Pronouns Complete Guide for Students Types Rules Examples and Practice Questions

Repeating the same noun again and again can make a sentence sound awkward and unnatural. For example, “Riya opened Riya’s bag because Riya wanted Riya’s notebook.” sounds repetitive. Instead, we can say, “Riya opened her bag because she wanted her notebook.” Words such as she and her are called pronouns. They replace nouns and help us speak and write more clearly and naturally. In this guide, you’ll learn what pronouns are, their different types, important grammar rules, common mistakes, and how to use them correctly through simple examples, solved exercises, and practice questions.

A simple chart can make pronoun learning quick and visual.

What are pronouns?

A pronoun is a word used in place of a noun.

A noun names a person, place, animal, thing, or idea. A pronoun replaces that noun so that we do not repeat it.

Noun sentence	Pronoun sentence
Aarav is reading. Aarav is happy.	Aarav is reading. He is happy.
The book is new. The book is costly.	The book is new. It is costly.
The students are ready. The students are waiting.	The students are ready. They are waiting.

Why do we use pronouns?

We use pronouns to:

• Avoid repeating nouns

• Make sentences shorter

• Make writing smooth

• Connect ideas clearly

• Speak naturally in conversations

  
  

Example

Without pronouns:

Meena met Meena’s teacher because Meena had a doubt.

With pronouns:

Meena met her teacher because she had a doubt.

Pronouns vs nouns

Nouns and pronouns are connected, but they are not the same.

Point	Noun	Pronoun
Meaning	Names a person, place, thing, or idea	Replaces a noun
Examples	Rahul, Delhi, school, honesty	he, she, it, they, we
Can stand alone clearly	Usually yes	Needs context
Used for	Naming	Referring

Example

Noun

The dog barked loudly.

Pronoun

It barked loudly.

Here, it refers to the dog.

Pronoun and antecedent

The noun that a pronoun refers to is called the antecedent.

Example

Anaya found her pencil.

• Pronoun her

• Antecedent Anaya

  
  

The pronoun must clearly match the antecedent.

Sentence	Pronoun	Antecedent
Ravi lost his cap.	his	Ravi
The girls finished their project.	their	The girls
The cat drank its milk.	its	The cat
I saw a movie, and it was funny.	it	a movie

A pronoun should point clearly to one noun. If the reader has to guess, rewrite the sentence.

Types of pronouns

There are many types of pronouns in English grammar for students. Each type has a different use.

Type of pronoun	Use	Examples
Personal pronouns	Refer to people or things	I, you, he, she, it, we, they
Possessive pronouns	Show ownership	mine, yours, his, hers, ours, theirs
Reflexive pronouns	Refer back to the subject	myself, yourself, himself
Demonstrative pronouns	Point to something	this, that, these, those
Interrogative pronouns	Ask questions	who, whom, whose, which, what
Relative pronouns	Join clauses	who, whom, whose, which, that
Indefinite pronouns	Refer to non-specific people or things	someone, anyone, all, few
Reciprocal pronouns	Show a two-way action	each other, one another

Types of pronouns are easier to remember when grouped by use.

Personal pronouns

Personal pronouns refer to people, animals, or things.

Person	Singular	Plural
First person	I, me	we, us
Second person	you	you
Third person	he, him, she, her, it	they, them

Examples of personal pronouns

• I am ready.

• We are going to school.

• She likes maths.

• They are playing cricket.

• The phone is ringing. It is loud.

  
  

Personal pronouns are common in everyday speech.

Conversation

“Where is Kabir?”

“He is in the library.”

“Did you call Anu and Sara?”

“Yes, I called them.”

Subject and object pronouns

A subject pronoun does the action in a sentence.

An object pronoun receives the action.

Subject pronoun	Object pronoun
I	me
you	you
he	him
she	her
it	it
we	us
they	them

Examples

Subject pronoun	Object pronoun
I helped Rohan.	Rohan helped me.
She called Aman.	Aman called her.
They invited us.	We invited them.
We saw the match.	The teacher praised us.

Easy trick

Ask this question:

• Who is doing the action? Use a subject pronoun.

• Who is receiving the action? Use an object pronoun.

  
  

Example

He gave me a pen.

• He is doing the action.

• me receives the pen.

  
  

Subject and object pronouns change according to their job in the sentence.

Possessive pronouns

Possessive pronouns show ownership. They tell us that something belongs to someone.

Possessive adjective	Possessive pronoun
my	mine
your	yours
his	his
her	hers
our	ours
their	theirs

Examples

• This bag is mine.

• That pencil is yours.

• The red house is ours.

• These books are theirs.

• The blue bottle is hers.

  
  

My vs mine

Use my before a noun.

Use mine without a noun after it.

