1. Using Pronouns Correctly
What are the cases of personal pronouns?
The nominative case
The objective case
The possessive case
Review A
Review B

2. What are the cases of personal pronouns?
Pronouns take the place of nouns. They take different forms to do different jobs.
Subject
She
Ming-na waits at the airport with flowers.
Direct object
She is holding the flowers and smiling.
them
Possessive
The flowers are for Ming-na’s aunt.
her

3. Nominative case (subject form) pronouns
The nominative case
Pronouns in the nominative case (or subject form) are most often used as subjects.
Nominative case (subject form) pronouns
First person
I, we
Second person
you, you
Third person
he, she, it, they
Subject
Subject
I enjoy water sports.
He was the best surfer.

4. The nominative case
The subject of a sentence tells whom or what the sentence is about.
Subject
The rain was good for the crops.
Subject
Soon the wheat will be harvested.

5. The nominative case
Make sure the subject of a verb is in the nominative case.
Subject
They
My friends
My friends are thinking about summer jobs.
They ?
Nominative case
Them ?
Subject
Wendy and Jerome clean houses for money.
Jerome he
him ? he ?
Nominative case

6. The nominative case
It can be difficult to know which pronoun form to choose. Use a nominative form pronoun to replace one or both parts of a compound subject.
She and her cousins found the treasure.
Dori and her cousins found the treasure.
She is the nominative case pronoun that replaces Dori. But what pronoun should replace her cousins?
She and they found the treasure.
Dori and they found the treasure. Or
Her cousins is part of the compound subject. It should be in the nominative case.
Dori and them found the treasure.

7. The nominative case
How can you tell which pronoun to use? Here’s an easy way to check.
Sam and (I, me) went fishing.
Would you say I went fishing or
Me went fishing? ?
Sam and I went fishing.
I is in the nominative (subject) case, so it is the correct pronoun.

8. The nominative case
Choose the correct form of the pronoun in parentheses. Be prepared to explain your answer.
1. (He, Him) is a careful writer.
2. (They, Them) were the first ones on the scene.
3. Mark and (me, I) made a decision.
4. (Us, We) planned the surprise party.

9. The nominative case
Choose the correct form of the pronoun in parentheses. Be prepared to explain your answer.
1. (He, Him) is a careful writer.
Would you say He is or Him is? The pronoun is used as a subject, so the nominative pronoun He is correct.

10. The nominative case
Choose the correct form of the pronoun in parentheses. Be prepared to explain your answer.
2. (They, Them) were the first ones on the scene.
Would you say They were the first ones or Them were the first ones? The nominative pronoun They is correct.

11. The nominative case
Choose the correct form of the pronoun in parentheses. Be prepared to explain your answer.
3. Mark and (me, I) made a decision.
Would you say Me made or I made? The pronoun is used as a subject, so the nominative pronoun I is correct.

12. The nominative case
Choose the correct form of the pronoun in parentheses. Be prepared to explain your answer.
4. (Us, We) planned the surprise party.
Would you say Us planned or We planned? The nominative pronoun We is correct.

13. The nominative case
On Your Own
Supply pronouns to complete the following sentences. Use a variety of pronouns, but do not use you or it.
1. _______ used fresh tortillas for the burritos.
2. Eddie and _______ like fishing.
3. _______ must be the person in the gorilla suit.
_______ and I go to the movies often.
5. Were _______ at the door?
[End of Section]

14. The nominative case
Possible Answers
Supply pronouns to complete the following sentences. Use a variety of pronouns, but do not use you or it.
1. _______ used fresh tortillas for the burritos.
2. Eddie and _______ like fishing.
3. _______ must be the person in the gorilla suit.
_______ and I attend debates often.
5. Were _______ at the door? We I
She He
they

15. Objective case (object form) pronouns
The objective case
Pronouns in the objective case (or object form) are used as direct objects, indirect objects, and objects of prepositions.
Direct object
Objective case (object form) pronouns
First person
me, us
Second person
you, you
Third person
him, her, it, them
The answer surprised us.
Indirect object
Howie showed me a magic trick.
Object of preposition
We sat with them at the game.

