Independent pronouns in English. Pronouns in English

A pronoun, instead of a name, helps replace a noun in speech to avoid annoying repetitions. IN English, as in Russian, there are several types of pronouns. Today we will talk about what these pronouns are, how they are expressed and how to easily and quickly learn them. How to easily learn English pronouns?

Getting to know the types of pronouns in English

The first type and the most important - Personal Pronouns. This type of pronoun is the most common in speech. Everyone, both beginners and people who have been practicing English for a long time, knows simple and short words:

I - I You - you / you
He - he She - she
It - it, this
We - we They - they

Pay attention to the offers:

• I am busy now. - I'm busy now.
• They are going to take their sister with them. — They are going to take their sister with them.
• We must learn English pronouns. — We must learn English pronouns.

The same Personal Pronouns, but in the genitive and dative cases:

Me - me, me
You - you, you/you, you
Him - him, to him
Her - hers, her Its - his, him
Us - us, to us
Them - them, to them For example:

• Tell us that you are not guilty! - Tell us it's not your fault!
• Allow them to pass, please. - Let them pass, please.
• Take me with you. - Take me with you.

The next type of English pronouns is Possessive Pronouns(possessive):

My - my (my, mine)
Your - yours/yours
His
Her - her Its - his
Our - ours
Their - theirs

• Give me my copy-book, please. - Give me my notebook, please.
• Where is your coat? -Where is your coat?
• She is walking with her dog. — She is walking with her (her) dog.

Reflexive Pronouns or reflexive pronouns look like this:

Myself - I myself (myself, myself, etc.)
Yourself - you yourself/yourself
Himself - himself
Herself - she herself
Itself - it itself
Ourselves - ourselves
Yourselves - yourself
Themselves - themselves

• It switches itself off. — It turns off by itself.
• She does everything herself. - She does everything herself.
• You should think about yourselves. “You should think about yourself.”

And finally, the absolute form or Absolute Pronouns, which is used without nouns:

Mine - mine, mine, mine
Yours - yours
His
Hers - her Its - his
Ours - ours
Theirs - theirs For example:

• Don't touch this bag; it's mine! - Don't touch this bag, it's mine!
• This is our classroom; where is yours? - This is our class, where is yours?
• My flat is on the first floor, theirs is on the last floor. — My apartment is on the first floor, and theirs is on the last.

We will not dwell in detail on each type of English pronouns, because we examined them in detail in our previous articles. We'll just focus on how to learn them quickly and effectively.
Demonstrative pronouns in English

Learn English pronouns quickly and effectively!

So, you have decided to master pronouns in English and remember them once and for all! A very correct decision, because not a single dialogue, not a single conversation is complete without these words. We want to offer you several ways to quickly and firmly learn all these types of English pronouns. Moreover, this can be done without interrupting work, household chores or relaxation.

First, make yourself a table that contains all of the above types of “substitutes” for English nouns. For example, like this:

Make several copies of this sign, each type of pronoun separately and all together. Fortunately, English pronouns are short words, and each type is consonant with the previous one, that is, they are similar in sound and even in spelling.

So you've made a table; Now place leaves or funny colored stickers with a sign wherever possible: on your desktop, on a bookshelf, in a work bag, in a case along with mobile phone, in the kitchen near your favorite cup, near the cupboard with dishes. Let these pronouns be before your eyes until you “click them like seeds.”

Seeing English pronouns before your eyes at every step, simply repeat them out loud several times. Also, substitute auxiliary words with the help of which the pronouns will be more firmly etched in memory: my book, his cup etc. Complicate the task, add more auxiliary words: this is our house, that is their car etc.

Call things around you with pronouns

“Run” English pronouns with your eyes at every opportunity and free minute: on the way to work, from work or from school, at night before going to bed, etc. You yourself will not notice how your visual memory will serve you good service, and you'll learn pronouns in just a few days.

Any student who begins to learn English from scratch on their own or with a teacher will already learn in the first lesson how to answer the question “ What's your name?” (Russian. What is your name?).

Answering “ My name is...“ (Russian. My name is...), he doesn’t even think that he already knows two possessive pronouns: my(my, mine, mine. mine) and your(Russian: yours, yours, yours, yours), without which it is impossible to communicate in English.

We use the same possessive pronouns for everything, but do we own our lives or sisters or husbands in the same way we own our shoes? Do we own any of them at all?

We use possessive pronouns for everything, but do we really own our lives, sisters, or husbands in the same way we own our shoes? Do we own it all?

~ Samantha Harvey

They may cause some misunderstanding on the part of those who are just starting to learn English and are encountering Possessive pronouns for the first time.

IN English grammar two species coexist peacefully possessive pronouns: Possessive Adjectives(possessive adjectives) and Possessive Pronouns(possessive pronouns). We will talk about them today in this article.

