PRONOUNS

A pronoun is a word that is used as a substitute for a noun. 

We classify pronouns in the following ways:

1. Personal Pronouns

These pronouns are used in place of nouns across all their cases (Nominative, Possessive, and Objective).

First & Second Person

Case	First Person (Singular)	First Person (Plural)	Second Person (Singular & Plural)
Nominative	I	We	You
Possessive	My	Our	Your
Objective	Me	Us	You

Third Person

Case	Masculine (Singular)	Feminine (Singular)	Neuter (Singular)	Plural
Nominative	He	She	It	They
Possessive	His	Her	Its	Their
Objective	Him	Her	It	Them

2. Reflexive Pronouns

Used as an object of a verb when it refers back to the same person or thing denoted by the subject.

Singular Reflexive Pronouns

• Myself: I have completed the entire project myself, single-handedly.
• Yourself: You should try this yourself.
• Herself: She told me about this incident herself.
• Himself: He had not seen the thief himself.
• Itself: The switch turns off itself when cooking is complete.

Plural Reflexive Pronouns

• Ourselves: We must talk to them ourselves.
• Yourselves: All you boys must fill out the forms yourselves.
• Themselves: They will have to submit a written complaint themselves.

3. Emphatic Pronouns

These are reflexive pronouns used immediately after the subject to add emphasis to the speaker's statement.

• E.g., I myself saw him stealing.
• E.g., She herself has made this scarf.

4. Possessive Pronouns

Used to show ownership or possession of something.

Singular

• Mine: This pen is mine.
• Yours: Is that car yours?
• His: The bungalow is his, not Walia’s.
• Hers: The fault is hers, as she concealed the truth.

Plural

• Ours: Those horses are ours.
• Yours: All the winning bulls were yours.
• Theirs: The data you transferred to us was theirs.

5. Demonstrative Pronouns

Used to point out specific things to which they refer.

• This (Singular / Near): This is a big mansion.
• These (Plural / Near): These are big mansions.
• That (Singular / Far): That is an abandoned farmhouse.
• Those (Plural / Far): Those were abandoned farmhouses.

6. Relative Pronouns

Used to refer back to a noun mentioned previously and to join two sentences together.

• Who: The boy who is standing there is my cousin.
• Whom: The old lady whom you helped is a billionaire.
• That: The pen that you gave me is missing.
• Which: The old mansion which you purchased contains a hidden treasure.

Note: In relative pronouns, who, whose, and whom are used for persons; which is used for animals and non-living objects; while that can be used for both.

7. Interrogative Pronouns

Used to ask questions using "wh-" words.

• Who: Who are you?
• Whom: Whom do you want to see?
• Which: Which is your favorite book?
• Whose: Whose car is this?

Note: In interrogative pronouns, who, whom, and whose are used for persons. Which is used for choosing among options for persons, animals, and non-living objects alike.

8. Indefinite Pronouns

Used when referring to a person or thing in a general way, without pointing to anyone specific.

Personal Reference

• Everybody: Everybody wants success.
• Everyone: Everyone was present in the hall.
• Somebody: Somebody is at the main gate.
• Someone: Someone wants to see you.
• Anybody: Anybody can join our classes.
• Anyone: Anyone can try this puzzle.
• Nobody: Nobody is interested in your proposal.
• No one: No one among us will complain against you.

Non-Personal Reference

• Everything: Everything we need is right here.
• Something: Something is missing.
• Anything: Anything can happen in the forest.
• Nothing: Nothing can deter her from her goal.

Practice Exercises

Exercise 1

Fill in the gaps with appropriate Personal or Possessive Pronouns:
(I, my, me, you, your, we, our, us, he, she, it, his, her, its, they, their, them, myself, yourself)

I like simple food made in hygienic ways. (a) _________ do not like hot and spicy food. Deep-fried items (b) _________ can eat, but (c) _________ are not my all-time favorites. (d) _________ all-time favorite is homemade, boiled dal-chawal, which my sister-in-law prepares for (e) _________ and my little nephew. (f) _________ also likes non-spicy food. (g) _________ favorite dish is steamed momos. (h) _________ like to make food (i) _________. What do (j) _________ like? What is (k) _________ favorite dish? Is (l) _________ spicy? Do you like to prepare food (m) _________?

Exercise 2

Fill in the gaps with suitable Demonstrative Pronouns:

1. __________ is the cat I bought from a gypsy woman. (this / these)
2. __________ are the horses we bought from an Arabian merchant. (that / those)
3. __________ are the cows my society brought from Mathura. (this / these)
4. __________ cattle are found everywhere in India. (such / this)

Exercise 3

Fill in the gaps with suitable Relative Pronouns from the brackets:
(Who, whose, whom, which, that)

1. The garden __________ you want to visit is closed today.
2. The mindset __________ makes you a coward should be changed.
3. The girl __________ came here today is charismatic.
4. The building, __________ history is five hundred years old, belongs to my forefathers.
5. The dealer __________ you gave the commission is absconding.
6. The pen __________ you lent me is very lucky for me.

Exercise 4

Fill in the gaps with suitable Indefinite Pronouns:
(Someone, anyone, no one, everyone)

__________ was telling me that __________ dreams of success and __________ likes to be called a failure. I asked my friends if __________ was there who wished to be a failure; __________ replied in the affirmative.

Exercise 5

Fill in the gaps with Interrogative Pronouns:
(Who, whose, whom, which, how many)

1. __________ car are you driving?
2. __________ school did you graduate from?
3. __________ is your role model?
4. __________ of us are truly honest with themselves?
5. __________ do you consider a successful person?

Exercise 6

There is one pronoun missing in each line. Find it and write it in the given space:

• a. Nazima is / Urdu teacher — My
• b. She comes at 4 o’clock to teach Urdu __________________
• c. I love this language, as it is beautiful __________________
• d. A combination of Arabic script and Hindi grammar __________________
• e. Amir Khusro made this wonderful language __________________
• f. __________________ was a renowned scholar of his times. He is also
• g. Known for his devotion to a great saint, Nizamuddin Aulia, __________________
• h. Whose grave is still visited by both Hindus and Muslims. __________________

Exercise 7

There is one incorrect pronoun in each line. Find it and write the correct one in the given space:

Uday is a wrestler. Till now they has won — he all the competitions.

Now she is eyeing __________________ the national championship

who will take place __________________ in the month of January.

Its Gurudev is proud __________________ of his devotion.

He is one of this vegetarian champions __________________

which slams the myth that flesh-eaters are more powerful than vegetarians. __________________

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Finished the exercises? Check your work here:

👉 Click Here for the Pronouns Answer Guide