Personal pronoun: What it is, forms and examples

If you have searched for the definition of a personal pronoun, the short answer is this: it refers to a specific person or thing and changes form depending on grammatical role, number, gender, and person, as in I, you, he, she, it, we, and they. Because each form can look different depending on whether it functions as a subject, an object, or indicates possession, learners often benefit from a single reference chart rather than a list of separate rules.

This article explains the definition, provides a complete chart of the different forms, introduces the related term “compound personal pronoun,” and clarifies common questions, such as whether “his” belongs to this category.

Define a personal pronoun

Definition

A personal pronoun is a pronoun that refers to a specific person, group of people, or thing, and that changes form according to its grammatical function (subject or object), its number (singular or plural), its person (first, second or third), and, in the third person singular, its gender.

Example: I called her, but she did not answer. – “I,” “her” and “she” are all personal pronouns, referring to specific people.

Person, number and gender

• Person indicates who is speaking: first person (the speaker, I/we), second person (the person spoken to, you), or third person (the person or thing spoken about, he/she/it/they).
• Number indicates whether the pronoun is singular or plural.
• Gender applies only to the third person singular, distinguishing he (masculine), she (feminine) and it (used for things, animals, and sometimes as a gender-neutral option alongside the increasingly common singular “they”).

Chart of personal pronoun forms

This chart of personal pronoun forms brings together subject, object, possessive and reflexive forms in one place.

This chart is useful as a quick reference whenever you are unsure which form fits a particular position in a sentence, since the correct choice depends on all four factors (role, number, person and gender) at once.

Compound personal pronoun

The term compound personal pronoun refers to the reflexive and intensive forms ending in -self or -selves: myself, yourself, himself, herself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, themselves. The name “compound” comes from the fact that these words are built by combining a possessive adjective or object pronoun with -self/-selves.

Reflexive use

A compound personal pronoun is used reflexively when the subject and the object of the action are the same.

Example: She taught herself to play piano.

Intensive (emphatic) use

The same forms are also used for emphasis, to highlight that a particular person did something, often placed directly after the noun or pronoun it emphasizes.

Example: The manager himself approved the request.

In this emphatic use, the compound personal pronoun can usually be removed without changing the basic meaning of the sentence, which distinguishes it from the reflexive use, where removing the pronoun would make the sentence incomplete or change its meaning.

Is “his” a personal pronoun?

The question of whether “his” is a personal pronoun often causes confusion. It belongs to the possessive forms associated with third-person singular masculine pronouns and has two uses: as a possessive determiner (This is his book, before a noun) and as a possessive pronoun (This book is his, standing alone). Both uses belong to the broader pronoun system, although “his” does not function as a subject or object form.

Personal pronouns and formality

English pronouns do not change for politeness or formality the way they do in some other languages. The same word “you” is used for a close friend, a stranger, or a superior at work. This differs from languages that have separate formal and informal second-person forms.

In English, formality is instead conveyed through word choice, modal verbs like “could” or “would,” and sentence structure. This distinction is useful when translating from a language where pronoun choice carries social meaning, as a direct word-for-word approach to expressing formality will not work in English.

Examples in context

• I am going to the store. Do you want to come with me?
• He gave her a gift because it was her birthday.
• We are meeting them at the airport.
• They said they would call us back.
• The dog wagged its tail happily.

Common mistakes 

• Confusing subject and object forms. Writing Me and him are going instead of He and I are going.
• Using “myself” instead of “I” or “me.” Writing John and myself went to the meeting instead of John and I went to the meeting, a mistake that often comes from trying to sound more formal.
• Mismatching gender. Using “he” or “she” for a noun whose gender is unknown or irrelevant, instead of “it,” “they,” or rephrasing the sentence, depending on what the noun refers to.
• Dropping the “-self/-selves” ending incorrectly. Writing hisself instead of himself, or theirselves instead of themselves; these nonstandard forms do not follow the regular pattern used for the other persons.
• Overusing the reflexive form for emphasis when a simple pronoun would do. Writing I myself think that myself is right in places where plain “I” or “me” is clearer.

Personal pronoun exercises with answers

Exercise 1: Choose the correct personal pronoun

1. ______ (She / Her) and I are going to the concert.
2. The teacher gave ______ (we / us) our test results.
3. The cat licked ______ (its / it’s) paw.
4. They introduced ______ (themselves / theirselves) to the new students.

Sample answers: 1. She – 2. us – 3. its – 4. themselves

Exercise 2: Identify the type of personal pronoun form

1. This is her book. → her: possessive adjective
2. This book is hers. → hers: possessive pronoun
3. She hurt herself while running. → herself: compound personal pronoun (reflexive)
4. The director himself signed the contract. → himself: compound personal pronoun (intensive/emphatic)

Exercise 3: Find and correct the error

1. Him and me are neighbors. → correct to He and I.
2. The children hurt theirselves. → correct to themselves.
3. John and myself completed the project. → correct to John and I.

Personal pronoun worksheet and PDF for practice

A personal pronoun worksheet, often available as a PDF for printing, typically includes the chart above alongside exercises such as multiple choice, identification by form (subject, object, possessive, reflexive), and error correction. Practicing all five columns of the chart, rather than studying subject and object forms in isolation, helps learners understand how different forms relate to the same underlying pronoun.

These words refer to specific people or things and change form depending on grammatical role, number, person, and gender. Keeping the full chart in mind, rather than memorizing subject, object, possessive, and reflexive forms separately, makes it easier to choose the correct form quickly, including less obvious cases such as compound forms and the dual role of words like “his.”

See also: Object pronoun: What it is and how to use it

Frequently asked questions

What is a personal pronoun?

A personal pronoun refers to a specific person, group, or thing. Its form depends on its grammatical role, number, person, and, in the third-person singular, gender. Examples include I, you, he, she, it, we, and they, along with their object, possessive, and reflexive forms.

What is a compound personal pronoun?

A compound form is a reflexive or intensive pronoun ending in -self or -selves, such as myself, himself, or themselves. It is used reflexively when the subject and object refer to the same person, or for emphasis when highlighting who performed an action.

Is “his” a personal pronoun?

“His” is part of the personal pronoun system as a third-person singular masculine possessive form. It can appear before a noun (“his book”) or stand alone (“This book is his”). Although it is not a subject or object form, it belongs to the broader category of personal pronouns.

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