Subject Pronouns

Subject pronouns (I, you, he, she, it, we, they) are the foundation of English sentences — they tell us who or what is performing the action. To master subject pronouns, you need to understand 7 pronouns and make 3 key decisions:

Which person or thing? (I, you, he, she, it, we, or they)
Is 'it' a dummy subject or a real reference? (weather, time, distance vs referring to a thing)
Subject position or object position? (subject form vs object form)

This lesson focuses specifically on subject pronouns and their special uses, making it ideal for A1–A2 learners building their core grammar. For a complete guide covering both subject and object forms and their contrast, see Personal Pronouns.

Don't confuse subject pronouns with possessive adjectives (my, your, his, her, its, our, their). Possessive adjectives come before nouns ("my book", "their car") and are never used in the subject slot of a sentence.

The 7 Subject Pronouns: I, You, He, She, It, We, They

Subject pronouns replace the subject of a sentence — the person or thing performing the action. They always come before the main verb.

Subject Pronoun	Use it for	Example
I	The speaker (yourself)	I am a student.
you	The person(s) you're speaking to	You are very kind.
he	One male person	He works at the hospital.
she	One female person	She speaks Spanish and English.
it	One thing, animal, or concept	It is on the table.
we	The speaker + others	We sit next to each other.
they	Multiple people or things	They are playing football.

Choosing He, She, or It

The most common question at A1 level is whether to use he, she, or it.

He or she → based on gender:

"My brother is tall. He plays basketball." (male → he)
"My mother is a doctor. She works at the hospital." (female → she)
Titles help: Mr. Chen → he; Mrs. Parker → she

It → for things, animals (in general), and abstract concepts:

"Where is the book? It is on the table." (thing)
"The dog is hungry. It wants some food." (animal, general context)
"The laptop is very old. It doesn't work properly." (thing)

First glimpse of dummy 'it' — weather:

"It is very hot today. Let's go swimming." (weather — no real subject)
"It is snowing outside. We should stay home." (weather)

We'll explore dummy 'it' in detail in a later section.

We vs They

We = the speaker is part of the group → "Sarah and I → we"
- "Sarah and I are in the same team. We practise every Tuesday."
They = a group not including the speaker → "Tom's parents → they"
- "Tom's parents are on holiday. They are visiting Italy."

👉 Practice Subject Pronouns →

⚠️ Subject vs Object: The Position Rule

This is where most learners make mistakes. Knowing the subject pronouns is not enough — you need to choose the right form based on where the pronoun sits in the sentence.

The Position Rule

[Subject position] + verb + [Object position]
                          after prep → [Object position]

Subject position (before the verb) → use the subject form: I, you, he, she, it, we, they
Object position (after a verb or preposition) → use the object form: me, you, him, her, it, us, them

Pronoun Type	Subject Form	Object Form
1st person singular	I	me
2nd person	you	you
3rd person male	he	him
3rd person female	she	her
3rd person neutral	it	it
1st person plural	we	us
3rd person plural	they	them

Common Position Mistakes

Example	Position	Correct Form
"I saw Tom at the station. I waved to ___."	After preposition 'to' → object	him ✅ (not 'he')
"This present is for Sarah. Please give it to ___."	After preposition 'to' → object	her ✅ (not 'she')
"We have two cats. We feed ___ every morning."	After verb 'feed' → object	them ✅ (not 'they')
"The teacher asked ___ a very difficult question."	After verb 'asked' → object	me ✅ (not 'I')

Common prepositions that take object pronouns: to, with, for, at, of, from, about, next to, between

⚠️ Compound Subjects: The Deletion Test

When two pronouns (or a noun and a pronoun) are joined with and, many learners choose the wrong form. This is one of the most common mistakes.