Possessive pronouns in English

Possessive pronouns help us understand that someone or something owns something. Signature on keychains: I am yours (Russian. I am yours), And you are mine (Russian. And you are mine)

Let's first remember what a possessive pronoun is.

Possessive pronouns(mine, yours, ours, and others) indicate the attribute of belonging to a certain person and answer the question whose? In Russian they agree with the noun in number, gender and case.

What about English possessive pronouns? There are two forms of possessive pronouns in English ( Possessive adjectives and Possessive pronouns), which vary in spelling and how they are used in a sentence.

Let's take a closer look at both forms of possessive pronouns in English.

Possessive Adjectives

Possessive pronouns in English, reminiscent of an adjective in its role in a sentence, and which are always used with a noun, are called Possessive Adjectives(Russian possessive adjective).

Below is a table of the formation of possessive pronouns in English and their comparison with personal pronouns.

Possessive pronouns dependent form (Table 1)

Possessive pronouns dependent form (Table 2)

When we want to indicate ownership, we cannot use !

Offer He name was Carl(Russian. His name was Karl) sounds strange and incorrect in both English and Russian. He is a personal pronoun. Replace it with a suitable possessive adjective his and get a grammatically and logically correct sentence: His name was Car l (Russian. His name was Karl)

Sometimes this form of possessive pronouns or Possessive Adjectives called dependent, since it cannot be used independently, without a noun.

Remember!

Possessive pronouns-adjectives (Possessive Adjectives) in English they are used only in conjunction with a noun and always come before it.

Since dependent possessive pronouns resemble adjectives in their functionality, they also serve as a definition in a sentence.

Example sentences with possessive adjectives in English

Often, beginners learning English confuse possessive adjectives with abbreviated forms of the verb. to be:

your And you're (= you are)

its And it's (= it is)

Compare the use of possessive pronouns and the abbreviated form of the verb:

Possessive Pronouns

Possessive pronouns in English that can be used in a sentence without a noun are called Possessive Pronouns(Russian possessive pronoun).

Possessive Pronouns also called absolute or independent form of possessive pronouns. In this form, nouns are never placed after possessive pronouns, since these pronouns are used instead of nouns.

Remember!

Absolute possessive pronouns ( Possessive Pronouns) in English are used without a noun and serve in a sentence as the subject, object, or nominal part of the predicate.

Below is a table of the formation of absolute possessive pronouns in English and their comparison with personal pronouns.

Possessive pronouns in English absolute form (Table 1)

Possessive pronouns in English absolute form (Table 2)

English possessive pronouns in absolute form replace the possessive adjective ( Possessive Adjective) with a noun to avoid repetition of information, since everything is clear without it. For example:

This book is my book, not your book(Russian. This book is my book, not your book)

This book is mine, not yours(Russian. This book is mine, not yours)

As you noticed, in both Russian and English the second sentence sounds more natural. Let's look at how possessive pronouns are used in a sentence.

Examples of sentences with possessive pronouns in English

Possessive pronoun its in absolute form it is used extremely rarely, only in conjunction with the word own:

The cottage seems asleep yet, but it may have a life of its own(Russian. It seemed that the cottage was still sleeping, but perhaps it lived its own life).

My or Mine? Possessive pronoun or adjective?

The poster has an inscription with a striking example of the use of possessive pronouns in the dependent and absolute forms: “Because my body is mine (belongs to me!)”

As already mentioned, we use possessive adjectives and pronouns, when we need to express ownership. Both forms are translated into Russian in the same way.

Possessive adjective ( Possessive Adjective) is always used followed by a noun:

This is my pen(Russian: This is my pen), where my– possessive adjective, pen – following noun.

Possessive pronouns ( Possessive Pronouns) are always used independently, without an accompanying word:

This pen is mine(Russian: This pen is mine), where mine– a possessive pronoun after which we DO NOT NEED a noun.

Comparison chart of possessive adjectives and possessive pronouns.

The semantic load does not change in these two sentences. However, when we need to emphasize someone or something, it is better to use the absolute form.

Translation of English possessive pronouns

There is no difference in the meaning of possessive adjectives and pronouns in English and their translation into Russian.

English possessive pronouns in dependent and absolute forms are translated into Russian in the same way, but there are a few things you need to know about.

Translation of the possessive pronoun your into English

In English there is no special possessive pronoun corresponding to the Russian possessive pronoun ""svoy"".

Russian pronoun ""your"" translated into English appropriate possessive pronouns.

Examples of sentences in English with translation of the pronoun your

English possessive pronouns are usually not translated into Russian when they are combined with nouns denoting parts of the body or items of clothing, but are always present before the noun.

In Russian, possessive pronouns are usually not used with similar nouns. Compare English possessive sentences with translation:

Special cases of using possessive pronouns

Using the Of yours structure

Very often (especially in American English) you can hear the following construction: a friend/some friends of + mine, yours, etc:

I saw a friend of yours last night(Russian: I saw one of your friends last night) = I saw one of your friends last night.