Correct	Why
This is my pen.	My comes before the noun pen.
This pen is mine.	Mine stands alone.

Incorrect

This is mine pen.

Correct

This is my pen.

Reflexive pronouns

Reflexive pronouns refer back to the subject of the sentence. They often end in self or selves.

Pronoun	Reflexive pronoun
I	myself
you	yourself, yourselves
he	himself
she	herself
it	itself
we	ourselves
they	themselves

Examples

• I made this card myself.

• She taught herself to swim.

• The cat cleaned itself.

• We enjoyed ourselves at the picnic.

• They blamed themselves for the mistake.

  
  

Common mistake

Do not use reflexive pronouns when a simple object pronoun is needed.

Incorrect

Please give the notebook to myself.

Correct

Please give the notebook to me.

Demonstrative pronouns

Demonstrative pronouns point to people or things.

They are:

• this

• that

• these

• those

  
  

Pronoun	Number	Distance	Example
this	Singular	Near	This is my pencil.
that	Singular	Far	That is a temple.
these	Plural	Near	These are my shoes.
those	Plural	Far	Those are stars.

This, that, these, and those

Use this for one thing near you.

Use that for one thing far from you.

Use these for many things near you.

Use those for many things far from you.

Examples

• This is tasty.

• That looks expensive.

• These are fresh mangoes.

• Those are my cousins.

  
  

Interrogative pronouns

Interrogative pronouns are used to ask questions.

Pronoun	Use	Example
who	person	Who is at the door?
whom	object person	Whom did you invite?
whose	ownership	Whose bag is this?
which	choice	Which is your house?
what	thing or information	What happened?

Who vs whom

Use who for the subject.

Use whom for the object.

Easy trick

If the answer is he, she, or they, use who.

If the answer is him, her, or them, use whom.

Question	Answer	Correct pronoun
Who called you?	He called me.	who
Whom did you call?	I called him.	whom

In everyday speech, many people use who instead of whom, but in English exam preparation, learn the difference.

Relative pronouns

Relative pronouns join two parts of a sentence and give more information about a noun.

Common relative pronouns are:

• who

• whom

• whose

• which

• that

  
  

Relative pronoun	Use	Example
who	people	The boy who won is my friend.
whom	people as object	The teacher whom we met was kind.
whose	ownership	The girl whose bag was lost cried.
which	animals or things	The book which I bought is useful.
that	people, animals, or things	The pen that you gave me is blue.

Examples

• I know the student who answered the question.

• This is the house that my uncle built.

• The story which we read was interesting.

• The man whose car broke down called a mechanic.

  
  

Indefinite pronouns

Indefinite pronouns do not refer to a specific person or thing.

Singular indefinite pronouns	Plural indefinite pronouns	Can be singular or plural
someone, anyone, everyone, no one, each, either, neither	many, few, several, both	all, some, most, none

Examples

• Someone is knocking at the door.

• Everybody wants a holiday.

• Few were absent today.

• Several joined the club.

• Some of the cake is left.

• Some of the students are late.

  
  

Agreement with indefinite pronouns

Many indefinite pronouns are singular.

Correct

Everyone has brought his or her notebook.

In modern English, many people also use their as a singular pronoun when the gender is unknown.

Common and accepted

Everyone has brought their notebook.

For school exams, follow the rule taught by your teacher or textbook.

Reciprocal pronouns

Reciprocal pronouns show that two or more people do the same action to one another.

They are:

• each other

• one another

  
  

Examples

• Riya and Kavya helped each other.

• The players congratulated one another.

• The two friends called each other daily.

• The classmates shared notes with one another.

  
  

Singular and plural pronouns

Pronouns can be singular or plural.

Singular pronouns	Plural pronouns
I, me	we, us
he, him	they, them
she, her	we, they
it	these, those
this, that	ourselves, themselves

Examples

• He is my brother.

• They are my neighbours.

• This is a guava.

• These are guavas.

• It is raining.

• We are ready.

  
  

Pronoun agreement

A pronoun must agree with its antecedent in number, person, and gender where needed.

Agreement in number

If the noun is singular, use a singular pronoun.

If the noun is plural, use a plural pronoun.

Incorrect	Correct
The boy forgot their lunch.	The boy forgot his lunch.
The girls brought her books.	The girls brought their books.

Agreement in person

Do not shift person without reason.

Incorrect

If a student works hard, you will succeed.

Correct

If a student works hard, he or she will succeed.

Also correct

If students work hard, they will succeed.

Agreement in gender

Use the pronoun that matches the noun if the gender is known.

• Kavita finished her homework.

• Sameer packed his bag.

• The bird spread its wings.

  
  

Use they when the person is unknown or when you want to avoid gender guessing.

• Someone left their umbrella here.

  
  

I vs me

This is one of the most common pronoun mistakes.

