What is a 

pronoun?
A pronoun is a word that is used instead of a noun or noun phrase. Pronouns
refer to either a noun that has already been mentioned or to a noun that
does not need to be named specifically.
The most common pronouns are the personal pronouns, which refer to the
person or people speaking or writing (first person), the person or people
being spoken to (second person), or other people or things (third person). Like
nouns, personal pronouns can function as either the subject of a verb or the
object of a verb or preposition: "She likes him, but he loves her." Most of the
personal pronouns have different subject and object forms:

There are a number of other types of pronouns. The interrogative pronouns—

particularly what, which, who, whom, and whose—introduce questions for
which a noun is the answer, as in "Which do you prefer?"
An interrogative pronoun is a pronoun used to ask a question. For example,
the word who is an interrogative pronoun in the sentence Who are you? Like
most other pronouns, interrogative pronouns replace nouns in sentences. In
the case of interrogative pronouns, they typically replace whatever or whoever
the answer to the question is. example
 What is a pineapple? A pineapple is a fruit.
 Who built this shed? Carl built this shed.
Usually, an interrogative pronoun is the first word in an interrogative sentence,
which always ends in a question mark. A sentence that is using an
interrogative pronoun to ask an indirect question may not end in a question
mark:
 I wonder who will come tomorrow.
  She asked us what we wanted for lunch.
Who and whom
Who and whom are used to ask questions where the answer is expected to be
a person. Who is used as a subject, and whom is used as an object. (More on
this later!)
Whose 
Whose is used to ask questions about possessions, ownership, or a
relationship.
What
What is used to ask a question where the answer is expected to be an object
or abstract concept.
Which
Which is used to ask questions where there are multiple choices or
possibilities as to what the answer could be.
Examples of interrogative pronouns
Let’s look at how we use each of the interrogative pronouns in sentences.

Who and whom

 Who took the towel?
 Who will win the championship?
 Whom did you give the key to?
 Whom did the police suspect of the crime?
Whose
 I found this purse. Whose is this?
 There are shoes by the door. Whose are they?
 Look at that big house over there. Whose is it?
What
 What is love?
 What are those flowers called?
 What are we going to do?
Which
 Which of these cookies do you want?
 She either cleaned her room or she didn’t. Which is it?
 We can go to the beach or the park. Which sounds more fun?

Possessive pronouns refer to things or people that belong to someone. The

main possessive pronouns are mine, yours, his, hers, its, ours, and theirs.
 Possessive pronouns are pronouns that demonstrate ownership, showing that something
belongs to a particular someone.

Possessive pronouns include my, mine, our, ours, its, his, her, hers, their, theirs, your and yours.
These are all words that demonstrate ownership. If the book belongs to me, then it is mine. If the
book belongs to her, then it is hers.

A great way to understand this part of speech is to see them in action. Here are some basic
examples of possessive pronouns used in sentences:

 The kids are yours and mine.

 The house is theirs and its paint is flaking.
 The money was really theirs for the taking.
 We shall finally have what is rightfully ours.
 Their mother gets along well with yours.
 What's mine is yours, my friend.
 The dog is mine.
 The cat is yours.
 The ring is hers.
 The bag is theirs.

Possessive Adjectives With Gerunds

The basic sentences above demonstrate how possessive pronouns can be used in sentences.
However, one thing that can be confusing is the use of possessive adjectives with gerunds. A
gerund is a word that started out as a verb, but with the addition of -ing at the end, they can
function as a noun.

Take a look at this sentence:

I couldn’t take him griping anymore.

What couldn’t I take anymore: “him” or the “griping”? The sentence is ambiguous. The correct
way is to use a possessive pronoun. Here is the correct sentence:

I couldn’t take his griping anymore.

Example Sentences

Here are a few more examples where the possessive pronoun is combined with a gerund.

 Your taking the prize was a nice surprise.

 The children make their beds without my asking them to.
 Their singing inspired us.
 I so appreciated his helping out.
  Her coming to us was the right thing to do.
 I appreciate your understanding of the matter.
 I feel bad at his missing this opportunity.
 Their mocking of him was inappropriate.
 I loved listening to his singing.

The four demonstrative pronouns—this, that, these, and those—distinguish the

person or thing being referred to from other people or things; they are
identical to the demonstrative adjectives.

