Pronouns

Pronouns are an essential part of English grammar. They are words that are used in place of nouns to avoid repetition or to refer to a person, thing, or idea that has already been mentioned. Pronouns can be divided into several categories, including personal, reflexive, demonstrative, indefinite, and relative pronouns. In this article, we will explore the different types of pronouns and their uses in English grammar.

Personal Pronouns:

Personal pronouns are used to refer to specific people, things, or ideas. They can be divided into three categories: first-person, second-person, and third-person pronouns. First-person pronouns refer to the speaker, second-person pronouns refer to the person being spoken to, and third-person pronouns refer to someone or something else.

Examples of personal pronouns include:

First-person singular: I, me
First-person plural: we, us
Second-person singular: you
Second-person plural: you
Third-person singular: he, she, it, him, her, his, hers, its
Third-person plural: they, them, their, theirs

Reflexive Pronouns:

Reflexive pronouns are used when the subject and object of a sentence are the same. They are formed by adding the suffix "-self" (singular) or "-selves" (plural) to the personal pronoun.

Examples of reflexive pronouns include:

Myself
Yourself
Himself
Herself
Itself
Ourselves
Yourselves
Themselves

Demonstrative Pronouns:

Demonstrative pronouns are used to point to specific people, things, or ideas. They can be divided into two categories: singular and plural.

Examples of singular demonstrative pronouns include:

This
That
Examples of plural demonstrative pronouns include:

These
Those

Indefinite Pronouns:

Indefinite pronouns refer to someone or something in a general or non-specific way. They can be divided into several categories, including:

Singular indefinite pronouns: anyone, someone, no one, everyone, somebody, nobody, anybody, each, either, neither, one
Plural indefinite pronouns: some, any, many, few, several
Singular or plural indefinite pronouns: all, both, most, some

Relative Pronouns:

Relative pronouns are used to introduce a relative clause, which is a clause that describes a noun. They can be divided into several categories, including:

Who: refers to a person
Whom: refers to a person (used in formal English)
Whose: indicates possession by a person
Which: refers to a thing
That: refers to a person or thing (used in informal English)

Examples of relative pronouns include:

The man who stole my wallet
The woman whom I met at the party
The book whose cover is torn
The car which I bought last week
The cat that I saw in the park

Interrogative Pronoun:

Interrogative pronouns are used to ask questions. They can be divided into two categories: those that refer to people and those that refer to things.

Examples of interrogative pronouns include:

• Who: refers to a person
• Whom: refers to a person (used in formal English)
• Whose: indicates possession by a person
• What: refers to a thing

Examples of interrogative sentences using interrogative pronouns are:

• Who is coming to the party?
• Whom did you meet at the airport?
• Whose phone is ringing?
• What is your favorite color?

Possessive Pronoun:

Possessive pronouns are used to indicate ownership or possession. They can be divided into two categories: those that indicate possession by a person and those that indicate possession by a thing.

Examples of possessive pronouns include:

• Mine
• Yours
• His
• Hers
• Its
• Ours
• Theirs

Examples of possessive sentences using possessive pronouns are:

• That book is mine.
• Is this bag yours?
• The coat is his.
• The cat licked its paw.
• The house is ours.
• The car is theirs.

Reciprocal Pronoun:

Reciprocal pronouns are used to indicate that two or more people are doing the same thing to each other. There is only one reciprocal pronoun in English, which is "each other."

Examples of sentences using reciprocal pronouns are:

• Tom and Sarah hugged each other.
• We all looked at each other in disbelief.
• The two teams congratulated each other after the game.
• The couple kissed each other goodbye.

Emphatic Pronoun:

Emphatic pronouns are used to emphasize the noun or pronoun they refer to. They are formed by adding "-self" (singular) or "-selves" (plural) to the personal pronoun.

Examples of emphatic pronouns include:

• Myself
• Yourself
• Himself
• Herself
• Itself
• Ourselves
• Yourselves
• Themselves

Examples of sentences using emphatic pronouns are:

• I will do it myself.
• You should be proud of yourself.
• He himself admitted that he was wrong.
• She herself cooked dinner for the guests.
• The cat licked itself.
• We ourselves found the solution to the problem.
• You yourselves are responsible for your actions.
• They themselves decided to quit their jobs.

👉Key Points Pronouns:

1. Personal Pronoun:

• Personal pronouns refer to specific people or things.
• There are two types of personal pronouns: subjective (I, you, he, she, it, we, they) and objective (me, you, him, her, it, us, them).
• Personal pronouns can also be used to show possession, such as "mine" and "yours."
• Personal pronouns can be singular or plural, as well as masculine, feminine, or neutral.

2. Demonstrative Pronoun:

• Demonstrative pronouns are used to point out or refer to specific things or people.
• The four main demonstrative pronouns are: this, that, these, and those.
• They can be used as pronouns on their own or as determiners before a noun.
• Demonstrative pronouns can also indicate proximity, such as "this" being closer and "that" being farther away.

3. Interrogative Pronoun:

• Interrogative pronouns are used to ask questions and can refer to people or things.
• The main interrogative pronouns are: who, whom, whose, what, and which.
• "Who" and "whom" refer to people, while "whose," "what," and "which" can refer to either people or things.
• "Whom" is considered more formal and is often used in written English.

4. Indefinite Pronoun:

• Indefinite pronouns refer to people or things in a general or unspecific way.
• Examples of indefinite pronouns include: anyone, someone, no one, everybody, everything, and nothing.
• They can also refer to a specific quantity, such as "some" and "any."

