Object Pronouns: You, Us, Me, Her, Him, Them, It

Today, I'm going to explain object pronouns to you. A lot of ESL learners have a hard time understanding them. Students have often told me how difficult it is to use object pronouns. So, I hope this post will give you a better understanding of them.

Using Object Pronouns

Please study the chart below.

You've seen these words before during your English language studies, but learning how to use them isn't easy. I've often written that the best way to learn English (or any language) is to read. Study the picture below then read the passage about it.

 (X-Men by Chris Claremont, John Byrne, Terry Austin and Glynis Wein. Marvel Comics)

When I was very young, my favourite comic book was "The X-Men". It was a very new and exciting series for me. The X-Men were different: people were afraid of them. Wolverine was the character I liked best; I wanted to be just like him.

Notice how the object pronouns matched both the nouns  ( X-Men) and subject pronouns (I). Once you find out who/what the object pronoun is about they are easier to understand.

 For example, with Wolverine I used "him": he's male and one character. With "X-Men" I used "them": they are a group of eight people. Once you know the subject of the sentence, you can easily choose which object pronoun to use. 

Exercise

Complete the passages below with the correct object pronoun(s). Look at the chart above if you're not sure which object pronoun to use.

1/ 

My friend, Toshi, loves nanaimo bars. He eats ____ three days a week. I've told ____ many times that they're very unhealthy, but he doesn't care. 

2/

I have the iPhone 6s and I really like ____.  Apple products are my favourite so I always buy ____. My wife only uses Android phones: I don't understand ____.


3/

This is my rubgy team, "The Tigers". We are doing very well, but many people don't like ____. People think rugby players are rough so they don't feel comfortable around ____. But, it doesn't bother ____: I'm having fun playing the game.

4/

(by Charles M Schulz)

I grew up reading "The Peanuts" comic strips and books. I still enjoy reading _____, especially the old ones. My favourite character is Snoopy. I like ____ because he is independent and funny; nobody controls ____.


5/

Fiona Staples is a Canadian comic book artist. Her style is very unique and I really like _____. She scans her pages into a computer and uses PhotoShop to add colour to _____. Staples works mostly with writer, Brian K Vaughn. Vaughn writes the stories but he allows _____ to design the characters. 


(Note: Yes, comic books were referenced again. Remember the post about including hobbies and interests in your ESL studies?)

If you'd like to learn more about pronouns, please watch this video from Engvid's Ronnie.

You can also use this complete chart of pronouns to review and practice pronouns.