2 Pronouns

Part of Speech
In the English language, words can be considered as the smallest elements that have
distinctive meanings. Based on their use and functions, words are categorized into several
types or parts of speech. This article will offer definitions and examples for the 8 major parts
of speech in English grammar: noun, pronoun, verb, adverb, adjective, conjunction,
preposition and interjection.
2. Pronoun
A pronoun is a part of a speech which functions as a replacement for a noun. Some examples
of pronouns are: I, it, he, she, mine, his, hers, we, they, theirs, and ours.
Examples:
Janice is a very stubborn child. She just stared at me and when I told her to stop.
The largest slice is mine.
We are number one
The italicized words in the sentences above are the pronouns in the sentence.
Kinds of Pronouns
There are six kinds of pronouns (intensive and reflexive pronouns have two uses) with
different functions:
1. Personal pronouns
This kind of pronoun refers to a particular person or thing. The form of the personal pronoun
that is appropriate to use for a specific sentence depends on the gender and number of
persons or things that serve as the antecedents.
For example, you are referring to a female subject in the sentence, the pronouns that are
appropriate to use are: she, her, and hers. If you are referring to a male, you can use: he, him,
and his. For a group of persons, not including yourself, the appropriate pronouns are: they,
them, and theirs.
Personal pronouns can serve as the subjects, objects of the verb or preposition, and can also
show possession. They are formally classified into: subjective personal pronouns, objective
personal pronouns, and possessive personal pronouns.
Examples:
You are definitely the biggest science nerd I’ve ever met.
In the example above, the underlined pronoun serves as the subject.
Harry persuaded her to come with him.
The pronoun “her” is the object of the verb persuaded. Him, on the other hand, is the
object of the preposition with.
Ours is the one on the left.
The pronoun “ours” signifies possession.
2. Demonstrative pronouns
The function of this kind of pronoun is to point to a noun. Examples are: this, these, that, and
those. The pronouns “this” and “these” points to things that are nearby while the other two are
for things that are far. Aside from proximity, you must also consider the number of things you
are pointing out. For singular nouns, “this” and “that” should be used, while for plural nouns
“these” and “those” are appropriate.
Examples:
That is the car that I’ll buy for my birthday.
The speaker is pointing out to a singular noun that is far from him/her.
She said she wanted these.
The underlined pronoun refers to a plural noun and also serve as the object of the verb
wanted.
3. Indefinite pronouns
This kind of pronoun refers to unspecified things. Some examples are: any, all, another, each,
anyone, anything, anybody, nobody, everyone, everybody, someone, somebody, few, and
many.
Examples:
Many were called for the interview but only 3 were hired.
He’s ready to give up everything for his family’s safety.
4. Intensive pronouns
The function of intensive pronouns is to give emphasis to the antecedent. Examples of this
kind of pronoun are: myself, itself, himself, herself, yourself, yourselves, themselves, and
ourselves.
Examples:
The president himself said that it was a terrorist attack.
I myself knew that it was a mistake.
5. Interrogative pronouns
As the title implies, the function of this kind of pronoun is to ask questions. Examples of
interrogative pronouns are: who, what, which, whom, whoever, whatever, whichever, and
whomever.
Examples:
Who wrote the book 1984?
What did the doctors say?
6. Relative pronouns
This kind of pronoun links one clause or phrase to another. Some of the most common relative
pronouns are: who, whoever, whomever, that, and which.
Examples:
The contestant who gets the highest score wins the million dollar jackpot.
In this sentence, the underlined pronoun is the subject of the verb gets. The subordinate
clause, “who gets the highest score wins the million dollar jackpot,” describes the noun
contestant.
He will accept whichever project comes first.
The subordinate clause, ”whichever project comes first,” serves as the object of the verb
“will accept.”
7. Reflexive pronouns
This kind of pronoun is used to refer back to the subject. Some of the reflexive pronouns are:
yourself, myself, ourselves, himself, herself, themselves, and itself.
Example:
Sandra never forgets to send a copy of the email to herself.
The pronoun “herself” refers back to the subject of the sentence, which is Sandra.
He promised to repair the broken fence, however, we ended up fixing it ourselves.
The underlined reflexive pronoun refers back to the subject we.
Final Thoughts
An in-depth understanding of pronouns and their functions is very important in creating well-
constructed compositions. Pronouns make the flow of words and thoughts smoother and this
should definitely engage your readers.

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