Wrong: Me and my friend go to school. ❌ Wrong: The teacher told Anna and I. ❌

Right: My friend and I go to school. ✅ Right: The teacher told Anna and me. ✅

The rule is the same as always — the position determines the form. But when two people are involved, it is harder to judge. Use The Deletion Test:

The Deletion Test (4 Steps)

Step 1: Identify the compound structure ("My best friend and ") Step 2: Remove the other part ("My best friend and" → just "") Step 3: Test both forms on their own Step 4: Use whichever form sounds correct

Example 1: "My best friend and ___ go to the same school."

Remove "My best friend and" → "___ go to the same school"
Test: "I go" ✅ / "Me go" ❌
Result: My best friend and I ✅

Example 2: "The teacher told Anna and ___."

Remove "Anna and" → "told ___"
Test: "told me" ✅ / "told I" ❌
Result: Anna and me ✅

More examples:

Sentence	Test (remove partner)	Correct
"___ and his brother are building a treehouse."	"He is building" ✅	He
"The manager spoke to my colleague and ___."	"spoke to me" ✅	me

Warning: Never say "between you and I". After any preposition (including between), you always need the object form. "Between you and me" is always correct.

For a complete guide to object pronouns and their uses, see Personal Pronouns.

👉 Practice Subject vs Object Pronouns →

Dummy 'It' and Special Uses

In several common patterns, it acts as a dummy subject — a grammatical placeholder with no actual meaning. This is different from using it to refer to a thing.

When 'It' Has No Real Meaning

Referential 'it' refers to a specific noun:

"Where is the book? It is on the table." (it = the book)

Dummy 'it' has no real subject — it's just a grammatical requirement:

"It is raining." (no real subject — not referring to a thing)

The 4 Uses of Dummy 'It'

Use	Pattern	Examples
Weather	It + be + adjective / verb	It is cold. It's raining. It is snowing.
Time	It + be + time	It is 10 o'clock. It's late. It is Monday tomorrow.
Distance	It + be + distance	It is about 200 kilometres from London to Birmingham. It's a long way.
Formal subject	It + be + adjective + to-infinitive	It is important to eat breakfast. It's easy to learn. It is not safe to swim.

All these patterns use it — never that, this, or there.

⚠️ 'It' vs 'There is/are': A Critical Distinction

This is one of the most common mistakes with subject pronouns. The words it and there can both appear at the start of a sentence, but they follow very different patterns.

Structure	Use	Example
It is + adjective	Weather, time, conditions	It is raining. It is 10 o'clock. It was dark.
It is + adjective + to-infinitive	Formal subject (commenting on action)	It is important to study. It is easy to learn.
It takes + time	Duration	It takes 2 hours to drive there.
It is + distance	Distance	It is 200 km from A to B.
There is / There are + noun	Something exists in a place	There is a supermarket near my house. There are many parks.

The key rule:

'It' + adjective (describing a condition or commenting on something)
'There' + noun (saying something exists)

Common Mistakes: 'It' vs 'There'

Incorrect	Correct	Explanation
It is a supermarket near my house. ❌	There is a supermarket near my house. ✅	Use 'there is' to say something exists. 'It is a supermarket' would need context (e.g. "What is that building?").
There is raining. ❌	It is raining. ✅	Weather uses 'it', not 'there'.
There is important to study. ❌	It is important to study. ✅	Formal subject uses 'it', not 'there'.
It are many parks in this city. ❌	There are many parks in this city. ✅	Existence uses 'there', and 'it' cannot be plural ('it are' is impossible).
There is very cold in winter. ❌	It is very cold in winter. ✅	Temperature/weather uses 'it', not 'there'.

Remember: If you're describing how something is (weather, time, conditions) → use it. If you're saying something exists → use there.

👉 Practice Dummy 'It' and Special Uses →

Short Answers and Mixed Practice

Short Answers with Subject Pronouns

In short answers to yes/no questions, we use the subject pronoun + auxiliary verb:

Question	Short Answer	Pronoun
"Who broke the window?"	"He did," said Tom, pointing at his brother.	He (subject form)
"Who wants to go first?"	"We do!" shouted the children.	We (includes speaker)
"Is Maria coming to the party?"	"Yes, she is."	she (Maria = female)

In short answers, the pronoun is the subject of the verb, so we always use the subject form (I, he, she, we, they).

