Questions tagged [personal-pronouns]
Questions related to personal pronoun, an independent pronoun which can have various forms according to gender, number, person, and case.
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Why is "it" used instead of "he/she" for human being in "it becomes a wise and virtuous man…"?
Now this relaxation of the mind from work consists on playful words or deeds. Therefore it becomes a wise and virtuous man to have recourse to such things at times.
—Thomas Aquinas
Is the bold phrase ...
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Why do some people start with subject 'I' and later shift to 'we'?
This is something I have noticed on a fairly regular basis, and this is a recent example, where the questioner starts by saying "I'm working on" and ends up asking "How do we...?"
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Personal pronouns in 18th-century Cornish English
I think in the year 1700 there were still a few adults in Cornwall whose usual mode of communication among themselves was the rapidly dying Cornish language, but only a tiny number of children could ...
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Whom can I trust, if not ____. a) he b) him which one is grammatical? [duplicate]
I know about the conditional sentences that go as following:
"If I were he, I would have forgotten the whole lesson."
In the sentence above, "he" is preferable to "him,"...
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What explains the restrictions on determinative "you"?
As Huddleston & Pullum note, "you" can sometimes be used as a determiner:
You idiots never learn.
I'll never understand you idiots.
But this generally can't occur in the singular:
*...
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How to write s/he at the beginning of a sentence? [closed]
In a document I want to use the gender form of personal pronouns. But if I use "s/he" at the beginning of a sentence, are both "s" and "h" to be written in capitals? It ...
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Usage of they/them as a pronoun in confusing sentences [duplicate]
Pronouns are an integral part of the english language. However, they can also cause confusion and problems within communication, especially in the modern era, as some people choose to use ...
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When referring to oneself using pronouns only, would it be appropriate to use "me" instead of "myself"?
When you refer to yourself without saying your name, (without gendered pronouns) would it be of appropriate use to say "me" instead of "myself"?
for example:
I would give me a big ...
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How should I refer to a person without identifying them? Can I use 'one'? [closed]
If I wish to refer to an individual person but without describing that person or drawing attention to the characteristics of that person or without identifying that person - how should I do it ?
The ...
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When is it acceptable to address someone else in the first person, as in the classic nurse's question to a patient: "How are we this morning?"
I am sure the nurse means this question as bright and breezy, perhaps inviting the response "We are (more likely "I am") fine, thank you." However, it is hard to avoid the ...
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Choice of “it” versus “he/she”
I am not sure what is the underlying rule for when the use of “it” is appropriate and when “he / she”. Consider the following two examples:
There is a lady at the door. It is my aunt.
Do you know ...
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Talking about a third person, formally [closed]
I am talking about my professor to his secretary. Is it polite and formal to refer to him as "he"? or should I use "they"?
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American vs British English: using 3rd person singular pronoun or person's name?
I grew up in the UK and now have a lot of American friends and colleagues; I tend to notice an almost systematic difference in the way Americans use 3rd person singular pronouns in preference to a ...
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Why is emphatic "Yes, I know THAT" okay, but not "Yes, I know IT"?
In the context of this ELL question asking about using pronoun "it" as an object, it struck me that whereas it's perfectly natural to place heavy stress for emphasis on the "...
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Important! Is there a term for misusing the pronoun “you”? [duplicate]
This is somewhat challenging to describe but I’m taking a crack at it. I have the tendency to use the pronoun “you” when speaking to someone about an event, or story. I would almost describe it as a ...
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I, and I/me alone, did it all
I, and I/me alone, did it all.
Which option, I or me, and why, should be used in a parenthetical like this one?
Secondly, is it the same situation as in Me/I alone, I did it ?
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'She' as sentence object [duplicate]
In the following sentence from Lolita, Humbert Humbert, in describing with maximum condescension the character of his new wife, states:
'I had always been aware of the possessive streak in her, but I ...
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Can you use "him" for a wolf?
I encountered this:
This is like dangling a big, juicy steak in front of a wolf, without letting him eat it.
Using "him" for a wolf sounds sort of non-native English, as if the sentence ...
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Which pronoun is used for Spirit or Ghost and is there a rule that says we must use certain pronoun for the Spirit? Is it a common gender noun?
Which pronoun is used for the Holy Spirit (or Holy Ghost) in Christian theology? Is there a rule that says we must use certain pronoun for the Spirit? And is it a common gender noun?
The controversy ...
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What is the difference between “they” and “it” for people, especially for those people who identify as non-binary?
I’ve heard that they is used as a word to refer to people who are
non-binary. Since English is not my first language, I’m not sure what the
difference is between they and it in these usages.
Of course,...
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Personal pronouns interacting with word order [duplicate]
Many will be familiar already with
the technical details of when to use 'I' and 'me' in a sentence.
I hit him, he hit me, etc.
What I'm confused about is cases such as "me and John went to the ...
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What do you call someone who studies letters?
I recently asked a question for nouns pertaining to people who write letters. But is there a word to call someone who studies letters (academically)?
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What do you call a person who writes letters?
I found, from my search, that epistolary is an adjective which could refer to the writing of letters. But is there noun of this to call someone who writes letters?
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Suggestions to indicate the second person pronoun "you" is singular?
Do you have any suggestions to clearly show that the second person pronoun is singular, not simply basing it on context? I would appreciate hearing your ideas!
