What is a pronoun? It’s simply a word that takes the place of a noun.
Pronoun cases: Subject, Object, Possessive, Reflexive
1) Subject: I, you, he, she, it, we, they
Use subject pronouns when…
(a) the pronoun is the subject of the sentence:
I am the boss.
She is my friend.
We are out of time.
(b) the pronoun renames the subject*:
It was she.
This is he speaking.
It was they who chose not to attend.
*follows “to be” verbs: is, are, was, were, am, will be
2) Object: Me, you, him, her, it, us, them
Use object pronouns everywhere else.
Mary walked with us.
When can you visit me?
I met him yesterday.
Here’s where it gets a little tricky… How do you decide whether the Subject or Object pronoun should follow the words than or as? See if you can choose correctly by completing the sentence:
John is as punctual as she/her.
Completing the sentence, it reads: John is as punctual as she (is).
Everyone is faster than I/me.
Completing the sentence, it reads: Everyone is faster than I (am).
3) Possessive: mine, yours, his, hers, its, ours, theirs
Use possessive pronouns to show ownership – they NEVER take an apostrophe.
Did you pick up her dry cleaning?
The car is ours tonight.
Have they found their dog yet?
Note: Its is a possessive pronoun. It’s is a contraction meaning “it is” or “it has”. Remember: Possessive pronouns never take an apostrophe.
4) Reflexive: myself, yourself, himself, herself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, themselves
Reflexive pronouns are always used as objects, when the subject and the object are the same and to emphasize the subject.
Correct Usage:
I injured myself.
My father can drive himself to the doctor.
She talks to herself when under stress.
We can do the job ourselves.
Incorrect Usage:
Mary and myself have the time to walk the dog.
Correct: Mary and I have the time to walk the dog.
Bill gave John and yourself his change of address.
Correct: Bill gave John and you his change of address.
Note: The trick to using reflexive pronouns correctly is to remember that they’re always used as objects and must refer back to another word in the sentence.
Source: The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation by Jane Strauss
Kindle Edition
I highly recommend this easy-to-use grammar guide. Besides great instruction, it comes with lots of quizzes to give you practice.
Comments on this entry are closed.
{ 1 trackback }