5. Relative Pronoun:

• Relative pronouns are used to link two clauses together and show a relationship between them.
• The main relative pronouns are: who, whom, whose, which, and that.
• They are used to refer to people, things, or ideas mentioned in the previous clause.
• The choice of relative pronoun can depend on whether it refers to a person or thing and whether it is used as a subject or object in the clause.

6. Possessive Pronoun:

• Possessive pronouns indicate ownership or possession.
• Examples of possessive pronouns include: mine, yours, his, hers, its, ours, and theirs.
• They can be used to show possession without using a noun, such as "That book is mine."

7. Reciprocal Pronoun:

• Reciprocal pronouns indicate that two or more people are doing the same thing to each other.
• The only reciprocal pronoun in English is "each other."
• Examples of reciprocal pronouns include: Tom and Sarah hugged each other.

8. Reflexive Pronoun:

• Reflexive pronouns are used to refer back to the subject of a sentence.
• The main reflexive pronouns are: myself, yourself, himself, herself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, and themselves.
• They can be used for emphasis or to show that the subject is performing the action on themselves, such as "I hurt myself."

9. Emphatic Pronoun:

• Emphatic pronouns are used for emphasis and are formed by adding "-self" or "-selves" to a personal pronoun.
• Examples of emphatic pronouns include: myself, yourself, himself, herself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, and themselves.
• They are used to stress the importance of the noun or pronoun they refer to, such as "I will do it myself."

10. Pronouns can have different functions in a sentence: Pronouns can act as subjects, objects, possessives, or reflexives in a sentence

Exercise -1

1. Which of the following is a personal pronoun?a) This
   b) That
   c) He
   d) None of the above
   Answer: c) He
2. Which of the following is a demonstrative pronoun?
   a) Who
   b) Whom
   c) That
   d) None of the above
   Answer: c) That
3. Which type of pronoun is used to ask questions?
   a) Indefinite pronoun
   b) Personal pronoun
   c) Interrogative pronoun
   d) None of the above
   Answer: c) Interrogative pronoun
4. Which of the following is an indefinite pronoun?
   a) Myself
   b) Yourself
   c) Everyone
   d) None of the above
   Answer: c) Everyone
5. Which type of pronoun is used to link two clauses together?
   a) Possessive pronoun
   b) Reflexive pronoun
   c) Relative pronoun
   d) None of the above
   Answer: c) Relative pronoun
6. Which of the following is a possessive pronoun?
   a) His
   b) Herself
   c) Themselves
   d) None of the above
   Answer: a) His
7. Which type of pronoun indicates that two or more people are doing the same thing to each other?
   a) Reciprocal pronoun
   b) Emphatic pronoun
   c) Interrogative pronoun
   d) None of the above
   Answer: a) Reciprocal pronoun
8. Which type of pronoun is used to refer back to the subject of a sentence?
   a) Demonstrative pronoun
   b) Reflexive pronoun
   c) Indefinite pronoun
   d) None of the above
   Answer: b) Reflexive pronoun
9. Which type of pronoun is used for emphasis?
   a) Personal pronoun
   b) Possessive pronoun
   c) Emphatic pronoun
   d) None of the above
   Answer: c) Emphatic pronoun
10. Which type of pronoun is used to show possession?
    a) Interrogative pronoun
    b) Relative pronoun
    c) Possessive pronoun
    d) None of the above
    Answer: c) Possessive pronoun

Exercise-2

1. Which of the following is a personal pronoun in the objective case?
   a) I
   b) He
   c) Me
   d) She
   Answer: c) Me
2. Which type of pronoun is used to refer to something previously mentioned?
   a) Interrogative pronoun
   b) Indefinite pronoun
   c) Relative pronoun
   d) None of the above
   Answer: c) Relative pronoun
3. Which type of pronoun is used to show ownership or possession?
   a) Possessive pronoun
   b) Demonstrative pronoun
   c) Interrogative pronoun
   d) None of the above
   Answer: a) Possessive pronoun
4. Which of the following is an example of an indefinite pronoun?
   a) She
   b) That
   c) Everyone
   d) None of the above
   Answer: c) Everyone
5. Which type of pronoun is used to ask about a person, thing or place?
   a) Personal pronoun
   b) Demonstrative pronoun
   c) Interrogative pronoun
   d) None of the above
   Answer: c) Interrogative pronoun
6. Which type of pronoun is used to show that something is done to or for oneself?
   a) Possessive pronoun
   b) Reciprocal pronoun
   c) Reflexive pronoun
   d) None of the above
   Answer: c) Reflexive pronoun
7. Which type of pronoun is used to emphasize a noun or pronoun?
   a) Emphatic pronoun
   b) Demonstrative pronoun
   c) Personal pronoun
   d) None of the above
   Answer: a) Emphatic pronoun
8. Which of the following is a reciprocal pronoun?
   a) Each other
   b) Himself
   c) Whom
   d) None of the above
   Answer: a) Each other
9. Which type of pronoun is used to refer to an unspecified person, thing or amount?
   a) Relative pronoun
   b) Indefinite pronoun
   c) Interrogative pronoun
   d) None of the above
   Answer: b) Indefinite pronoun
10. Which type of pronoun is used to point out specific people or things?
    a) Personal pronoun
    b) Demonstrative pronoun
    c) Possessive pronoun
    d) None of the above
    Answer: b) Demonstrative pronoun