Here are some friends of mine(Russian: Here are my friends) = Here are my friends.

Offers I saw one of your friends last night and I saw a friend of yours last night will be translated the same way: “Last night I saw one of your friends.” However, there is a slight semantic difference.

Let's look at phrases “my friend” And “a friend of mine”.

“My friend” will be said about a close friend. If you call a person “my friend”, it means you have a warm and trusting relationship with him. But, each of us has people with whom we just have good relationships. These are just our friends and acquaintances. This is exactly what we need here: “a friend of mine”.

Myself indefinite article indicates to us that “one of” friends, someone undefined:

This is my friend Jessica.(“my friend” – before the name)

This is Jessica, a friend of mine.(“a friend of mine” – after the name)

With the phrase "a friend of mine" associated with one funny fact. In English-speaking culture there is a concept "urban myth"(BrE) or "urban legend"(AmE). This is a story, usually with an unexpected, humorous or instructive ending, which the narrator passes off as a real event.

We call these stories "tales" or "fiction". These incidents allegedly happen to a certain acquaintance of the narrator, and the name of the acquaintance is never specified.

Most of these stories (or “tales”) begin with the words: This happened to a friend of mine... (This happened to one of my friends...).

When to use Yours faithfully and Yours sincerely

You've probably already come across the phrases Yours faithfully or Yours sincerely at the end of an official letter, for example:

Yours sincerely, Mary Wilkinson(Russian: Sincerely yours, Mary Wilkinson).

At business correspondence- these are irreplaceable phrases that need to be written at the end of the letter. Read more about the features of business English.

Examples of using the phrases “Yours faithfully” and “Yours sincerely”

Using an English noun in the genitive case

Possessive nouns can be used as possessive pronouns to talk about belonging to someone in particular.

As a rule, the use of nouns in the possessive case does not affect the form of possessive pronouns, for example:

Whose cell phone is that? - It's John's.(Russian. Whose phone is this? - Jonah.)

Who do these computers belong to? - They "re our parents".(Russian: Who owns these computers? – Our parents.)

The relationship of belonging or involvement of one object to another can also be indicated using the possessive case ( The Possessive case). which we will talk about in our next article.

Possessive pronouns in English: video

To finally consolidate the acquired knowledge, we recommend that you watch a video about possessive adjectives and possessive pronouns.

English Grammar Lessons - Possessive Adjectives and Pronouns

In conclusion:

In this article, we tried to explain as simply as possible the use of possessive pronouns in English and how to correctly answer the question “whose” in English.

We hope that after reading our article, you will no longer have any questions on this topic and you will be able to use this grammar correctly in your speech and writing.

Stay on our site and you will discover a lot from the world of English grammar!

Exercises on possessive pronouns

Now we invite you to test your knowledge of possessive pronouns in English by completing the following test.

Select correct option(insert either possessive adjective or possessive pronoun):

Jane has already eaten her lunch, but I"m saving hers/her/my/mine until later.

She has broken hers/her/his leg.

My mobile needs to be fixed, but mine/his/our/their is working.

You/Yours/Mine/My computer is a Mac, but you/your/yours/my is a PC.

We gave them ours/mine/our/yours telephone number, and they gave us their/theirs/ours/mine.

Mine/My/Your/Your pencil is broken. Can I borrow you/yours/him/its?

Ours/Our/Your/My car is cheap, but you/your/yours/my is expensive.

You can"t have any chocolate! It"s all mine/my/our/yours!

How important are personal pronouns in English? We can safely say that personal pronouns are the basis of any language, especially English.

If they did not exist, even the most famous phrase I love you(Russian: I love you) could not exist! After all, it already contains two personal pronouns: I- me and you- You.

The pronoun is one of the most terrifying masks man has invented.

The pronoun is one of the most terrifying masks created by man

Personal pronouns in English have many similarities with Russian pronouns: they also change according to gender, number, and even cases. But there are also pitfalls to be aware of when learning personal pronouns on your own.

Today we will tell you what personal pronouns are there in English, we will give examples of sentences and reveal all the secrets of their use.

Personal pronouns in English!

Comparative table of personal pronouns in the nominative and objective cases, English.

As you know from the Russian language course, personal pronouns replace a noun. These can be names of people, places or objects. Mostly, personal pronouns are used instead of a noun to avoid repetition and make speech easier.

We usually add personal pronouns to a sentence when the noun has been mentioned before, that is, when the reader or listener knows what we are talking about.

For example:

Liz bought a new car two months ago. She absolutely loves it.(Russian Liz bought the car two months ago. She is crazy about it)

In the second sentence She absolutely loves it two pronouns are used: personal pronoun she replaces proper name Liz, and the personal pronoun it used instead of a noun car .

Important!