A demonstrative pronoun is a pronoun that is used to point to something

specific within a sentence. These pronouns can indicate items in space or
time, and they can be either singular or plural.

Demonstrative Pronouns Examples

In the following examples, demonstrative pronouns have been italicized for
ease of identification.
This was my mother’s ring.
That looks like the car I used to drive.
These are nice shoes, but they look uncomfortable.
Those look like riper than the apples on my tree.
Such was her command over the English language.
None of these answers are correct.
Neither of the horses can be ridden.
 
Demonstrative Pronouns Exercises
The following exercises will help you gain greater understanding about how
demonstrative pronouns work. Choose the best answer to complete each
sentence.

1.
1. ____________ was such an interesting experience.
A. That
B. These
C. Those
D. Such
2. Are ___________ your shoes?
A. That
B. Them
C. Those
D. This
3. You’ll have to get your own pen. ______________ is mine.
A. That
B. Those
C. Such
D. This
4. There is no end to ___________.
A. Such
B. Those
C. This
D. None
5. Because of their bad behavior, ____________ of the children were given
allowances.
A. None
B. That
C. Those
D. Them
6. ____________ of them had seen it before.
A. Those
B. Neither
C. Such
D. This
7. Is ____________ yours?
A. This
B. Those
C. These
D. Such
2. We can go to the beach or the park. Which sounds more fun?
1. .
A. That
B. Such
C. None
D. Neither
2. Please give me one of ____________.
A. That
B. Those
C. This
D. Such
3. ____________ are nice-looking.
A. This
B. That
C. These
D. Such
Answers
1.
1. A – That was such an interesting experience.
2. C – Are those your shoes?
3. D – You’ll have to get your own pen. This is mine.
4. C – There is no end to this.
5. A – Because of their bad behavior, none of the children were given
allowances.
6. B – Neither of them had seen it before.
7. A – Is that yours?
8. C – Everyone ate early. When we arrived, none was left.
9. B – Please give me one of those.
10. C – These are nice-looking.

Relative pronouns introduce a subordinate clause, a part of a sentence that

includes a subject and verb but does not form a sentence by itself. The main
relative pronouns are that, which, who, whom, what, and whose.

Here are some simple examples:

 That
 The dog that stole the pie is back.
(The relative pronoun is bold. The adjective clause is
highlighted.)
 Which
 My new dog, which I bought last year, loves green beans.
 Who
 The person who bought his car found a 3-carat diamond
under the seat.
 Whom
 Our lawyer, whom we employed for over a year, was
related to the complainant.
 Whose
 The young girl whose cat scratched our sofa has offered
to replace the cushions.

More Examples of Relative Pronouns

In each of these examples, the relative pronoun is bold and the adjective
clause is highlighted.
 The girl who stole your phone is outside.
(The relative pronoun "who" heads an adjective clause that
identifies "the girl.")
 I rode the bike that Jack gave me back home.
 (The relative pronoun "that" heads an adjective clause that
identifies "the bike.")
 Mrs Miggins, who owns a pie shop, is outside.
(The relative pronoun "who" heads an adjective clause that tells
us something interesting about "Mrs Miggins.")
 I rode my bike, which now had a dozen bent spokes, back home.
(The relative pronoun "which" heads an adjective clause that tells
us something interesting about "my bike.")

Reflexive pronouns refer back to the subject of a sentence or clause and are

formed by adding -self or -selves to a personal pronoun
or possessive adjective, as in myself, herself, ourselves, and itself.

Examples of Reflexive Pronouns

In the following examples of reflexive pronouns, the reflexive pronoun in each
sentence is italicized.

1. I was in a hurry, so I washed the car myself.

2. You’re going to have to drive yourself to school today.
3. He wanted to impress her, so he baked a cake himself.
4. Jennifer does chores herself because she doesn’t trust others to do them
right.
5. That car is in a class all by itself.
6. We don’t have to go out; we can fix dinner ourselves.
7. You are too young to go out by yourselves.
8. The actors saved the local theatre money by making costumes themselves.
Reflexive Pronoun Exercises
The following exercises will help you gain greater understanding about how
reflexive pronouns work. Choose the best answer to complete each sentence.

