You object pronouns, object pronouns in English, constitute a type of personal pronoun that works as an object of the verb or preposition in a clause.
Object pronouns are used to replace names of people, animals or things, which function as direct or indirect objects in the sentence.
Example:
i love my mom. (I love my mom.) > i love her. (I love her.)
When looking at the examples above, we can see that the object pronoun her replaced my mom.
In Portuguese, this type of pronoun is called "personal pronoun of the oblique case".
Table of object pronouns
Check below the list of all object pronouns (object pronouns) with translation.
| object pronoun | Translation |
|---|---|
| me | me me |
| you | you, the, the, the, the, the you |
| him | you, o, to him |
| her | her, her, her |
| it | he, the, the, this, this, this, this, this |
| us | US |
| you | ye, them, you |
| them | them, the, the, the, the them, the them |
Difference between object pronouns and subject pronouns
In the English language, both object pronouns (object pronouns) and the subject pronouns (subject pronouns) are classified as personal pronouns (personal pronouns).
The difference between these two types of pronouns is related to the role they play in clause. Check out the explanation below to find out when to use each.
object pronouns
You object pronouns (objective pronouns) are those that receive/suffer the verbal action.
This type of pronoun performs the object function of a verb or a preposition and, therefore, it is usually positioned immediately after them.
Examples of sentences with object pronouns:
- they bought her the new bike. (They bought her a new bike.)
- We are studying for it. (We are studying for this.)
- she is calling him. (She is calling him.)
Note that, in all of the above sentences, the object pronouns suffer/receive the verbal action.
Remember that the object pronouns are used to replace names of people, animals or things, which function as direct or indirect objects.
Examples:
- we are playing with the kids. (We are playing with the kids.) > we are playing with them. (we are playing with they.)
- they are teaching Bob how to play the piano. (they are teaching the bob playing the piano.) > they are teaching him how to play the piano. (They O are teaching to play the piano.)
- when will she visit my sister and I?. (when will she visit me and my sister?) > when will she visit us? (When she US will visit?)
subject pronouns
You subject pronouns (subject pronouns), also referred to as personal subject pronouns, function as subjects who practice verbal action.
Look at the table below and see what the subject pronouns are.
| subject pronoun | Translation |
|---|---|
| I | me |
| you | you |
| he | he |
| she | Is it over there |
| it | he; it (to refer to things, animals, objects, places, etc.) |
| we | we |
| you | you |
| they | they; they |
Examples of sentences with subject pronouns:
- they bought Mary a new bike. (They bought Mary a new bike.)
- we are studying for the exam. (We are studying for the exam.)
- she is calling Derek. (She is calling Derek.)
Note that, in all of the above sentences, the subject pronouns perform the verbal action.
Rules on how to use object pronouns
You object pronouns are part of the predicate of the sentence. Thus, they are always used after verbs and prepositions.
As we can see in the table above, they are used in the singular (me, you, him, her, it) and in the plural (us, you, them).
In addition to the male and female form, the “it” is a neutral form used to refer to animals, objects, places, time, ideas and feelings, among others.
Examples:
- Elizabeth does not like me. (Elizabeth doesn't like me.)
- My sister called you last week. (My sister you called last week.)
- Tom took her to work on tuesday. (Tone The took it to work on Tuesday.)
- I like this movie. I saw it last month. (I like this movie. Me O watched last month.)
- Mara always writes letters to us. (Mara always US writes letters.)
- they bought you many gifts. (They bought a lot of gifts for you.)
- he told them the truth. (He said-them the truth.)
Video about object pronouns
Check out the video below to fix your learnings about the object pronouns (object pronouns).
Want to know more about English pronouns? Be sure to read the texts below!
- Subject pronouns: rules, exercises and more
- English pronouns: classifications, tables with translations and exercises
- Personal pronouns in English: subject pronouns and object pronouns
- Relative pronouns: uses, examples and complete table with translation
- Reflexive pronouns: table with translations and examples, exercises and more
- Demonstrative pronouns: complete table, classifications and exercises
- Possessive pronouns: classifications, examples and complete table with translations
Entrance exams on object pronouns
1. (Udesc/2010)
Touched by An Angel (By Maya Angelou)
We, unaccustomed to courage
exiles from delight
live coiled in shells of loneliness
until love leaves its high holy temple
and comes into our sight
to liberate us into life.
love arrives
and in its train eat ecstasies
old memories of pleasure
ancient histories of pain.
Yet if we are bold,
love strikes away the chains of fear
from our souls.
We are weaned from our timidity
In the flush of love's light
we dare be brave
And suddenly we see
that love costs all we are
and will ever be.
Yet it is only love
which sets us free.
The words "We" (line 1), "our" (line 5), "us" (line 6), are consecutively:
a) personal pronoun, reflexive pronoun, object pronoun.
b) object pronoun, possessive adjective, personal pronoun.
c) object pronoun, personal pronoun, possessive adjective.
d) personal pronoun, reflexive pronoun, possessive adjective.
e) personal pronoun, possessive adjective, object pronoun.