Personal pronouns in English help avoid repeating the same noun over and over again in a story.

The noun that is replaced is called antecedent(eng. antecedent). If you know the antecedent, you can always choose the correct personal pronoun that agrees on numbers (singular or plural), persons (first, second or third), gender (masculine, feminine, neuter) and cases (nominative, objective, ).

Basic grammatical features personal pronouns in English:

English personal pronouns have a singular ( I, he, it etc.) and plural ( we, they etc.);

Personal pronouns in the English language change according to gender in the 3rd person singular: husband. ( he- he), female ( she-she), wed.( it-it);

• This type of pronoun changes by person: 1st person ( I, we), 2nd person ( you), 3rd person ( he, she, it, they)
• Personal pronouns in English have two cases: nominative ( he, she, we, they etc.) and object ( me, them, us etc.).

But first things first. Let's first look at How do personal pronouns change in English? by persons, genders and numbers in various cases.

Personal pronouns in English: nominative case

English personal pronouns in nominative case are called Subject Pronouns. Word subject the subject is translated into Russian, and in linguistics the term is used Subjective Case(Russian subject case).

The English subject case corresponds to the Russian nominative, which answers questions Who? So what? and acts as the subject of a sentence.

Therefore, English personal pronouns in the nominative case perform the function of the subject.

Pronouns I, we(Russian: I, we) are the first person of the only and plural and are used on behalf of the speakers.

Remember!

Pronoun I(Russian я) is always written with a capital letter, regardless of its place in the sentence.

Pronoun you is the second person singular and plural and corresponds to the Russian pronouns “you”, “you”, “You” (polite form). This pronoun is used in relation to the interlocutor or interlocutors.

Enough large number learning English from scratch, trying to use English pronouns you with a singular verb, but this is incorrect. Even when addressing one interlocutor, personal pronoun you always bears the characteristic of the plural.

Compare:

You are a student(Russian: You are a student.)

You are students(Russian: You are students)

Pronouns he, she, it(Russian he. she, it) and they(Russian they) are representatives of the third person singular and plural.

As you probably already know, the verb is in the 3rd person singular. numbers (that is, when used with personal pronouns he, she, it) has a number of features in the formation of sentences in a number of other times.

Let's look at how personal pronouns are used in a sentence with examples.

Examples of sentences with personal pronouns in English with translation

Object case of personal pronouns in English

Objective case Objective Case) in English performs functions similar to those performed in Russian by other cases except the nominative.

Therefore, there are quite a few options for translating personal pronouns in the objective case into Russian, as you can see in the table.

Table of personal pronouns in the nominative case:

As you can see from the table, we can draw an analogy between pronoun her(objective case of personal pronoun she) in a sentence I see her with Russian accusative I see (who, what?) her.

English personal pronouns in the objective case often appear in sentences as direct or indirect object .

Compare:

I phoned him to congratulate him.(Russian: I called him to congratulate him), where is the pronoun him is a direct complement.

She apologized to me.(Russian: She apologized to me) - where is the pronoun (to) me used with a preposition and is an indirect object

Personal pronouns with prepositions in English

An example of the use of personal pronouns as subject, direct and indirect object in English

English personal pronouns in the subjective (nominative) case serve as the subject of a sentence.

For example:

I like your flowers.- I like your (your) flowers.

They are working in the garden.- They are working in the garden.

We go to the cinema.- We're going to the cinema.

But with personal pronouns in the objective case, not everything is so simple. Let's consider the main functions in the sentence of object pronouns in English, and with which Russian cases they are more similar.

• Object pronouns in English as direct object corresponds to the accusative case in Russian (whom? what?)

Doesn't love me(Russian: He loves me)

Do you know him?(Russian. Do you know him?)

I see her everywhere(Russian. I see her everywhere)

• Personal pronouns in the objective case can serve as non-prepositional indirect object and are similar to the Russian dative case, answering the question to whom? what?:

He have her book(Russian: He gave her a book)

Mary told us to choose a dish(Russian Mary told us to choose a dish)

• Sometimes English object pronouns perform role of the subject in short remarks, which is typical for spoken language, which is not entirely grammatically correct:

Who did it? - Not me! /Me(Russian. Who did this? - Not me! / I)

I am feeling tired - Me too(Russian: I'm very tired. - Me too)

• Combination of pronoun with preposition to corresponds dative case in Russian (to whom?) and performs the function indirect (indirect) object:

Show the book to him(Russian: Show the book to him)

I sent a letter to them(Russian: I sent a letter to them)

• Pronoun combination with prepositions by and with corresponds to the instrumental case in Russian (by whom? what?) and is indirect object:

This article was translated by her(Russian. This article was translated by her)

I want to go with you(Russian: I want to go with you/with you)

• After the words except(Russian except) and but(Russian except) only object pronouns should be used:

Nobody but him helped me(Russian. Nobody but him helped me.)