16. The objective case
A direct object is a noun, pronoun, or word group that tells who or what receives the action of the verb.
Direct object
My brother bought a puzzle .
puzzle
bought what?
puzzle
Direct object
He called Milly to help him with it.
Milly
called who?
Milly

17. The objective case
An indirect object tells to whom or to what (or for whom or for what) the action of the verb is done.
Indirect object
Direct object
Cass gave her little sister a haircut .
sister
haircut
gave a haircut to whom?
sister
Notice that indirect objects appear only in sentences that also have direct objects.

18. The objective case
An object of a preposition is the noun or pronoun in a prepositional phrase.
Object of preposition
Preposition
beside the door
beside the door
beside the door
Object of preposition
Preposition
in front of a wooden stool
in front of a wooden stool
in front of a wooden stool

19. The objective case A direct object should be in the objective case.
Mom helped ______ with our projects. us
Objective case we ? us ?
Direct object
She took Pete and ______ to the fabric store. me me ?
Objective case I ?

20. The objective case An indirect object should be in the objective case.
Grandma sent Joe and _____ tickets to a play.
him
him ?
Objective case he ?
Indirect object
An usher gave _____ tickets.
them
they ?
Objective case
them ?

21. The objective case
An object of a preposition should be in the objective case.
Object of preposition
Does her dog always go with ______?
her
Objective case
she ?
her ?
Object of preposition
A walk will be good for Fluffy and ______. me me ?
Objective case I ?

22. The objective case
To decide which pronoun to use with a compound object, try the sentence with just one pronoun.
Direct object
The teacher chose Josh and her.
The teacher chose Josh and (her, she).
Would you say The teacher chose her or The teacher chose she?
Object of a preposition
Maria sent a card to Dan and me.
Maria sent a card to Dan and (I, me).
Sent a card to I or sent a card to me?

23. The objective case
Choose the correct form of the pronoun in parentheses. Be prepared to explain your answer.
1. Rose is walking toward Tim and (they, them).
2. Lana sent Arturo and (he, him) invitations.
3. The manager hired Keisha and (her, she).
4. Please keep this secret between you and (me, I).

24. The objective case
Choose the correct form of the pronoun in parentheses. Be prepared to explain your answer.
1. Rose is walking toward Tim and (they, them).
Would you say toward they or toward them? The pronoun is used as the object of the preposition toward. The objective pronoun them is correct.

25. The objective case
Choose the correct form of the pronoun in parentheses. Be prepared to explain your answer.
2. Lana sent Arturo and (he, him) invitations.
Would you say sent he an invitation or sent him an invitation? The pronoun is used as an indirect object, so the objective pronoun him is correct.

26. The objective case
Choose the correct form of the pronoun in parentheses. Be prepared to explain your answer.
3. The manager hired Keisha and (her, she).
Would you say The manager hired she or The manager hired her? The pronoun is used as a direct object, so the objective pronoun her is correct.

27. The objective case
Choose the correct form of the pronoun in parentheses. Be prepared to explain your answer.
4. Please keep this secret between you and (me, I).
Would you say between I or between me? The pronoun is used as the object of the preposition between. The objective pronoun me is correct.

28. The objective case
On Your Own
Supply pronouns to complete the following sentences. Use a variety of pronouns, but do not use you or it.
1. Ms. Suarez ordered sandwiches for _______.
2. The firefighters rescued _______ from the blaze.
3. A clown entertained the children and _______.
Please give _______ and _______ some apple juice.
5. Sam stood in front of Mr. Sweeney and _______.
[End of Section]

29. The objective case
Possible Answers
Supply pronouns to complete the following sentences. Use a variety of pronouns, but do not use you or it.
1. Ms. Suarez ordered sandwiches for _______.
2. The firefighters rescued _______ from the blaze.
3. A clown entertained the children and _______.
Please give _______ and _______ some apple juice.
5. Sam stood in front of Mr. Sweeney and _______. us
them
her
him me
them

30. Possessive case pronouns
The possessive case
Pronouns in the possessive case are used to show ownership or possession.
Possessive case pronouns
First person
my, mine, our, ours
Second person
your, yours
Third person
his, her, hers, its, their, theirs
Is your homework finished?
I have done mine.