1. Each morning, I brush my teeth and stare at ______________ in the mirror.

A. Himself
B. Herself
C. Myself
D. Itself
Answer: C. Each morning, I brush my teeth and stare at myself in the mirror.
2. Dad and I painted the trailer _______________.
A. Myself
B. Himself
C. Itself
D. Ourselves
Answer: D. Dad and I painted the trailer ourselves.
3. The children made holiday decorations by ________________.
A. Itself
B. Ourselves
C. Themselves
D. Their selves
Answer: C. The children mad holiday decorations by themselves.
4. Paul copies his friend’s homework instead of doing it _______________.
A. Itself
B. Himself
C. Myself
D. Yourself
Answer: B. Paul copies his friend’s homework instead of doing it himself.
5. Please make ________________ at home while you wait.
A. Themselves
B. Himself
C. Yourselves
D. Herself
Answer: C. Please make yourselves at home while you wait.
Indefinite pronouns, such as everybody, either, none, and something, do not
refer to a specific person or thing, and typically refer to an unidentified or
unfamiliar person or thing.
The words it and there can also be used like pronouns when the rules of
grammar require a subject but no noun is actually being referred to. Both
are usually used at the beginning of a sentence or clause, as in "It was
almost noon" and "There is some cake left." These are sometimes referred
to as expletives.

Singular Indefinite Pronouns in Sentences

Take a look at these indefinite pronouns in different sentences. Notice that if

you replace each one with a singular noun, it would still make sense.

 Can anyone help me? ("Anyone" could be your dad, a neighbor, a

teacher, and so on.)
 Nothing is good enough for Roger. ("Nothing" replaces any unknown
noun that Roger doesn't like.)
 I'll eat either for breakfast. ("Either" replaces two options that we don't
know.)
 Both are great choices to wear tonight. ("Both" could mean dresses,
jackets, outfits, shirts, and so on.)
 We've picked out several and will show you tomorrow. ("Several" could
mean any number of items, but we don't know what they are.)
 Margie has three dogs, so she's not looking for another.
 Does anybody have a clue where the dog went?
 Anyone can play the game.
 When I looked around the house, I did not see anything out of the
ordinary.
 At Thanksgiving dinner, each brought a plated dish to make the meal
complete.
 Let's try each one before deciding which to order.
 Either would be a good choice.
 Everyone practiced for the dance recital.
 Everyone knows it is impolite to stare.
  Michaela lost everything when her house burned down.
 Little is known about the masked bank robber.
 I heard the news, but no one has told me much.
 Neither will admit that they stole the candy.
 Nobody saw the dog slip out the front door.
 Tell no one what you've seen today.

 Nothing matters more than getting an A on this test.

 One could call the news station and leave a tip.
 I can identify one of the suspects, but I've never seen the other.
 Somebody emailed me with a question about the carnival.
 Just ask someone to pick up paper plates for the party.
 Something doesn't feel right about this situation.

The most common ones

are all, any, anyone, anything, each, everybody, everyone, everything, f
ew, many, nobody, none, one, several, some, somebody, and someone

Examples of Indefinite Pronouns

Here are some examples of indefinite pronouns (shaded):
 A classic is something that everybody wants to have read
and nobody wants to read. (Mark Twain, 1835-1910)
 Of those who say nothing, few are silent. (Thomas Neill)
 Everything is funny as long as it is happening to somebody else.
(Will Rogers, 1879-1935)
 Everybody likes a kidder, but nobody lends him money. (Arthur
Miller, 1915-2005)
 I don't know anything about music. In my line, you don't have to.
(Elvis Presley, 1935-1977)

WHAT IS ADJECTIVES?
Adjectives describe or modify—that is, they limit or restrict the meaning of—
nouns and pronouns. They may name qualities of all
kinds: huge, red, angry, tremendous, unique, rare, etc.
An adjective usually comes right before a noun: "a red dress,"
"fifteen people." When an adjective follows a linking verb such as be or seem,
it is called a predicate adjective: "That building is huge," "The workers
seem happy." Most adjectives can be used as predicate adjectives, although
some are always used before a noun. Similarly, a few adjectives can only be
used as predicate adjectives and are never used before a noun.
Some adjectives describe qualities that can exist in different amounts or
degrees. To do this, the adjective will either change in form (usually by
adding -er or -est) or will be used with words like more, most, very,
slightly, etc.: "the older girls," "the longest day of the year," "a very
strong feeling," "more expensive than that one." Other adjectives describe
qualities that do not vary—"nuclear energy," "a medical doctor"—and do not
change form.
The four demonstrative adjectives—this, that, these, and those—are identical to
the demonstrative pronouns. They are used to distinguish the person or thing
being described from others of the same category or
class. This and these describe people or things that are nearby, or in the
present. That and those are used to describe people or things that are not
here, not nearby, or in the past or future. These adjectives, like
the definite and indefinite articles (a, an, and the), always come before any
other adjectives that modify a noun.
An indefinite adjective describes a whole group or class of people or things,
or a person or thing that is not identified or familiar. The most common
indefinite adjectives are: all, another, any, both, each, either, enough, every, few,
half, least, less, little, many, more, most, much, neither, one (and two, three,
etc.), other, several, some, such, whole.
The interrogative adjectives—primarily which, what, and whose—are used to
begin questions. They can also be used as interrogative pronouns.
Which horse did you bet on? = Which did you bet on?
What songs did they sing? = What did they sing?

Whose coat is this? = Whose is this?

The possessive adjectives—my, your, his, her, its, our, their—tell you who has,

owns, or has experienced something, as in "I admired her candor, "Our cat
is 14 years old," and "They said their trip was wonderful."
Nouns often function like adjectives. When they do, they are
called attributive nouns.
When two or more adjectives are used before a noun, they should be put in
proper order. Any article (a, an, the), demonstrative adjective
(that, these, etc.), indefinite adjective (another, both, etc.), or possessive
adjective (her, our, etc.) always comes first. If there is a number, it comes
first or second. True adjectives always come before attributive nouns. The
ordering of true adjectives will vary, but the following order is the most
common:
opinion word→ size→ age→ shape→ color→ nationality→ material.
Participles are often used like ordinary adjectives. They may come before a
noun or after a linking verb. A present participle (an -ing word) describes the
person or thing that causes something; for example, a boring conversation is
one that bores you. A past participle (usually an -ed word) describes the
person or thing who has been affected by something; for example,
a bored person is one who has been affected by boredom.
They had just watched an exciting soccer game.
The instructions were confusing.
She's excited about the trip to North Africa.
Several confused students were asking questions about the test.

The lake was frozen.

Examples of adjective in a Sentence

Noun The words blue in “the blue car,” deep in “the water is deep,”
and tired in “I'm very tired” are adjectives.
Recent Examples on the Web: NounFor years, Amazon's Kindle
Paperwhite has been the best Kindle for most people to buy, compared to
the standard no-adjective  Kindle.— Andrew Cunningham, Ars Technica, 13 Sep.
2022Now only those manufacturing inside the geographic territory of Bikaner
are allowed to use the adjective  ''Bikaneri'' to label their bhujia -- just like only
one region of France can call its sparkling wine Champagne. — Shalba
Sarda, CNN, 11 Sep. 2022This is very good and pretty and wearable and exciting
stuff, pick your adjective.

A preposition is a word or group of words used before a noun, pronoun, or noun phrase to

show direction, time, place, location, spatial relationships, or to introduce an object. Some
examples of prepositions are words like "in," "at," "on," "of," and "to."
Prepositions in English are highly idiomatic. Although there are some rules for usage, much
preposition usage is dictated by fixed expressions. In these cases, it is best to memorize the
phrase instead of the individual preposition.

A Few Rules

Prepositions of Direction
To refer to a direction, use the prepositions "to," "in," "into," "on," and "onto."

 She drove to the store.

 Don’t ring the doorbell. Come right in(to) the house.
 Drive on(to) the grass and park the car there.

Prepositions of Time
To refer to one point in time, use the prepositions "in," "at," and "on."
Use "in" with parts of the day (not specific times), months, years, and seasons.

 He reads in the evening.
 The weather is cold in December.
 She was born in 1996.
 We rake leaves in the fall.

Use "at" with the time of day. Also use "at" with noon, night, and midnight.

 I go to work at 8:00.
 He eats lunch at noon.
 She often goes for a walk at night.
 They go to bed at midnight.

Use "on" with days.

 I work on Saturdays.
 He does laundry on Wednesdays.