Animals and Gender

For animals, we usually use it when the gender is not specified:

"My neighbours have a dog. It barks very loudly at night."

We only use he or she for animals when:

The gender is known and relevant
The animal is a pet with a known name and gender

Mixed Applications

Once you understand the basic patterns, you can handle complex sentences:

"My cousin James is very smart. He speaks three languages." (James = male → he)
"The water is very deep here. It is not safe to swim." (dummy 'it' for formal subject)
"Can you help ___? I don't understand this exercise." (after verb 'help' → object form: me)

👉 Practice Mixed Subject Pronouns →

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Incorrect	Correct	Why Learners Make This Mistake
It is a supermarket near my house.	There is a supermarket near my house.	Confusing dummy 'it' with existential 'there' — 'it' describes conditions (weather, time), 'there' says something exists
I waved to he.	I waved to him.	Using subject form after a preposition instead of object form — prepositions always take object pronouns
My friend and me go to school.	My friend and I go to school.	Using object form in subject position in compound subjects — use the Deletion Test
The teacher told Anna and I.	The teacher told Anna and me.	Hypercorrection — overcorrecting by using 'I' after a verb when 'me' (object form) is needed
There is raining.	It is raining.	Confusing 'there' with weather dummy 'it' — weather always uses 'it', never 'there'
There is important to study.	It is important to study.	Confusing 'there' with formal subject dummy 'it' — 'it is + adjective + to-infinitive' is the correct pattern
Between you and I.	Between you and me.	Hypercorrection after prepositions — 'between' is a preposition and always takes object form

Quick Summary

The 7 Subject Pronouns

Person	Subject Form	Use for
1st singular	I	Speaker (yourself)
2nd	you	Listener(s)
3rd singular male	he	Male person
3rd singular female	she	Female person
3rd singular neutral	it	Thing, animal, weather, time, distance
1st plural	we	Speaker + others
3rd plural	they	Others (people or things)

3-Step Decision Flow

Step 1: Identify the position

Is it before the verb (subject position)? → Use subject form
Is it after a verb or preposition (object position)? → Use object form (see Personal Pronouns)

Step 2: Identify the person/thing

Male person → he
Female person → she
Thing, animal, weather, time, distance → it
Speaker (yourself) → I
Listener → you
Speaker + others → we
Others (not including speaker) → they

Step 3: Check for dummy 'it'

Weather, time, distance, formal subject? → Use it
Something exists in a place? → Use there is/are (NOT 'it')

Dummy 'It' Quick Reference

Pattern	Use	Example
It is + weather	Weather conditions	It is raining / cold / sunny.
It is + time	Time and date	It is 3 o'clock / Monday / late.
It is/takes + distance/time	Distance or duration	It is 200 km. It takes 30 minutes.
It is + adjective + to-inf	Commenting on action	It is important / easy / safe to...

'It' vs 'There' Rule

'It' + adjective → describing a condition
'There' + noun → saying something exists

Practice Tips

Use the Deletion Test every time you write a compound subject or object ("My friend and ___"). Remove the other person and check which form sounds right on its own.
Memorize dummy 'it' patterns (weather, time, distance, formal subject). When you see it at the start of a sentence, ask yourself: is there a real noun it refers to? If not, it's a dummy subject.
Remember the 'It' vs 'There' rule: 'It' + adjective (weather, conditions), 'There' + noun (existence). If you can see a noun right after 'is', use 'there'. If you see an adjective, use 'it'.
Practice position recognition before choosing form. Ask: is the pronoun doing the action (subject) or receiving it (object)?
Review the 3-Step Decision Flow regularly until it becomes automatic. The three decisions work together: position → person/thing → dummy or referential.

Practice All Exercises

Work through both sets of these subject pronouns exercises with answers. Each set builds on the previous one, so working through them in order gives the best results. All exercises are available online as multiple choice questions and as printable PDF worksheets.