31. The possessive case
The possessive pronouns mine, yours, his, hers, its, ours, and theirs can be used as subjects and objects.
Subject
Your coat is warm. Mine is too.
We made ours with soft yarn.
Direct object
Indirect object
Mother gave hers a quick glance.
Object of preposition
Next to yours, my gloves look dirty.

32. The possessive case
The possessive pronouns my, our, your, his, her, its, and their are used as adjectives before nouns.
Did you get your canary at a pet store?
My older sister raises zebra finches.
The bird fluttered its wings.

33. The possessive case
These possessive forms can also be called adjectives.
my our your his her its their
Are they ready for their move to Oregon?
Follow your teacher’s instructions on what to call these words.

34. The possessive case
Choose the correct form of the pronoun in parentheses. Be prepared to explain your answer.
1. (My, Mine) is by the door.
2. Shelley is proud of (her, hers) little brother.
3. Compared with (their, theirs), (our, ours) bus is new.
4. The dog wagged (it’s, its) tail happily.

35. The possessive case
Choose the correct form of the pronoun in parentheses. Be prepared to explain your answer.
1. (My, Mine) is by the door.
The possessive pronoun Mine can be used as a subject.

36. The possessive case
Choose the correct form of the pronoun in parentheses. Be prepared to explain your answer.
2. Shelley is proud of (her, hers) little brother.
The possessive pronoun her can be used as an adjective before a noun.

37. The possessive case
Choose the correct form of the pronoun in parentheses. Be prepared to explain your answer.
3. Compared with (their, theirs), (our, ours) bus is new.
The possessive pronoun theirs can be used as an object of a preposition. The possessive pronoun our can be used as an adjective before a noun.

38. The possessive case
Choose the correct form of the pronoun in parentheses. Be prepared to explain your answer.
4. The dog wagged (it’s, its) tail happily.
Its is the possessive pronoun. It’s is the contraction of it is.

39. The possessive case
On Your Own
Fill in the blanks with appropriate possessive pronouns.
1. _______ books are on the shelf.
2. Have you finished eating _______ breakfast yet?
3. Ms. Thomson graded Wayne’s paper, and then she gave _______ her complete attention.
I can’t remember _______ phone number.
5. Last weekend we raked _______ front yard and _____ swept _____ sidewalk.
[End of Section]

40. The possessive case
Possible Answers
Fill in the blanks with appropriate possessive pronouns.
1. _______ books are on the shelf.
2. Have you finished eating _______ breakfast yet?
3. Ms. Thomson graded Wayne’s paper, and then she gave _______ her complete attention.
I can’t remember _______ phone number.
5. Last weekend we raked _______ front yard and swept ______ sidewalk.
His
your
mine
their
our
her

41. Review A
For each of the following sentences, choose the correct form of the pronoun in parentheses.
(He, Him) has promised to me.
The lead role will be played by (she, her).
(Your, Yours) is the ham sandwich.
Zack and (she, her) moved to San Diego last year.
5. We warned Paul and (they, them) about the wind.
[End of Section]

42. Review A
For each of the following sentences, choose the correct form of the pronoun in parentheses.
(He, Him) has promised to me.
The lead role will be played by (she, her).
(Your, Yours) is the ham sandwich.
Zack and (she, her) moved to San Diego last year.
5. We warned Paul and (they, them) about the wind.

43. Review B
Proofread the following sentences for correct pronoun forms. Correct any errors you find. If a sentence is correct, label it C.
1. Lucy told Karen and I a funny story.
2. Does she know the answer to that riddle?
3. Him and the bus driver are good friends.
4. Uncle Jared made lunch for Mark and she.
5. I was not the person in the costume.

44. Review B
Proofread the following sentences for correct pronoun forms. Correct any errors you find. If a sentence is correct, label it C. me
1. Lucy told Karen and I a funny story.
2. Does she know the answer to that riddle?
3. Him and the bus driver are good friends.
4. Uncle Jared made lunch for Mark and she.
5. I was not the person in the costume. C He
her C

45. The End