The rule, as people use it
Pronouns are the short words that stand in for a person or thing once you've named it: Sofia becomes she, the bus becomes it, your friends become they. English has two sets. One goes before the verb, doing the action: I, you, he, she, it, we, they. The other goes after the verb or after a word like "with" or "for": me, you, him, her, it, us, them. So you say "She called me", and then "I called her back".
The mistake that stands out most is mixing up he and she. Many languages use one word for both, so the brain doesn't check. In English, a listener who hears "My sister, he works in Tokyo" has to stop and fix it. Pick the pronoun before you start the sentence.
Two more things speakers do. They use "they" for one person when they don't know or don't need to say if it's a man or a woman: "Someone left their keys. I hope they come back." And after "it's", everyday speech uses "me", not "I": "Who's there?" "It's me."
Examples
Tap a sentence to hear it. Say it after the voice.
Fill the gap
Type the missing words, then check. The full sentence plays when you get it.
- 1
My sister lives in Tokyo. (he / she) loves it.
- 2
I saw Kenji yesterday and gave (he / him) the book.
- 3
Can you send (we / us) the photos?
- 4
The kids are tired. (They / Them) want to go home.
- 5
Someone called, but (they / it) didn't leave a message.
- 6
This is for you and (I / me).
- 7
I lost my wallet. Have you seen (it / him)?
- 8
(Her / She) and I work together.
Practice · 3 min
Pick three people you know: one man, one woman, and a group. Say two sentences about each one out loud. Use the name in the first sentence and a pronoun in the second: "Marcus is my cousin. He lives in Austin." Then add one sentence where the pronoun comes after the verb: "I'm seeing him on Saturday." Write all nine sentences down and underline every pronoun.
Say it today
Use it once in a real conversation before tomorrow. Out loud counts, even to yourself.