Use I as the subject.

Use me as the object.

Correct	Reason
Rohan and I went to school.	I is part of the subject.
The teacher praised Rohan and me.	Me is part of the object.

Easy trick

Remove the other person from the sentence.

Rohan and I went to school.

Remove Rohan:

I went to school.

That sounds correct.

The teacher praised Rohan and me.

Remove Rohan:

The teacher praised me.

That sounds correct.

Common pronoun mistakes

Mistake	Correct sentence	Explanation
Me and Rahul are friends.	Rahul and I are friends.	Use I as the subject.
This book is my.	This book is mine.	Mine stands alone.
Her is singing.	She is singing.	Use she as subject.
I saw she.	I saw her.	Use her as object.
Each boy must bring their book.	Each boy must bring his book.	Each is singular in traditional grammar.
The dog wagged their tail.	The dog wagged its tail.	Use its for animals when gender is not named.
These is my shoes.	These are my shoes.	These is plural.
Myself will do it.	I will do it myself.	Use I as subject.

How to identify pronouns in sentences

Use this simple method.

1. Find all nouns in the sentence.

2. Look for words that replace or refer to those nouns.

3. Check whether the word shows person, ownership, question, pointing, or connection.

4. Match the pronoun with its antecedent if possible.

   
   

Example

Neha lost her ruler, but she found it later.

• Nouns Neha, ruler

• Pronouns her, she, it

• Antecedents her and she refer to Neha it refers to ruler

  
  

Pronouns in everyday conversations

Pronouns appear in almost every conversation.

Conversation	Pronouns used
“Where is your bag?” “It is under the chair.”	your, it
“Did you call Mira?” “Yes, I called her.”	you, I, her
“These are fresh samosas.”	these
“Who is absent today?”	who
“We should help each other.”	we, each other

Using pronouns correctly helps in speaking, writing, grammar notes, and exams.

A revision chart helps students connect rules, examples, and mistakes.

Quick revision notes

• A pronoun replaces a noun.

• The noun a pronoun refers to is the antecedent.

• Subject pronouns do the action.

• Object pronouns receive the action.

• Possessive pronouns show ownership.

• Reflexive pronouns refer back to the subject.

• Demonstrative pronouns point to nouns.

• Interrogative pronouns ask questions.

• Relative pronouns join clauses.

• Indefinite pronouns refer to non-specific people or things.

• Reciprocal pronouns show shared action.

• Pronouns must agree with their antecedents.

  
  

Easy tricks to remember

Use the replacement test

If a word can replace a noun, it is likely a pronoun.

Aman is late. He missed the bus.

He replaces Aman.

Use the distance trick

• This One near thing

• That One far thing

• These Many near things

• Those Many far things

  
  

Use the I and me trick

Remove the other name.

• Tina and I sang.

• The teacher called Tina and me.

  
  

Use the who and whom trick

• He or she answers the question Use who.

• Him or her answers the question Use whom.

  
  

Did you know facts

• The word you can be singular or plural.

• It can refer to animals, things, weather, time, or ideas.

• They can refer to many people or to one person when gender is unknown.

• Some words can be pronouns in one sentence and adjectives in another.

  
  

Example

This is my book.

Here, this is a pronoun.

This book is mine.

Here, this describes the noun book, so it works like an adjective.

Exam tips

• Read the full sentence before choosing a pronoun.

• Find the antecedent first.

• Check whether the pronoun is subject or object.

• Watch singular and plural nouns carefully.

• Do not use my and mine in the same way.

• Remember that these and those are plural.

• In editing questions, look for agreement errors.

• In fill-in-the-blanks, read the words after the blank.

  
  

20 solved examples with explanations

1. Replace the noun with a pronoun

Ravi is my cousin. Ravi plays chess.

Answer: Ravi is my cousin. He plays chess.

Explanation: He replaces Ravi.

2. Choose the correct pronoun

Me / I am going to the market.

Answer: I am going to the market.

Explanation: I is the subject.

3. Choose the correct object pronoun

The teacher called she / her.

Answer: The teacher called her.

Explanation: Her receives the action.

4. Fill in the blank

This pen is not yours. It is ______.

Answer: mine

Explanation: Mine shows ownership and stands alone.

5. Identify the reflexive pronoun

She made the cake herself.

Answer: herself

Explanation: Herself refers back to she.

6. Choose this or these

______ are my new shoes.

Answer: These

Explanation: Shoes is plural.

7. Choose who or whom

______ did you meet at the station?

Answer: Whom

Explanation: The answer would be “I met him/her.”

8. Identify the relative pronoun

The girl who won the race is my sister.

Answer: who

Explanation: Who joins the clause to the noun girl.

9. Correct the sentence

Me and Ali are friends.

