Guide to Reflexive Pronouns: How to Use Reflexive Pronouns

In English grammar, a reflexive pronoun is a type of pronoun used when the subject of a sentence is the same as the object of the sentence. Reflexive pronouns end in the suffix “self” or “selves” and can act as a direct object or an indirect object of a sentence. They are paired with reflexive verbs, which are used to indicate action in a sentence with the same subject and object.

There are nine reflexive pronouns in the English language. Each English reflexive pronoun has its respective non-reflexive personal pronoun form, such as I, you, or it.

1. 1. Yourself (second person singular)
2. 2. Herself (third person singular feminine)
3. 3. Himself (third person singular masculine)
4. 4. Myself (first person singular)
5. 5. Ourselves (first person plural)
6. 6. Yourselves (second person plural)
7. 7. Oneself (indefinite)
8. 8. Themselves (third person plural or gender-neutral third person singular)
9. 9. Itself (third person singular neuter)

The use of reflexive pronouns can be somewhat confusing at first, especially for someone trying to learn English as a foreign language. Consider these common uses and example sentences of reflexive pronouns as used in the English language to avoid common errors.

1. 1. As a direct object: A direct object is a word that follows a transitive verb and receives the action of the verb in a sentence. For example, in the sentence “He taught himself how to skateboard,” the reflexive pronoun “himself” is the direct object of the verb because it is receiving the action of the transitive verb “taught.”
2. 2. As an indirect object: An indirect object is a noun phrase referring to the person or thing taking the transitive verb’s action but is not the subject of the sentence. For example, consider the sentence “She taught herself the piano.” In this sentence, the piano is the subject and the reflexive pronoun “herself” takes the action of the transitive verb “taught.”
3. 3. As a prepositional complement: Prepositional complements are words that directly follow a prepositional phrase. For example, in the sentence “She sent a letter to herself,” the word “to” acts as a prepositional antecedent to the reflexive pronoun “herself” which receives the action of the preposition.
4. 4. As an intensive pronoun: Also called emphatic pronouns, intensive pronouns are used to emphasise the identity of a person or object. They are typically used right after the subject of the sentence. For example, in the sentence “I was invited by the queen herself.” The reflexive pronoun emphasizes the identity of the person who did the inviting: the queen.

The most common mistake in reflexive pronoun usage is using a reflexive pronoun when a regular pronoun would do. For example, “Call John or myself with any questions” is an example of incorrect usage of the reflexive pronoun myself. The correct way to write this sentence would be: “Call John or me with any questions.” Luckily, there’s an easy trick for identifying reflexive pronoun errors. Simply remove the other people from the sentence, and see if it would work. You probably wouldn’t say “Call myself with any questions,” but it would make sense to say “Call me with any questions.” Adding another person to the equation doesn’t change which type of pronoun you should use.

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