Subject Pronouns
Let’s review the subject pronouns again and also learn about the special circumstances
surrounding tú and usted, nosotros and nosotras, vosotros and vosotras, and
ustedes, ellos and ellas.
Let’s start with yo.
Use yo when you are talking about yourself.
Yo soy una mujer.
I am a woman.
Use tú or usted when talking to someone. Both words mean “you” in English.
However, be careful because there are certain situations when you can use tú and
other situations when you should use usted.
Tú is used for informal situations. That is, when you are familiar with the person you
are talking to.
Generally speaking, you can use tú when talking to…
 friends,
 family members,
 kids, and
 pets.
For example:
Hola, Juan. ¿Cómo estás tú?
Hi, Juan. How are you?
On the other hand, usted (which is often abbreviated as Ud. in writing) is used in formal
situations.
You should use usted when talking to…
 people to whom you want to show respect,
 people older than you,
 people in positions of authority, and
 people you are meeting for the first time.
Buenos días, Dr. Ramírez. ¿Cómo está usted? Good morning, Dr. Ramirez. How
are you?
Él means “he” and ella means “she.”
Él es guapo.
Ella es bonita.
He is handsome.
She is pretty.
As we mentioned earlier, there are two ways to say “we” in Spanish: nosotros and
nosotras.
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Subject Pronouns
If you are a boy, use nosotros when
 you are in a group of just boys, or
 you are in a group of boys and girls together.
In fact, most simply put, if you are a boy, you will ALWAYS use the word nosotros
to mean “we.”
Nosotros somos una familia.
We are a family.
However, if you are a girl, you have a few other things to consider.
 Use nosotras when you are in a group of just girls.
 Use nosotros if you are in a group of boys and girls together.
Nosotras somos amigas.
We are friends.
Our next set of subject pronouns deals with the different ways to say “you all” in
Spanish. Knowing when to use each one is actually very easy.
The first two pronouns, vosotros and vosotras, are only used in Spain. They follow
similar guidelines as what we used for nosotros.
 Use vosotros when you are talking to a group of guys, or when you are
talking to a group of both guys and girls.
Vosotros sois de España.

You all are from Spain.
Use vosotras if you are talking to a group made up of only girls.
Vosotras sois muy inteligentes.
You all (girls) are very intelligent.
Ustedes (often abbreviated as Uds. in writing) is the word used to express the idea of
“you all” in the rest of the Spanish-speaking world. It is used when speaking to a group
of guys, a group of girls, or a group with both guys and girls.
Ustedes son de Venezuela.
You all are from Venezuela.
Finally, we have ellos and ellas. Both words mean “they” but like nosotros and
vosotros, knowing when to use which term depends on whether you are talking about a
group of guys, a group of girls, or a mixed group.
 Use ellos when you are talking about a group of guys, or when you are talking to
a group of both guys and girls.
 Use ellas when you are talking about a group of just girls.
Ellos se graduaron de la universidad.
Ellas están usando la computadora.
Subject Pronouns
They graduated from the university.
They are using the computer.
© 2012 Middlebury Interactive Languages.
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