Pronouns

Definition. - A pronoun is a word that takes the place of a noun. Pronouns can be in one of three cases: Subject, Object, or Possessive. Personal Pronouns subject form object form I you he she it we you they me you him her it us you them Possessive Adjectives and Pronouns possessive adjective possessive pronoun my your his her its our your their mine yours his hers its ours yours theirs reflexive pronouns myself yourself himself herself itself ourselves yourselves themselves

Rule 1.Subject pronouns are used when the pronoun is the subject of the sentence. Example: ______ did the job.

I, you, he, she, it, we, and they all fit into the blank and are, therefore, subject pronouns. Rule 2.Subject pronouns are also used if they rename the subject. They follow to be verbs such as is, are, was, were, am, and will be. Examples: It is he. This is she speaking. It is we who are responsible for the decision to downsize. NOTE: In spoken English, most people tend to follow to be verbs with object pronouns. Many English teachers support (or at least have given in to) this distinction between written and spoken English. Example: Example: It could have been them. It is just me at the door. Better: Better: It could have been they. It is just I at the door.

Rule 3. Object pronouns are used everywhere else (direct object, indirect object, object of the preposition). Object pronouns are me, you, him, her, it, us, and them. Examples: Jean talked to him. Are you talking to me?

Rule 4.To decide whether to use the subject or object pronoun after the words than or as, mentally complete the sentence. Examples: Tranh is as smart as she/her.

If we mentally complete the sentence, we would say, "Tranh is as smart as she is." Therefore, she is the correct answer. Zoe is taller than I/me. Mentally completing the sentence, we have, "Zoe is taller than I am." Daniel would rather talk to her than I/me. We can mentally complete this sentence: "Daniel would rather talk to her than to me." Rule 5.Possessive pronouns show ownership and never need apostrophes. Possessive pronouns: mine, yours, his, hers, its, ours, theirs Examples: It's a cold morning. The thermometer reached its highest reading. Rule 6. Reflexive pronouns - myself, himself, herself, itself, themselves, ourselves, yourself, yourselves- should be used only when they refer back to another word in the sentence. Incorrect: Correct: Incorrect: Correct: My brother and myself did it. My brother and I did it. Please give it to John or myself. Please give it to John or me.

1) The teacher always gives the students homework. 2) I am reading the book to my little sister. 3) The boys are riding their bikes. 4) My father is writing a letter to John. 5) I don't know the answer. 6) Sally is going to Anne. 7) Open the window, please. 8) Can you tell the people the way to the airport, please? 9) The books are for Peter. 10) Can you help my sister and me, please? 11) Be sure that everyone brings ____________ (his/their/him/theirs) own book. 12) If anyone calls, tell ____________ (me/them/him/their) that I'll be back in half an hour. 13) Joe and ____________ (I/me/your/theirs) have been close friends for many years. 14) Did you see Derek and ____________ (I/me/we/ours) at the game? 15) Between you and ____________ (he/theirs/me/her), this politician cannot be trusted. 16) Each person in the room turned ____________ (his/their/ours/them) head to the front when the teacher entered. 17) We know that we can count on James, Anne, and ____________ (my/its/her/us). 18) Rhonda explained that ____________ (hers/mine/our/she) and her sister had often eaten at that restaurant. 19) Most of the workers were wearing ____________ (themselves/their/us/I) hard hats. 20) It's always best for a student to ask questions when ____________ (she/they/us/themselves) doesn't understand a problem. 21) The children in that neighborhood often ride ____________ (them/ours/their/we) bikes through the park. 22) The local government plans to cut ____________ (it/their/we/theirs) budget for recreation. 23) When I meet new people, I'm usually curious about ____________ (my/its/us/their) occupations. 24) Everyone who purchased one of the paintings ____________ (were/was) pleased. 25) Few of the suggestions ____________ (is/are) reasonable to me. 26) Christopher and ____________ (me/herself/hers/I) want to travel to the Far East some day. 27) The cost of the repairs shocked both my brother and ____________ (their/myself/I/me). 28) Most of the congestion on the highway ____________ (is/are) caused by an overturned truck. 29) To Maria and ____________ (I/ourselves/mine/me) , the movie seemed very silly. 30) Both of the bicycles in the garage ____________ (is/are) broken.