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Why is "he" twice as common than "she" in the English language
When you look at word frequency data in English such as the Corpus Of Contemporary American English (COCA) he appears on 16th place with 6500 occurrences per mil and she at 35th place with 3210 per ...
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True or False: "English lacks a standard gender-neutral second-person plural pronoun."
It's news to me, but apparently Joe Pinsker (affiliated with The Atlantic?) says so in this article.
The problem, for those who want to ditch [the usage of] "guys", is that their language ...
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Pronoun cases (e.g. "my," "his") before gerund constructions [duplicate]
Which of the following is correct?
It stands in the way of my being successful.
It stands in the way of me being successful.
This led to his succeeding in the workplace.
This led to him succeeding ...
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Gender specific pronouns [duplicate]
I noticed people using pronouns next to their names Jo (she/her). I understand the reason behind the first part (she), but I completely don't get the second part. Doesn't "she" imply "...
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Are there any old third-person singular pronouns the way “thou” is an old second-person pronoun?
Thou is an old second-person singular pronoun in English.
Are there any old third-person singular pronouns?
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“We three” vs “us three”
In the sentence,
"We three will go to the Express mall. You can find we/us three there, having a good time."
I'm unsure whether to use we/us for the second reference.
I have read about we ...
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"President Trump appreciates the outpouring of support for both he and the First Lady" - Should this be he, him or himself? [closed]
"President Trump appreciates the outpouring of support for both he and the First Lady."
Should this be he, him or himself?
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Why does English only have one form of we/us?
I have tried googling this and looking here to no avail. Why does English only have one we? What I mean is, why aren't there two forms for:
Me and someone else excluding you
Me and someone else ...
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How to use properly such generic person pronouns as one, people, you, we, and they
When writing about a general topic in emails, essays, business correspondence or whatever, I often wonder which generic person pronoun to use. My quick Google search for sample sentences using such ...
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She stole her best friend’s boyfriend (from her)
She stole her best friend’s boyfriend (from her)
What is the reason for adding the redundant phrase from her after mentioning that it's her best friend?
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Can there be two cases of pronoun in a sentence?
"She is doing her best to do the job"
The pronoun "her" is confusing me, it could be either in objective case 'cause it acts as object complement or in possessive case 'cause it ...
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these data of yours [duplicate]
"These personal data of yours will be shared with authorized public institutions and organizations."
Is this sentence correct?
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"Are you she?"... is it proper English? [duplicate]
While receiving a phone call, the man on the other end of the call was looking for another woman. When finished asking for her, he said: "Are you she?" I've always heard "Are you her" and this was a ...
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Which is correct, "you and yours" or "yourself and yours"? [closed]
What is the correct phrasal construction "Protect you and yours" or "Protect yourself and yours"? Are they both acceptable? Thank you.
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What is the politically correct way for one to refer to God? In other words, how can one eliminate gendered pronouns entirely from one's God-talk?
It seems that for one to refer to God as he bothers some people --- and I can see from where they are coming as I, too, oppose referring to God in the feminine and masculine because God is neither ...
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Dealing with pronouns
“You can tell him...."
"Me tell him?”
Is this structure appropriate? Why / why not?
“Me” is usually an object pronoun. I would say that the structure is inappropriate, because “Me” is an ...
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Email local part personal pronoun [closed]
John Smith registered domain john.smith under which he'd like to create a personal email address whose local part is a personal pronoun.
English-wise, which of the following email addresses would be ...
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Regarding " this"and "it"
"This"is used to specify objects placed closer.
"It "is used for non living things
I have seen sentences like
This is a pen.
My question is
It is a pen. .. ..... is correct?
Why can't we use" it" ...
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Can the gerund clause take a personal pronoun as its subject in “It’s no use (his?) crying over lost love”?
From a grammar book, I’ve have learned that a gerund clause can be
optionally preceded by a personal pronoun to show the logical
subject of the verb; that is, whoever is doing the gerund’s ...
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Does English use the word ‘thou’ in any situations nowadays? [closed]
Does English use the word thou in situations nowadays? For example, to humiliate an opponent by being overly familiar?
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How can one omit the third-person pronoun in sentences entirely? [closed]
I have a task which involves my having to show how I can write in different ways in English. Thus far, I have shown how I can write in a multitude of ways in a reasonably successful way, but I am ...
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How to explicitly specify non-binary support when using pronouns?
My native language uses the equivalent of he/his as the default gender-less pronoun. When using English (as a second language) most people use "he/she" or "him/her" to indicate a person of unknown/...
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there is, there are with personal pronouns
I almost never see "there is/are" used with personal pronouns. Why do they not get along with each other?
1 There is me in this house.
2 There are them in this town.
I think they are wrong. But ...
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Different words for the personal pronoun “you” in spoken AmE: who uses which?
In American English, quite informally, one will hear different words or phrases for the personal pronoun “you” in its plural form. Perhaps it’s a way of making sure the listener understands you mean ...
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Is "meet with X and me" (instead of "X and myself") liable to look wrong to stupid administrators?
My natural instinct is to write, "X met with M and me in June." But I've noticed that school officials tend to use "myself" in place of "me" in this type of sentence.
A related ELU question ...
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'my picture' - ownership vs. depiction
Consider the sentences:
Take my picture [handing over a frame]
Take my picture [handing over a camera]
(Photo vs. picture being insignificant - a more contrived example could avoid it; as is the ...
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