Everyone except me went home(Russian. Everyone except me went home.)

Personal pronouns in English: sentences with examples

Only I can change my life. No one can do it for me. (Russian: Only I can change my life. No one can do this for me).

In this section we will talk about the generally accepted rules for using personal pronouns in English.

When to use I and me, we and us, he and him, etc.

As we have already written, English pronouns are in the nominative case ( I, you, he, she, it, we, they) act as the subject.

They are typically used before a verb to show who is doing the action.

For example:

Peter complained to the chef about the meal.(Russian Peter complained to the chef about the dish.)

She wasn’t very helpful so he spoke to the manager.(Russian. She didn’t really help, so he turned to the manager)

In the second sentence the pronouns she And he indicate who directly performed the action (she didn’t help, he turned).

Pronouns in the objective case ( me, you, him, her, it, us, them) are additions. In a sentence they are usually used after a verb or preposition.

Also, they can be used as short answers, mainly in colloquial speech.

For example:

A: Where’s the knife? I can't find it(Russian. Where is the knife? I can’t find it)

B: It is in the drawer.(Russian: He is in the box)

In the first sentence pronoun it used in the objective case, and is the object on which the action is performed (I can’t find it=knife). In the second sentence this is the same pronoun it is in the nominative case and is the subject (He = knife in the drawer)

Examples of using personal pronouns in English

Personal pronouns he, she, it

Personal pronouns he, she, it are representatives of a third party singular, and determine the form of feminine, masculine and neuter gender.

Nowadays in colloquial speech you can notice the use of several pronouns, a kind of “neutral form”, if the speaker is not sure about a person’s belonging to a certain gender, for example: he or she, he/she, s/he, (s)he.

For example:

The bank manager could help with your problem. He or she will probably be able to give you a loan.(Russian: The bank manager can help you. He or she will probably be able to give you a loan.)

It is necessary to remember some features of the use of the pronoun “it” in English.

Personal pronoun it defines objects and is often translated as “he/she” in Russian. The English pronoun it denotes not only inanimate objects, but often even animals.

Pronoun it often used in impersonal sentences when there is no subject:

gives an assessment of some action, for example: It is important to know this(Russian. It is important to know this);

indicates space and time: It is 10 km to the airport(Russian: 10 km to the airport), It is 10 o"clock now.(Russian: It’s 10 o’clock now.)

• indicates the weather: It is getting dark(Russian: It’s getting dark)

Example sentences with pronouns he, she, it

Using it and that, it and this

Many English language learners are interested in how sentences like this differ This is a pen from It is a pen, since both sentences are translated This is a pen.

Difference in usage this and it often underestimated, since many believe that there is no difference and “they will understand you either way.” But it's not that simple...

Pronoun this

when refers to a person, thing or thing that is spoken of or which is nearby or implied, or has recently been mentioned: These are my pens(Russian. These are my hands)

• when indicating something that is being researched or discussed nearby or is currently being explored: This is iron and that is tin.(Russian: This is iron, and that is tin)

Pronoun it used in the following cases:

when identifying an inanimate object: Took a quick look at the house and noticed it was very old(Russian: I looked at the house and noticed that it was old)

refers to a person or animal whose sex is unknown or irrelevant: I don't know who it is(Russian. I don’t know who it is)

• defines a group of people or things, or an abstract entity: Beauty is everywhere and it is a source of joy.(Russian: Beauty is everywhere and it is a source of admiration)

Remember!

Definitive pronoun this used in relation to a person or thing that is being spoken about, which is implied or which will be discussed later, while personal pronoun it usually refers to an inanimate thing, or is used in relation to a person, thing, idea, etc., taken in a more abstract way.

There are other special uses pronouns it and that in English.

1. Pronoun this used as a definition and comes before a noun:

This cat is black(Russian. This cat is black).

Pronoun It cannot be used in this function.

2. Pronoun it used in impersonal sentences as a formal subject that is not translated:

It is dark(Russian: Dark).

If you use in this sentence this, there will be no error, but the meaning will change, since now the sentence is not impersonal, but personal, in which this will be translated because it replaces the above noun: This is my room and that is yours. This (one) is dark and that (one) is not.(Russian. This is my room, and that one is yours. Mine (this room) is dark, but yours (that room) is not)

3. Pronoun it can also be a substitute word for the above-mentioned noun and act as a subject and as an object:

This is a cat. This cat is black = It is black(Russian. This is a cat. This cat is black. = She is black)

I will take this (book) not that (one)(Russian. I buy this book, but not that one). The semantic emphasis on this particular book is this, and not on that one - that .

I will take it.(Russian: Buying/Taking), semantic emphasis on taking – will take

Choice it or this in this case it depends on what task the speaker faces:

must be used this, if you need to point to a specific object in the field of view or highlight this object against the background of other “distant” objects;

• must be used it, if you need to generalize without transferring the semantic load to the addition, as if we said: “everything that you already know from the previous sentence, so I won’t be specific.”

