Subject and object pronouns
Subject pronouns
Let’s look at the following sentences:
1a. Diplomats travel extensively.
1b. They travel extensively.
2a. Professor Susan Fields chaired the meeting.
2b. She chaired the meeting.
3a. Ben plays cards every week.
3b. He plays cards every week.
Notice that in each sentence pair, the underlined pronoun replaces the underlined noun. The underlined noun is doing the action in the sentence and comes before the verb. This kind of noun is called the subject of the sentence and the pronoun that replaces it is called a subject pronoun.
Now let’s examine these sentences:
4a. Biology is her favorite subject.
4b. It is her favorite subject.
5a. Bob seems happy.
5b. He seems happy.
6a. Mrs. Peters becomes agitated easily.
6b. She becomes agitated easily.
Notice again that in each sentence pair, the underlined pronoun replaces the underlined noun. Here, the underlined nouns come before linking verbs (see Action verbs and linking verbs); although they are not performing an action, they are still considered to be subjects. Again, the pronoun that replaces the subject is a subject pronoun.
Quick tip
The subject pronouns are: I, you, he, she, it, we, they.
Answers
Object pronouns
7a. Karen bought the red car.
7b. Karen bought it.
8a. The prize was given to Steve and Bill.
8b. The prize was given to them.
9a. I’m watching the baby.
9b. I’m watching her.
The underlined nouns in the sentences above are not subjects. Rather, they are objects: they either follow the main verb or they follow a preposition. Pronouns that replace objects, like those underlined in sentences 7b,8b, and 9b above, are called object pronouns.
There are only seven object pronouns; they are listed in the following Quick tip
Quick tip
The object pronouns are: me, you, her, him, it, us, them.
You can see that two pronouns, you and it, are particularly hardworking: they can function as either subject or object pronouns.
Answers
Answers
Answers
You know that when you’re talking about yourself, you use the pronouns I or me, and when you’re talking about a group of people, you use the pronouns they or them. That is, we choose different pronouns depending on the person or thing the pronouns refer to. Pronouns that vary in this way are called personal pronouns. Subject and object pronouns are types of personal pronouns.
Personal pronouns that refer to the speaker in a conversation, like I and we, are called first person pronouns. Those that refer to the listener, like you, are called second person pronouns. And those that refer to anyone or anything else, like he or they, are called third person pronouns.
In addition, pronouns that refer to only one person or thing, like I and he, are called singular pronouns; those that refer to more than one person or thing, like we and they, are called plural pronouns.
Here’s a complete breakdown of the subject and object pronouns:
