, her
Neutral it, they, them

Practice

In the following sentences, determine the person for each pronoun:

  1. Jada often put other people’s needs before her own.
  2. Amelia and Ajani still haven’t arrived. I should make sure I texted them.
  3. You will need three things in order to be successful: determination, discipline, and dexterity.

Number

Icon of hand with forefinger extendedThere are two numbers: singular and plural. The table below separates pronouns according to number. You may notice that the second person is the same for both singular and plural: you.

Person Number Pronouns
First Singular I, me
Plural we, us
Second Singular you
Plural you
Third Singular he, him
she, her
it
Plural they, them

Case

Suitcase iconEnglish personal pronouns have two cases: subject and object (there are also possessive pronouns, which we’ll discuss next). 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). This video will further clarify the difference between subject- and object-case:

Practice

In the following sentences, identify the person, case, and number of each pronoun:

  1. You shouldn’t be so worried about what other people think. They don’t matter. The only person you need to please is you.
  2. Elena knew she should have spent more time on homework this semester, but binge-watching TV had tripped her up again and again.
  3. George Washington was the first president of the United States. He set the standard of only serving two terms of office. However, it wasn’t illegal to do so until 1951.

Possessive Pronouns

Icon of woman with arm wrapped around man's armPossessive pronouns are used to indicate possession (in a broad sense). Some occur as independent phrases: mine, yours, hers, ours, yours, theirs. For example, “Those clothes are mine.” Others must be accompanied by a noun: my, your, her, our, your, their, as in “I lost my wallet.” This category of pronouns behaves similarly to adjectives. His and its can fall into either category, although its is nearly always found in the second.

Both types replace possessive noun phrases. As an example, “Their crusade to capture our attention” could replace “The advertisers’ crusade to capture our attention.”

This video provides another explanation of possessive pronouns:

Practice

In each sentence, select the correct possessive pronoun. Identify why you selected the pronoun you did:

  1. André told me that was (my/ mine) box of cereal, but I couldn’t remember having bought it.
  2. Eloá said that it was (her/ hers).
  3. Jake and Suren refused to give (their / theirs) opinions on the subject.

Review

The table below includes all of the personal pronouns in the English language. They are organized by person, number, and case.

Person Number Subject Object Possessive
First Singular I me my mine
Plural we us our ours
Second Singular you you your yours
Plural you you your yours
Third Singular he him his his
she her her hers
it it its its
Plural they them their theirs