4. Pronoun it used in intensifying sentences as a formal subject:

Roll call response: It's me (I)(Russian: I / Here / I am present)

Answer to the question Who's there? when knocking on the door: It's me, Tom!(Russian: I / It's me, Tom)

In fact, these sentences are intensifying: It is I who has been called over. It is I, Tom, who has knocked at your door.(Russian. It’s me, the one you called. It’s me, the one who knocked on the door.) In this function this cannot be used.

Also, one of the differences between the pronouns under consideration is that this introduces new information (rheme), and it– known information (topic), therefore this always translated, but it- No.

Another significant difference is that the word it used in expressions related to time and weather, as well as in some fixed expressions, for example:

It's five past twelve(Russian: Time is five minutes past twelve)

It often rains in our region(Russian: It often rains in our region)

It isn’t easy to believe him again(Russian: It's not easy to trust him again)

Using the pronoun they

Pronoun they used to identify people, animals and objects in the plural.

Also, pronoun they refers to institutions, authorities, or groups of people in general.

Example sentences with the pronoun they

Special cases of using personal pronouns in English

In colloquial speech, the rules for using personal pronouns in English may not be followed. The picture shows the inscription I do. Me too instead of I do. So do I.

Using personal pronouns in informal conversation

• You and me or you and I?

Sometimes there is a difficult choice between: You and me or you and I? It seems that both options sound familiar and correct. But in fact, one option is correct (and therefore standard), and the second is grammatically incorrect, but still used in informal speech.

To determine the correct option, look at which part of the sentence this combination is: subject or object:

You and I will work tomorrow

(Russian: You and I will work tomorrow)

Now take it away you and we get: I will work tomorrow(Russian: I will work tomorrow) or Me will work tomorrow(Russian: I will be working tomorrow)

The second sentence is incorrect because the object pronoun me cannot be a subject. However, in informal conversation, you can hear You and me will work tomorrow, even though it is grammatically incorrect.

Another example:

They invited you and I

They invited you and me(Russian: They invited you and me)

Now let's remove the pronoun you :

They invited I(Russian: They invited me)

They invited me(Russian: They invited me)

Here the second sentence is correct because subject pronoun I cannot be an addition.

• Personal pronouns after “Than” and “As”

Faithful grammatical form It is considered the use of personal pronouns in the nominative case followed by an auxiliary verb:

You are taller than I am(Russian: You are taller than me)

I earn as much money as he does

However, quite often a simple pronoun in the objective case is used, just this option considered typical of a conversational, informal style:

You are taller than me(Russian: You are taller than me)

I earn as much money as him(Russian: I earn as much money as he does)

• Using personal pronouns in short answers

An object pronoun cannot be the subject of a sentence, but such use can be found after verb to be in short answers:

Who is there? - (It is) me!(Russian. Who's there? - (It's) me)

Who gave you this? - (It was) him.(Russian. Who gave you this? - (It was) him)

• “Omitting” a personal pronoun

Sometimes, a personal pronoun next to an auxiliary verb can be omitted in colloquial speech.

Don't know = I don't know(Russian: I don’t understand = I don’t understand)

Just kidding = I am just kidding(Russian: I'm kidding = I'm kidding)

Understand? = Do you understand?(Russian: Got it? = Do you understand?)

When are personal pronouns not used?

One of the features of personal pronouns is that they are not used after infinitive constructions if the subject and object are the same person:

This phone is easy to use (it).(Russian. This phone is easy to use.)

You are easy to understand (you).(Russian. You are easy to understand.)

But, the pronoun should be used if the impersonal pronoun it begins:

It is easy to understand you.(Russian: You are easy to understand)

Video about English personal pronouns

If there was anything unclear to you in our article, we recommend watching a video about personal pronouns in English.

Video on Personal Pronouns

Instead of a conclusion:

Pronouns help replace a person or thing, you need to be extremely careful not to confuse them, because this can confuse the listener or completely change the meaning of the sentence.

However, due to the fact that grammatically English personal pronouns They are very similar to Russian ones, their study and use does not cause serious problems.

We hope that after reading this article you will be able to use personal pronouns in English with ease!

Exercises on personal pronouns in English

Fill in the blanks with the appropriate form of the personal pronoun:

Sample: Who is that woman? Why are you looking at her?

“Do you know that man?’ “Yes, I work with _ .’

Where are the tickets? I can't find_.

I can't find my keys. Where are _?

We're going out. You can come with _.

Margaret likes music. _ plays the piano.

I don't like dogs. I'm afraid of _ .

I"m talking to you. Please listen to _.

Where is Ann? I want to talk to_.

My brother has a new job. He doesn’t like _ very much.