Answer: Ali and I are friends.

Explanation: Use I as the subject.

10. Fill in the blank

The dog hurt ______ paw.

Answer: its

Explanation: Its shows possession for an animal when gender is not given.

11. Choose the correct pronoun

The boys finished ______ homework.

Answer: their

Explanation: Boys is plural.

12. Identify the indefinite pronoun

Someone has taken my eraser.

Answer: Someone

Explanation: It refers to an unknown person.

13. Choose each other or itself

Rohan and Mohan helped ______.

Answer: each other

Explanation: Two people helped one another.

14. Correct the sentence

These is my notebooks.

Answer: These are my notebooks.

Explanation: These and notebooks are plural.

15. Choose my or mine

That is ______ umbrella.

Answer: my

Explanation: My comes before the noun umbrella.

16. Identify the antecedent

Priya lost her pencil.

Answer: Priya

Explanation: Her refers to Priya.

17. Fill in the blank

The students said that ______ were ready.

Answer: they

Explanation: They refers to the students.

18. Choose the correct pronoun

Please give the book to ______. I need it.

Answer: me

Explanation: Me is the object of the preposition to.

19. Identify demonstrative pronoun

That is a beautiful painting.

Answer: That

Explanation: That points to the painting.

20. Correct the sentence

Everyone must bring their ID card.

Answer: Everyone must bring his or her ID card.

Explanation: In traditional exam grammar, everyone is singular. Many modern contexts accept their, but school exams may expect his or her.

Common mistakes recap

Wrong	Right
Myself am ready.	I am ready.
Him is my friend.	He is my friend.
I gave she a pen.	I gave her a pen.
This is mine bag.	This is my bag.
Those is birds.	Those are birds.
The child lost their toy.	The child lost his or her toy.
Between you and I	Between you and me

Practice questions

Try these pronoun exercises before checking the answer key.

A. Fill in the blanks

1. Rani is absent because ______ is ill.

2. The boys said that ______ would clean the room.

3. This pencil is not yours. It is ______.

4. The cat licked ______ paws.

5. ______ are my friends standing near the gate.

6. I finished the homework by ______.

7. ______ called you last night?

8. The man ______ helped me was kind.

9. We should respect ______ elders.

10. Someone has forgotten ______ lunch box.

B. Choose the correct pronoun

11. Rahul and I / me went to the library.

12. The coach selected Anil and I / me.

13. This / These are sweet oranges.

14. That / Those is my house.

15. The girl who / which sings well is my cousin.

16. To who / whom did you give the letter?

17. This book is my / mine.

18. The red bag is her / hers.

19. The students enjoyed themselves / himself.

20. Everyone / Many has submitted the form.

C. Identify the pronoun

21. They are waiting for the bus.

22. Whose notebook is this?

23. The toy that you bought is lovely.

24. Both were selected for the team.

25. We helped each other during the quiz.

Answer key

1. she

2. they

3. mine

4. its

5. Those

6. myself

7. Who

8. who

9. our

10. his or her, or their in modern usage

11. I

12. me

13. These

14. That

15. who

16. whom

17. mine

18. hers

19. themselves

20. Everyone

21. They

22. Whose, this

23. that, you

24. Both

25. We, each other

FAQs on pronouns

What is a pronoun in simple words?

A pronoun is a word used instead of a noun. In “Riya is kind. She helps everyone,” the word she is a pronoun.

How many types of pronouns are there?

Common types include personal, possessive, reflexive, demonstrative, interrogative, relative, indefinite, and reciprocal pronouns.

What is an antecedent?

An antecedent is the noun that a pronoun refers to. In “Aman lost his pen,” Aman is the antecedent of his.

What is the difference between I and me?

Use I as the subject and me as the object. Say “Riya and I went” but “The teacher called Riya and me.”

What is the difference between my and mine?

Use my before a noun. Use mine when no noun follows. Say “my bag” and “This bag is mine.”

Are this and these the same?

No. This is singular and near. These is plural and near.

When should we use who?

Use who when asking about the subject of a sentence. Example: “Who called you?”

When should we use whom?

Use whom when asking about the object. Example: “Whom did you call?”

Is everyone singular or plural?

In traditional grammar, everyone is singular. It usually takes a singular verb.

Can they be singular?

Yes, they can be used for one person when gender is unknown or not mentioned.

Final takeaway

Pronouns make English clear, short, and natural. Once the noun is known, a pronoun helps you avoid repetition. The main rule is simple: check what the pronoun refers to, then make sure it agrees in number and use.

For better English exam preparation, revise the tables, practise the examples, and test yourself with the answer key. If you can identify the noun, find the antecedent, and decide whether the pronoun is a subject, object, owner, pointer, question word, or connector, you can solve most pronoun questions with confidence.