Personal Pronouns - Classification and Detailed Usage in English

What are personal pronouns? How are these types of pronouns used in English? In the article below, PREP has compiled comprehensive knowledge including meanings, classifications, functions, usage, and specific exercises related to personal pronouns. Refer to this information to know how to use them correctly in various communication situations as well as in important English exams, Preppies!

I. What are personal pronouns?

What are personal pronouns? Personal pronouns or subject pronouns are words used to refer to and replace nouns that denote people, objects, or events. The main purpose of personal pronouns is to avoid unnecessary repetition of those nouns.

The personal pronouns in English include I, you, we, they, he, she, it. For example:

• I am a fourth-year student at the Academy Of Journalism And Community. 

• You are a good friend. I am lucky because I have a friend like you. 

• We will try to complete this nuclear power project. 

• They are shopping and stocking up on food because there is about to be a big snowstorm. 

• He is playing football in the yard. 

• She is the most disobedient child in the family. 

• It was December, so it was quite cold. 

II. Functions of Personal Pronouns in English 

Personal pronouns have two main functions in a sentence: they can act as the subject or the object. Specifically:

III. Classification of Personal Pronouns in English

Personal pronouns in a sentence typically function as the subject or the object. English divides them into 7 main personal pronouns, which are:

Extended Classification Table of Personal Pronouns:

IV. Determining the Person of Personal Pronouns

Personal pronouns in English serve two main functions: they can act as the subject in a sentence or as the object in a sentence. The table below will help you understand how to use personal pronouns as subjects/objects:

V. How to Conjugate Verbs According to Personal Pronouns

Below is how to conjugate the verb "to be" according to personal pronouns that you need to master for correct usage.

1. Conjugating the verb "to be":

2. Conjugating Regular Verbs

Regular verbs are those that are not forms of the verb "to be" (am, is, are). When conjugating regular verbs, we need to pay attention to the tense and the person of the subject.

VI. How to Use Personal Pronouns

1. Personal Pronouns as Subjects in a Sentence

When serving as the subject in a sentence, personal pronouns stand before the main verb. Additionally, the main verbs in the sentence must be conjugated appropriately according to their subject.

For example: 

• He is playing football with his friend in the park. 

• She is reading a novel in the coffee shop. 

2. Personal Pronouns as Objects in a Sentence

When serving as objects, personal pronouns stand after the verb.

For example:

• We invited them to our grand opening party. 

• He gave the notebook to her to take note meeting. 

3. Personal Pronouns Following Prepositions

Personal pronouns can also directly follow prepositions in a sentence.

For example:

• They are looking at us. That embarrassing. 

• The book is on the table next to me. 

4. Personal Pronouns as Indirect Objects

When serving as indirect objects, personal pronouns follow the verb and precede the direct object.

For example:

• He told us his private story. 

• I bought them some flowers to decorate their room. 

VII. Exercises on Personal Pronouns

Practice the exercises on personal pronouns in English below to remember how to use them!

Exercise 1: Fill in the blanks with personal pronouns

• 1. My name is Barbara. ______ am a freshman.

• 2. This is Williams. ______ is my boyfriend.

• 3. Victoria and I are twins. ______ always have fun together.

• 4. She is a volunteer. ______ helps people every day.

• 5. Richard and Daniel are cousin. ______ look very similar.

• 6. We have a surprise for Linda. ______ think she will like it.

• 7. Sarah is my girl friend. ___________ is very open-minded.

• 8. ___________ are going to the coast. Do you want to join?

• 9. Madison and Taylor are classmates. ___________ both study hard.

• 10. Tracy and Susan are siblings. ___________ are twins.

• 11. My parents are engineers. ___________ work at the animal feed factory.

• 12. The students are in the laboratory of school. ___________ are studying Chemistry.

• 13. James is my best friend. ___________ is very dynamic.

• 14. Isabella and I are going shopping at supermarket. ___________ want to buy some household items.

• 15. “Where is my comic?”. “I left ………….. on the 5th floor of your bookshelf.”

Exercise 2: Conjugate the verbs in parentheses

• 1. I ________ (like) to eat apples.

• 2. She ________ (go) to the office every day.

• 3. They ________ (play) guitar in the park.

• 4. He ________ (not watch) TV after 10 pm because it harms eyes. 

• 5. Does she ________ (speak) English?

• 6. They ________ (renovate) the vacant land behind the house to grow crops.

• 7. It ________ (be) a nice dress, but it creases very easily.

• 8. He ________ (find) it extremely difficult being a single parent.

• 9. It ________ (be) unlikely that John will arrive on time.

• 10. Paul, do you ________ (need) any help?

Answer key

This article provides comprehensive knowledge about personal pronouns in English. Practice by creating your own sentences and work on more exercises to reinforce how to use and conjugate verbs correctly! Be sure to explore more useful articles with Prep each day!