Studying any topic starts with its basics. The same goes for English pronouns. Yes, you can immediately throw yourself into the pool headlong, studying all the intricacies of this topic. However, if you do not know how this or that pronoun is translated or pronounced, immediately combining the word with other members and making sentences with them will be at least difficult, and at most impossible. Therefore, if you are just beginning your acquaintance with this topic, let's look at English pronouns with translation and pronunciation in order to avoid problems in their further development.

English pronoun types

To begin with, it is worth noting that pronouns in English are divided into 9 types:

1. Personal Pronouns or Personal Pronouns
2. Possessive Pronouns or Possessive Pronouns
3. Reflexive Pronouns or Reflexive Pronouns
4. Reciprocal Pronouns or Reciprocal Pronouns
5. Interrogative Pronouns or Interrogative Pronouns
6. Relative and Conjunctive Pronouns or Relative and Conjunctive Pronouns
7. Demonstrative Pronouns or Demonstrative pronouns
8. Quantitative pronouns or Quantitative pronouns
9. Indefinite Pronouns and Negative Pronouns or Indefinite Pronouns and Negative Pronouns

Each type has a limited number of words that you need to remember to express your thoughts. These words, as a rule, consist of a small number of letters and do not contain sounds, the pronunciation of which can cause difficulties at the initial stage. Let's look at each type in more detail and study the pronouns of the English language with transcription and translation.

English pronouns with translation and pronunciation: meaning and transcription

1. The main place among English pronouns is occupied by Personal Pronouns. This is the only group in which English allows case declension. Table for clarity:

1. The second most important is the Possessive Pronouns group or the group of possessive pronouns. It also has two forms: attached and absolute. They both answer the same question (“whose?”), but differ in that the first requires a noun after itself, and the second does not. Let's compare:

As you can see, these forms have something in common, but they are written and pronounced differently. Consider the complete list of possessive pronouns:

1. Reflexive Pronouns or reflexive pronouns are a group of pronouns that are translated into Russian to mean “oneself” and “oneself” depending on the situation:

The second part of these pronouns may remind you of the famous word “selfie”, which actually comes from the word “self”. The first parts repeat the pronouns of the two above-mentioned groups.

1. Reciprocal Pronouns or reciprocal pronouns in English are the group that will probably take the least time to memorize. It consists of two words with the same meaning:

1. The group of Interrogative Pronouns or the group of interrogative pronouns is more extensive. These pronouns, as the name suggests, are used to form questions:

1. Relative and Conjunctive Pronouns or relative and connecting pronouns are used in complex sentences. There are not many of them, but you need to know these words:

Some words in this group and the group of interrogative pronouns are similar, but their functions and meanings are different.

1. Demonstrative Pronouns or demonstrative pronouns in English are also often found in speech. Some of them have singular and plural forms:

1. There are pronouns in English that denote quantity. They are called Quantitative pronouns or quantitative pronouns. These include:

1. The most extensive group can rightfully be considered Indefinite Pronouns and Negative Pronouns or indefinite and negative pronouns. Most of them are formed by a combination of pronouns, which independently also perform the functions of this group, and other parts of speech:

And also pronouns:

These were all English pronouns with translation and pronunciation. I would like to pay special attention to pronunciation. The fact is that the sounds of the English language are different from the sounds of Russian, so it is actually quite difficult to convey how pronouns are pronounced in English.

The presented options are close to English pronunciation and added to make them easier to understand at a basic level. With this pronunciation you will definitely be understood, but for a more correct sound, study the transcriptions in English. To remember correct pronunciation It’s also great to listen to audio of native speakers and imitate their speaking style.

Pronoun in English, it is a part of speech that can replace (noun pronouns) or (adjective pronouns). Pronouns are some of the most used words in the language.

There are many pronouns, they are divided into several categories:

Personal pronouns

Denotes a face: me, you, she, he, it etc. They are used in two cases: nominative And objective.

I love my sister. – I I love my sister.

He is my boss. - He's my boss.

We are the champions. - We are champions.

This is my cat Lucy. - This my cat Lucy.

Someone's table their bikes yesterday - Someone stole it yesterday their bicycles,

You can see our family in the picture. – You can see our family in this photo.

Is that your opinion? - This yours opinion?

Possessive pronouns-nouns

Noun pronouns are used, as you might guess, instead of . In a sentence they perform the function of , or the nominal part of the predicate.

My pencil is broken, please give me yours.– My pencil is broken, please give it to me. your(yours replaces your pencil)

Her car is blue, mine is white. - Her car is blue, my– white (mine instead of my car).

Your team is strong but not stronger that ours. – Your team is strong, but not stronger our(teams).

Demonstrative pronouns in English

Point to a person or object, in Russian it is that, that, these, that etc. There are only two such pronouns in English - they have singular and plural forms.

You may ask, where is the line between “near” and “far”? There is no such line expressed in centimeters; you just need to rely on common sense. In Russian, we use the words “this” and “that” in the same way.

This man – this person (well, there he is, standing next to him).

That man – that person (not present here or the one standing aside).

These photos – these photographs (pointing with my finger).

Those photos – those photographs (they hang on your wall at home).

For good movie examples of using this and that, see this video:

Reflexive pronouns

Reflexive pronouns mean that the action is directed by the actor towards himself; they are used as objects after some verbs. They are formed using endings -self, -selves, they join pronouns my, our, your, him, her, it, the, indefinite pronoun. In Russian, particles perform a similar function -sya, -sya at the end of the verb.

Protect yourself! - Defend yourself!

Don't hurt yourself- Don't get hurt.

There are cases when reflexive particles are used in Russian, but in English the same words are used without a reflexive pronoun. For example, in Russian we say: wash, shave, dress, bathe, hide. In English the corresponding to wash, to shave, to dress, to bathe, to hide usually used without reflexive pronouns:

I washed, dressed and shaved. – I washed, dressed and shaved.

Hide in the cardboard box. – Hide in a cardboard box.

I'd like to bathe. - I would like to take a swim.

Also, reflexive pronouns are used to strengthen, like Russian words yourself, yourself, yourself, yourself.

I heard it myself! - I heard it myself!

He di it himself- He did it himself.

A common mistake is to say I’m feeling myself fine \ I feel myself fine (I feel fine). Actually correct: I’am feeling fine \ I feel fine.

Reciprocal pronouns

Reciprocal pronouns are pronouns like “each other”. There are only two of them: each other(each other), one another(one another). In theory, each other- this is when two persons or objects, and one another- when there is a lot. In practice, no one pays much attention to these subtleties, especially in colloquial speech.

They don't talk about each other. - They don't talk about each other.

They often see one another. – They see each other often.

Please note that the preposition comes before the pronoun, and is not wedged into it, as in Russian. Compare:

They talk about each other – They say each other O friend.

Interrogative pronouns

Questions are asked using these pronouns, there are only four of them:

1.Who (whom)– who, whom, to whom.

Who is this person? – Who this person?

Who is here? – Who Here?

2.Whose– whose, whose, whose, whose.

Whose is that noise? – Whose Is this noise (who is making noise)?

Whose car is parked by the house? – Whose is the car parked at the house?

3. What- What.

What are you doing? – What are you doing?

What is going on? – What happening?

4.Which– what, which (which of several)

Which part of the task is hard for you? – Which part of the task is difficult for you?

Which student in your group had the best result? – Which student in your group has the best result?

Note: whom is who in the objective case, if who is “who,” then whom is “whom.” Who is often used instead of whom.

Who (whom) did you see there? – Whom did you see there?

Who (whom) can I ask for help? – Whom can I ask for help?

How to choose between I and Me?

Pronouns deserve special mention I and me, in which even native speakers often get confused. As stated above, I used as a me– object of action, . Here are simple examples:

I am looking for an interesting movie. – I I'm looking for an interesting film.

My sister was looking for me. - My sister was looking for me.

It would be a grave mistake to confuse these two pronouns:

Me is looking for an interesting movie.

My sister was looking for I.

But even children learning English as a foreign language rarely make mistakes. The difficulties begin in more complex sentences.

Case one: Anna and I\me went to the park

In sentences with two subjects like “Anna and I went to the park,” there is a choice between pronouns:

• Right: Anna and I went to the park.
• Incorrect, but found in colloquial speech: Anna and me went to the park.
• Unacceptable: Me went to the park.

The first option (Anna and I) is considered correct, because here I plays the role of subject. However, in colloquial speech the second option (Anna and me) is often used, which, however, offends the ears of educated people. But notice there are two subjects here. The option “Me went to the park” is not used and sounds very illiterate.

Case two: My father is talking to I\me and Anna

There are two additions here. If there was one addition here, everything would be clear: My father is talking to me. But when this pronoun is paired with another noun, even native speakers sometimes get confused.

• Right: me.
• Wrong: My father is talking to Anna and I.

Case three: John is taller than I\me

There are three possible options here, in short, they are all correct, there is a slight stylistic difference.

• John is taller than I am. – grammatically correct, most complete version, sounds official, serious.
• John is taller than I. – a grammatically correct option, also formal.
• John is taller than me. – grammatical correctness is ambiguous; this option is more common in colloquial speech.

The latter option is used more often and sounds more natural. Some linguists recognize it as correct, but some do not. This is a complex linguistic question due to the fact that scientists do not agree on whether than conjunction or preposition.

Another nuance of designs with than me is that a double understanding is possible. For example:

• me I(I love this dog).
• Mary loves her dog Jim more than me. – Mary loves her dog Jim more than me.

In this case, it is better to write the sentence more fully:

• Mary loves her dog Jim more than I do.
• Mary loves her dog Jim more than I love him.