To refer to extended time, use the prepositions "since," "for," "by," "during," "from…to,"
"from…until," "with," and "within."

 I have lived in Minneapolis since 2005. (I moved there in 2005 and still live there.)
 He will be in Toronto for 3 weeks. (He will spend 3 weeks in Toronto.)
 She will finish her homework by 6:00. (She will finish her homework sometime
between now and 6:00.)
 He works part time during the summer. (For the period of time throughout the
summer.)
  I will collect data from January to June. (Starting in January and ending in June.)
 They are in school from August until May. (Starting in August and ending in May.)
 She will graduate within 2 years. (Not longer than 2 years.)

Prepositions of Place
To refer to a place, use the prepositions "in" (the point itself), "at" (the general vicinity), "on"
(the surface), and "inside" (something contained).

 They will meet in the lunchroom.

 She was waiting at the corner.
 He left his phone on the bed.
 Place the pen inside the drawer.

To refer to an object higher than a point, use the prepositions "over" and "above." To refer
to an object lower than a point, use the prepositions "below," "beneath," "under," and
"underneath."

 The bird flew over the house.

 The plates were on the shelf above the cups.
 Basements are dug below ground.
 There is hard wood beneath the carpet.
 The squirrel hid the nuts under a pile of leaves.
 The cat is hiding underneath the box.

 To refer to an object close to a point, use the prepositions "by," "near," "next to," "between,"
"among," and "opposite."

 The gas station is by the grocery store.

 The park is near her house.
 Park your bike next to the garage.
 There is a deer between the two trees.
 There is a purple flower among the weeds.
 The garage is opposite the house.

Prepositions of Location
To refer to a location, use the prepositions "in" (an area or volume), "at" (a point), and
"on" (a surface).

 They live in the country. (an area)

 She will find him at the library. (a point)
 There is a lot of dirt on the window. (a surface)
 

Prepositions of Spatial Relationships

To refer to a spatial relationship, use the prepositions "above," "across," "against," "ahead
of," "along," "among," "around," "behind," "below,"
"beneath," "beside," "between," "from," "in front of," "inside," "near," "off," "out of," "through,"
"toward," "under," and "within."

 The post office is across the street from the grocery store.

 We will stop at many attractions along the way.
 The kids are hiding behind the tree.
 His shirt is off.
 Walk toward the garage and then turn left.
 Place a check mark within the box.

Prepositions Following Verbs and Adjectives

Some verbs and adjectives are followed by a certain preposition. Sometimes verbs and
adjectives can be followed by different prepositions, giving the phrase different meanings.
To find which prepositions follow the verb or an adjective, look up the verb or adjective in an
online dictionary, such as Merriam Webster, or use a corpus, such as The Corpus of
Contemporary American English. Memorizing these phrases instead of just the preposition
alone is the most helpful.

Some Common Verb + Preposition Combinations

About: worry, complain, read

 He worries about the future.

 She complained about the homework.
 I read about the flooding in the city.

At: arrive (a building or event), smile, look

 He arrived at the airport 2 hours early.

 The children smiled at her.
 She looked at him.

From: differ, suffer

 The results differ from my original idea.

 She suffers from dementia.

For: account, allow, search

  Be sure to account for any discrepancies.
 I returned the transcripts to the interviewees to allow for revisions to be made.
 They are searching for the missing dog.

In: occur, result, succeed

 The same problem occurred in three out of four cases.

 My recruitment strategies resulted in finding 10 participants.
 She will succeed in completing her degree.

Of: approve, consist, smell

 I approve of the idea.

 The recipe consists of three basic ingredients.
 The basement smells of mildew.

On: concentrate, depend, insist

 He is concentrating on his work.

 They depend on each other.
 I must insist on following this rule.

To: belong, contribute, lead, refer

 Bears belong to the family of mammals.

 I hope to contribute to the previous research.
 My results will lead to future research on the topic.
 Please refer to my previous explanation.

With: (dis)agree, argue, deal

 I (dis)agree with you.
 She argued with him.
 They will deal with the situation.

Although verb + preposition combinations appear similar to phrasal verbs, the verb and the
particle (in this case, the preposition) in these combinations cannot be separated like
phrasal verbs. See more about this on our verb choice page.