Personal Pronouns (Subjective Case) | (A-Level, Basic)
Summary
| Person |
Singular |
Plural |
| First |
I |
we |
| Second |
you |
you (you all) |
| Third |
he (masculine)
she (feminine)
it (neuter) |
they |
This lesson has exercises.
First, Second, and Third Person
In grammar, the pronouns are called first, second, and third person. The pronouns are also singular (one person) or plural (more than one person).
First Person
The first person pronoun singular is “I.” It is used when “I am speaking.” The first person pronoun plural is “we.” It is used when “I and more people are speaking.”
Examples with the first person
First Person Singular: “I”
I am a student.
I am from the United States.
I love dogs.
I’m learning English.
First Person Plural: “We”
We are students
We are from the United States.
We love dogs.
We’re learning English.
Second Person
The second person pronoun singular is “you.” I use it for the person I am talking to. The second person pronoun plural is “you.” I use it for the people you are talking to.
You usually know when someone is talking to one person or many people, but sometimes people say “you all” to avoid confusion.
Examples with the second person
Second Person Singular: “You”
You are a good student.
Are you American?
— Yes, I am.
Do you speak English?
— Yes, I do.
Are you learning French?
— No, I’m not.
Second Person Plural: “You” (”you all”)
You are good students.
Are you American?
— Yes, we are.
Do you speak English?
— Yes, we do.
Are you learning French?
— No, we don’t.
Third Person
You use the third person pronoun to talk about a person or persons. The third person has three grammatical genders: masculine, feminine, and neuter. You use the neuter when the gender is not important or when you talk about animals, things, ideas, and so on.
The masculine, feminine, and neuter third person singular are “he,” “she,” and “it.”
The masculine, feminine, and neuter third person plural is “they.”
Examples with the third person
Masculine Third Person Singular: “He”
Is Pedro a good student?
— Yes, he is.
Is Pedro an American?
— No, he isn’t. He’s from Portugal.
Does Pedro speak French?
— No, he doesn’t.
Is Pedro learning French?
— No, he’s learning Italian.
Feminine Third Person Singular: “She”
Is Anne a good student?
— Yes, she is.
Is Anne an American?
—No, she isn’t. She’s from France.
Does Anne speak French?
— Yes, she does.
Is Anne learning German?
— No, she’s learning Italian.
Neutral Third Person Singular: “It”
Look at that house.
— It’s very nice.
Is that a dog or a cat?
— It’s a cat.
Do you speak English?
— Yes, I speak it very well.
Third Person Plural: “They”
Are John and Anne good students?
— Yes, they are.
Are they Americans?
— No, they’re not.
Do John and Anne speak English.
— Yes. they speak it very well.
Notes
When people talk about their own pets, they usually use “she” or “he.”
This is my dog. She’s a good girl!
You can use “she” to refer to a country.
Belgium is in Europe. She has a rich history.
Some people use “she” to talk about cars or boats, especially when they love them.
This is my favorite car. She is old, but she still works very well.
In conversational English, you can use “they” to refer to one person when the person’s gender (male or female) is not important or defined or when you do not know it. This is called the “gender-neutral they” or “the singular they.”
I have a student from Jamaica. They can speak three languages.
Someone is on the phone. They want to talk to you.
Practice
Practice 1. Practice subjective personal pronouns (using the verb “be” only).
Practice 2. Practice subjective personal pronouns (using the verb “be” only).
Practice 3. Practice subjective personal pronouns (using “be” and other verbs).
Practice 4. Create sentences using subjective personal pronouns (using “be” and other verbs).
Congratulations on completing this lesson!
Thanks to our supporters!
This material has been made possible by supporters like you. Learn how you can support us.
“What should I learn next?”
Learn about link text describe the material.
Thank you for Supporting Snap Language
Snap Language supporters make the creation of these materials possible.
Learn how you can support our work, get perks, and help us continue creating high-quality materials.
You can support us by simply white-listing this site.
Photo credit: “Pointing man” based on a photo by Mart Productions from Pexels.
woosh!… ─=≡Σ((( つ◕ل͜◕)つ