Correct alternative: e) personal pronoun, possessive adjective, object pronoun
a) WRONG. Alternative a) is wrong because our (our) is a possessive adjective (possessive adjective), not a reflexive pronoun (reflective pronoun).
b) WRONG. Alternative b) is wrong because we (we) is a subject pronoun (subject pronoun) and not a object pronoun (object pronoun).
c) WRONG. Alternative c) is wrong because we (we) is a subject pronoun (subject pronoun) and not a object pronoun (object pronoun), and our (our) is a possessive adjective (possessive adjective), not a personal pronoun (personal pronoun). Furthermore, us (us) is a object pronoun (object pronoun), not a possessive adjective (possessive adjective).
d) WRONG. Alternative d) is wrong because our (our) is a possessive adjective (possessive adjective), not a reflexive pronoun (reflective pronoun) and us (us) is a object pronoun (object pronoun), not a possessive adjective (possessive adjective).
e) CORRECT. Alternative e) presents all the correct classifications: we (we) is a personal pronoun (personal pronoun), our (our) is a possessive adjective (possessive adjective) and us (us) is a object pronoun (object pronoun).
See too: Exercises on adjectives in English
2. (UEMG/2012) In the sentence "All over the globe are historical mysteries left to us by the ancient world”, the word "us" is
a) the personal subject pronoun.
b) the personal object pronoun.
c) the possessive adjective pronoun.
d) none of the above.
Correct alternative: b) the personal object pronoun.
a) WRONG. Alternative a) is wrong because the personal subject pronouns (subject pronouns), also called subject pronouns, are as follows: I (me), you (you you), he (he), she (Is it over there), it (used to refer to things, animals, objects, places, etc.), we (us) and they (they).
b) CORRECT. The word us it is a personal object pronoun (pronoun personal object), as indicated by alternative b). In the sentence, it works as the object of the preposition to.
c) WRONG. Alternative c) is wrong because the possessive adjective pronouns (possessive adjective pronouns) are as follows: my (my, mine, mine, mine), your (your, your, your, your) his (from him), her (her), its (his, hers - used to refer to things, animals, objects, places, etc.), our (our, our, our, our), their (their their).
d) WRONG. Alternative d) becomes invalid as soon as letter b) is the correct answer.
3. (UPE/2014)
THE BIRTH OF THE INTERNET: THE HISTORICAL FEAT
In 1969 the world had its eyes turned to what it was undoubtedly to become a historical feat: the first human being setting foot on the moon. However, in that same year something else of much importance was happening as well: the Internet was coming into being.
Usually when we think of a historical feat, we think of something big, like the first voyage to the moon. But more often than not, we find that the most meaningful events in history spring from what is viewed in their time as an unimportant fact. A case in point is exactly what the figure above represents: the birth of the Internet.
It is difficult to pinpoint the exact moment when the Internet was born. The World Wide Web is indeed the result of a number of interrelated events that can be traced back to the first artificial satellite –the Russian (then Soviet) Sputnik – being put into orbit around the earth back in the 1950's. But it was in l969 that “… four host computers were connected together into the initial ARPANET, and the budding Internet was off the ground”. The diagram above shows the first four places ever linked via the Internet which was then called the ARPANET. They are US organizations: the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), the Stanford Research Institute (SRI), the University of California Santa Barbara (UCSB) and the University of Utah (UTAH).
Little by little the Internet started spreading everywhere because of new technological advancements and today it is so important that our lives would not be the same without it. Of course going to the moon was an extremely important event as well, a real historical feat, but the birth of the Internet has provided to be the most significant historical fact, and feat, in the recent past of the history of mankind.
(MITRANE GRANDSON, N; LOUREIRO, M; ANTUNES, Alice M. insight. Richmond Publishing Publisher. São Paulo, 2004. Adapted.)
Analyzing the word “it” in the last paragraph, we can say that
a) both are related to “Internet”.
b) the first “it” is related to “everywhere”.
c) the second “it” is related to “lives”.
d) the first “it” is related to a prepositon.
e) the second “it” is related to a verb.
Correct alternative: a) both are related to “Internet”.
a) CORRECT. Alternative a) is correct. The two occurrences of it in the last paragraph they refer to the word Internet.
On the first occurrence, "...it is so important..." (...it's so important...), the it it is a subject pronoun, also called personal subject pronoun (subject pronoun). In the second occurrence, "...our lives would not be the same without it... (...our lives wouldn't be the same without it...), the it is object pronoun (object pronoun) of the preposition without (without).
b), c), d) and e) WRONG. Alternatives b), c), d) and e) are wrong because both occurrences of it in the last paragraph they refer to the word Internet.
Still analyzing the word “it” in the last paragraph, we can say that
I. the first “it” is a subject pronoun.
II. the second “it” is an object pronoun.
III. both are personal pronouns.
IV. the first “it” is a possessive adjective.
V. the second "it" is a possessive pronoun
It is CORRECT
a) I and V.
b) II, III, and IV.
c) III, IV, and V.
d) II and IV.
e) I and II.
Correct alternative: e) I and II.
a), b), c) and d) WRONG. Alternatives a), b), c) and d) are not correct, as they have wrong classifications for the word it. On the first occurrence of it in the last paragraph, it has the function of subject pronoun, also called personal subject pronoun (subject pronoun), and in the second, it has the function of object pronoun (object pronoun).
e) CORRECT. Alternative e) is correct because in the first occurrence, "...it is so important..." (...it's so important...), the it it is a subject pronoun, also called personal subject pronoun (subject pronoun). In the second occurrence, "...our lives would not be the same without it... (...our lives wouldn't be the same without her...), the it é object pronoun (object pronoun) of the preposition without (without).
Interested in improving your knowledge of the English language? Be sure to read the texts below.
- English adjectives: classification, order, grades, lists with translation and more
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- Tag questions: formation and use in all verbal tenses
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