Mohamed Khider University, Biskra
Faculty of Arts and Languages
Department of Foreign Languages
English Language Division
Module: GRAMMAR
Level: First Year LMD
Teacher: SAIHI H.
Semester One: Parts Of Speech In Context
Lesson seven: PRONOUNS
Pronouns
Let’s read the story, and circle the pronoun in the text if we know
Hamlet
On a dark winter night, a ghost walks the
ramparts of Elsinore Castle in Denmark. Discovered
first by a pair of watchmen, then by the scholar
Horatio, the ghost resembles the recently deceased
King, whose brother Claudius has inherited the
throne and married the king’s widow, Queen
Gertrude. When Horatio and the watchmen bring
Prince Hamlet, the son of Gertrude, to see the ghost
of the dead king, it speaks to him, declaring
ominously that it is indeed his father’s spirit, and
that he was murdered by none other than Claudius.
Ordering Hamlet to seek revenge on the man who
usurped his throne and married his wife, the ghost
disappears with the dawn.
A group of traveling actors comes to
Elsinore, and Hamlet seizes upon an idea to test his
uncle’s guilt. He will have the players perform a
scene closely resembling the sequence by which
Hamlet imagines his uncle to have murdered his
father, so that if Claudius is guilty, he will surely
react. When the moment of the murder arrives in
the theater, Claudius leaps up and leaves the room.
Hamlet and Horatio agree that this proves his guilt.
Hamlet goes to kill Claudius but finds him praying.
Since he believes that killing Claudius while in
prayer would send Claudius’s soul to heaven,
Hamlet considers that it would be an inadequate
revenge and decides to wait. Claudius, now
frightened of Hamlet’s madness and fearing for his
Prince Hamlet devotes himself to avenging
own safety, orders that Hamlet be sent to England at
and thoughtful by nature, he delays, entering into a
Hamlet goes to confront his mother, in
his father’s death, but, because he is contemplative
once.
deep melancholy and even apparent madness.
whose bedchamber Polonius has hidden behind a
erratic behavior and attempt to discover its cause.
Hamlet believes the king is hiding there. He draws
and Guildenstern, to watch him. When Polonius,
Polonius. For this crime, he is immediately
Claudius and Gertrude worry about the prince’s
They employ a pair of Hamlet’s friends, Rosencrantz
tapestry. Hearing a noise from behind the tapestry,
his sword and stabs through the fabric, killing
the pompous Lord Chamberlain, suggests that
dispatched to England with Rosencrantz and
Ophelia, Claudius agrees to spy on Hamlet in
includes more than banishment, as he has given
Hamlet may be mad with love for his daughter,
Guildenstern. However, Claudius’s plan for Hamlet
conversation with the girl. But though Hamlet
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern sealed orders for the
Ophelia: he orders her to enter a nunnery and
death.
certainly seems mad, he does not seem to love
King of England demanding that Hamlet be put to
declares that he wishes to ban marriages.
2012/2013 ©SAIHI H.
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In the aftermath of her father’s death,
The sword-fighting begins. Hamlet scores
Ophelia goes mad with grief and drowns in the
the first hit, but declines to drink from the king’s
in France, returns to Denmark in a rage. Claudius
from it and is swiftly killed by the poison. Laertes
convinces him that Hamlet is to blame for his
succeeds in wounding Hamlet, though Hamlet does
king receive letters from Hamlet indicating that the
cut by his own sword’s blade, and, after revealing to
attacked his ship en route to England, Claudius
death, he dies from the blade’s poison. Hamlet then
concocts a plan to use Laertes’ desire for revenge to
stabs Claudius through with the poisoned sword
Hamlet in innocent sport, but Claudius will poison
poisoned wine. Claudius dies, and Hamlet dies
Laertes’ blade so that if he draws blood, Hamlet will
immediately after achieving his revenge.
river. Polonius’s son, Laertes, who has been staying
father’s and sister’s deaths. When Horatio and the
prince has returned to Denmark after pirates
secure Hamlet’s death. Laertes will fence with
die. As a backup plan, the king decides to poison a
goblet, which he will give Hamlet to drink Hamlet
should score the first or second hits of the match.
Hamlet returns to the vicinity of Elsinore just as
Ophelia’s funeral is taking place. Stricken with
grief, he attacks Laertes and declares that he had in
fact always loved Ophelia. Back at the castle, he
tells Horatio that he believes one must be prepared
to die, since death can come at any moment. A
foolish courtier named Osric arrives on Claudius’s
orders to arrange the fencing match between
Hamlet and Laertes.
proffered goblet. Instead, Gertrude takes a drink
not die of the poison immediately. First, Laertes is
Hamlet that Claudius is responsible for the queen’s
and forces him to drink down the rest of the
At this moment, a Norwegian prince named
Fortinbras, who has led an army to Denmark and
attacked Poland earlier in the play, enters with
ambassadors from England, who report that
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are dead. Fortinbras
is stunned by the gruesome sight of the entire royal
family lying sprawled on the floor dead. He moves
to take power of the kingdom. Horatio, fulfilling
Hamlet’s last request, tells him Hamlet’s tragic
story. Fortinbras orders that Hamlet be carried
away in a manner befitting a fallen soldier.
Author : William Shakespeare
A pronoun can replace a noun or another pronoun. You use pronouns like "he," "which," "none," and
"you" to make your sentences less cumbersome and less repetitive.
Kinds of pronouns
A personal pronoun refers to a specific person or thing and changes its form to indicate person, number,
gender, and case.
Subjective
Objective
1st singular person
2nd singular person
3rd singular person
1st plural person
2nd plural person
3rd plural person
I
You
She
He
It
We
You
they
Me
You
Her
Him
It
Us
You
them
Example :
Examples:

Martha works for a 
Not long ago, the chief executive officer of
cellular company. She has
the company gave us a bonus.
to travel to Orlando every 
The phone call was for me.
week.
2012/2013 ©SAIHI H.
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Let’s practice (01): Each of the sentences below contains a pronoun. Identify the person (first, second, or third) of the
pronoun and whether the pronoun is singular or plural and subjective or objective.
 Christopher couldn’t find it. ………………………………………..
 Leave it to her to find the discrepancies. ………………………………………..
 To whom should Kyle speak then? ………………………………………..
 In the end, they would have rather gone through the chaos twice over than lose all that they had gained. …………
Let’s practice (02): Fill in the blanks with the correct pronouns.
1. Peter and I are brothers. _______ share a bedroom together.
2. Sue isn’t well. Dad is taking _______ to see a doctor.
3. My brother is a teacher. _______ teaches English.
4. All his students like _______ very much.
5. Children, _______ are making too much noise!
6. Who are those people? Where are _______ from?
7. Mom is a doctor. _______ works in a hospital.
8. The sky is getting dark. _______ is going to rain.
9. John, we are all waiting for ______. Are you coming with ____?
10. May _______ borrow your pen?
11. Yes, of course. When can you return _______ to_______?
12. What are _______ reading, Jenny?
Let’s practice (03): Choose the correct pronouns.

No one wants (their, his/her) house payment
increased.

(It’s, Its) (hers, her’s) and neither you nor (I, me)
should say it belongs to (we, us).

I wish I could write as well as (him, he).


I have been sitting between (she, her) and (he, him)
the whole evening.
If (we, us) musicians stand together, (we, us) will
force (they, them) to pay us a reasonable wage; by
(ourself, ourselves) we cannot win.

(She, Her) and (me, I) will be joining you and (her,
she) later.

He is determined to do it by (hisself, himself).

Jerry and (he, him) have been working on that car
all by (theirselves, themselves) for days.

I have shown the book to Marty and (her, she), but
I don’t know whether (he, him) likes it more than
(her, she) or not.
Just between you and (I, me), that restaurant serves
rotten food.

No one knows better than (I, me) how to find (their,
his/her) way around this town.

No doubt that was (he, him) knocking at the door.


I like to be in a small class where (I, you) can get to
know the instructor and other students.
I wish (they, them) and (we, us) lived closer so
(we, us) could visit more often.


(It’s, Its) been a long day; this project of (yours,
your’s) is tiring.
2012/2013 ©SAIHI H.
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Other types of pronouns
Possessive adjectives
My
your
her
his
It
Our
Your
Their
Examples:
 Their scientific discovery
 Your opinion matters
Possessive pronouns
Mine
Yours
Hers
His
Its
Ours
Yours
Theirs
=
=
This scientific discovery is theirs.
The only opinion that matters is yours
Relative pronouns
Subjective
Objective
Possessive
who/whose
whom
whose
 The man who called you has just arrived.
 It is a story about a boy whose parents got divorced.
 The man whom I met yesterday
Non‐Restrictive
Restrictive
Which
That /which
e.g.
e.g.
Flagan’s report,which was
Flagan’s report that was published
published
at the same time as Kain’s presents a
at the same time as Kain’s,
markedly different perspective.
presents a
markedly different perspective.
Indefinite Pronouns
Indefinite pronouns are considered indefinite because they do not refer
directly to a clearly specified noun.
Always Singular Sometimes Singular‐
Always Plural
Sometimes Plural
another/other no
all
both
one/nobody
any
few
anyone/anybody
more
many
nothing anything
most
others
one each
none
several
somebody/someo
some
ne either/neither
something
everyone/
everybody
everything
little/much
Examples :
Someone has to take out the trash. (singular)
Neither of the participants was comfortable. (singular)
Most of the audience responds to this type of persuasion. (plural)
Each of the students identifies a few of his/her favorite hobbies. (singular,
plural)
More of the students leave early this semester. (plural)
None of his cereal was finished. (singular)
2012/2013 ©SAIHI H.
Reflexive/intensive
Singular
Plural
myself
ourselves
First Person
yourself
yourselves
Second
himself,
Person
herself
themselves
Third Person
itself
Reflexive :
 James shot himself in the foot.
 I talk to myself quite relentlessly.
 You are more afraid of yourself than
anyone else
Intensive :
 We ourselves would have never
considered it an option.
 I have climbed Everest three times
myself.
Interrogative Pronouns
These pronouns have the same form as
relative pronouns but are used to introduce a
question instead.
Examples:
Which one do you want?
Whose is this?
Whom are you looking for?
Who is it?
Demonstrative Pronouns
this, that, these, those
Examples:





That is our house. (singular)
This is a good meal. (at the time of eating)
Are those the shoes you wanted?(plural)
Are these the shoes you wanted? (plural)
These ideas are what led to the
fall.(plural)
Reciprocal Pronouns
These pronouns are actually phrases made up
of pairs of pronouns—
one another and each other.
Examples:
 The athletes defended one another both
on and off the field.
 Jane and Bill are talking to each other
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Let’s practice (04): Fill in the blanks with the correct reflexive pronouns from the box.
1.
2.
3.
4.
yourselves
themselves
itself
ourselves
herself
No one can help us. We have to help ____________.
Jane always makes the bed by ____________.
They painted the wall all by ____________.
I hurt ____________ in the playground yesterday.
myself
himself
yourself
5.
John, you must behave __________ before your
friends.
6. Children, you must do the homework ____________.
7. Tom defended ____________ in front of the jury.
8. The dog is scratching ____________.
Let’s practice (05): Write the correct interrogative pronouns in the blanks to complete the sentences:
1. _______ is the matter with you?
6. _______ knows the answer?
2. _______ invented the computer?
7. _______ came first, the chicken or the egg?
3. _______ of the twins is older?
8. _______ would you like to drink coffee or tea?
4. _______ do you wish to speak to?
9. _______ of them do you think will win the race?
5. _______ is this car in front of our house?
10. _______ is the word for a stamp collector?
Let’s practice (06): In the following pairs, one sentence is correct, and the other sentence has a pronoun antecedent agreement
error. Mark the CORRECT sentence.
1. A_____ Each of these computers has their drawbacks.
B_____ Each of these computers has its drawbacks.
2. A_____ Anyone trying to reduce their salt intake should avoid canned foods.
B_____ People trying to reduce their salt intake should avoid canned foods.
3. A_____ If job hunters want to make a good impression at an interview, he should be sure to arrive on time.
B_____ If job hunters want to make a good impression at an interview, they should be sure to arrive on time.
4. A_____ Neither of the children appreciates their parents’ sacrifices.
B_____ Neither of the children appreciates his or her parents’ sacrifices.
5. A_____ At the men’s bowling tournament, one of the bowlers hurt his ankle.
B_____ At the men’s bowling tournament, one of the bowlers hurt their ankle.
6. A_____ Either of the men could have given his seat to the elderly woman.
B_____ Either of the men could have given their seat to the elderly woman.
7. A_____ The restaurant is about to celebrate its fifth anniversary.
B_____ The restaurant is about to celebrate their fifth anniversary.
8. A_____A person who cares about the environment will recycle their aluminum cans.
B_____ People who care about the environment will recycle their aluminum cans.
9. A_____ Neither Bob nor Bill thought he had been treated fairly.
B_____ Neither Bob nor Bill thought they had been treated fairly.
10. A_____ Everyone brought their pencils to the exam.
B_____ Everyone brought his or her pencil to the exam.
Let’s practice (07): Circle the correct answer.
1. This is ______ new car. I bought it yesterday.
5. They live on the other side of the street. That's
A. my
______ house, the red one.
B. mine
A. They
C. its
B. Theirs
2. A family photo. Which one's ______ sister?
C. their
A. Your
6. Susan's coming to the party on her own.______
B. Yours
boyfriend's staying at home.
C. you
A. His
3. I'd like you to meet Rita. She's a great friend of
B. Hers
______ .
C. Her
A. our
7. This one is hers, so that one must be______ .
B. Us
A. Him
C. ours
B. He
4. Michael is married. ______ wife is an accountant.
C. his
A. His
8. The cat belongs to my wife but the dog is______ .
B. Her
A. Mine
C. Its
B. Hers
C. my
Let’s practice (08): in your copybook, classify the pronouns in the text according to their types
2012/2013 ©SAIHI H.
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