/Pronouns
A2Pronouns

Reflexive Pronouns

1

What is it?

Reflexive pronouns are used when the subject and object of a sentence are the same person or thing. The action comes back to the subject: "I hurt myself" (I did it to me). They are: MYSELF, YOURSELF, HIMSELF, HERSELF, ITSELF, OURSELVES, YOURSELVES, THEMSELVES. Use them when: (1) the subject does something to itself ("She cut herself"), (2) for emphasis ("I made it myself"), (3) with "by" meaning alone ("I live by myself"). Don't use them as subjects: "Myself likes pizza" ✗ → "I like pizza" ✓.

2

How to form it

SubjectPositiveNegativeQuestion
I → myselfI hurt myself. / I did it myself.I didn't hurt myself.Did I hurt myself?
you → yourself/yourselvesYou hurt yourself. / You (plural) hurt yourselves.You didn't hurt yourself.Did you hurt yourself?
he/she/itHe hurt himself. / She hurt herself. / It fixed itself.He didn't hurt himself.Did he hurt himself?
we → ourselvesWe enjoyed ourselves.We didn't enjoy ourselves.Did we enjoy ourselves?
they → themselvesThey hurt themselves.They didn't hurt themselves.Did they hurt themselves?
by myself (alone)I live by myself. (alone)not applicableDo you live by yourself?
  • • Reflexive pronouns: myself, yourself, himself, herself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, themselves
  • • Use when subject = object (action comes back) → I hurt myself. / She taught herself.
  • • I → myself | you → yourself (singular) / yourselves (plural)
  • • he → himself | she → herself | it → itself
  • • we → ourselves | they → themselves
  • • For emphasis: I did it myself. (emphasizes I did it, not someone else)
  • • By myself/yourself/himself/etc. = alone → I live by myself. (I live alone)
  • • Don't use as subject! → 'Myself like pizza' ✗ → 'I like pizza' ✓
3

When to use it

  1. 1

    Action comes back to subject (subject = object)

    "I hurt myself." / "She cut herself." / "He looked at himself in the mirror." / "We enjoyed ourselves." / "They taught themselves Spanish."

  2. 2

    For emphasis (= I did it, not someone else)

    "I made it myself." (not someone else) / "She fixed the car herself." / "Did you do it yourself?" / "We built the house ourselves."

  3. 3

    By + reflexive = alone

    "I live by myself." (alone) / "She traveled by herself." / "He did it by himself." / "They went by themselves."

  4. 4

    After "enjoy", "hurt", "cut", "teach", "introduce", "behave", "express"

    "Enjoy yourself!" / "Don't hurt yourself!" / "He cut himself." / "She introduced herself." / "Behave yourself!"

  5. 5

    NOT used as subjects

    WRONG: "Myself like pizza." / "Himself is tall." | RIGHT: "I like pizza." / "He is tall."

4

Common mistakes

I hurt me.

I hurt myself.

When subject = object (action comes back), use reflexive pronoun, not object pronoun.

Myself like pizza.

I like pizza.

Don't use reflexive pronouns as subjects. Use subject pronouns (I, he, she, etc.).

I live by me.

I live by myself.

Use reflexive pronouns after 'by' to mean 'alone'.

She looked at her in the mirror.

She looked at herself in the mirror.

When the action comes back to the subject, use reflexive pronoun.

Enjoy you!

Enjoy yourself!

With 'enjoy', use reflexive pronoun when subject = object.

5

Quick reference

  • Reflexive: myself, yourself, himself, herself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, themselves
  • Use when subject = object → I hurt myself. / She taught herself.
  • I → myself | you → yourself/yourselves | he → himself | she → herself
  • we → ourselves | they → themselves | it → itself
  • For emphasis → I did it myself. (not someone else)
  • By + reflexive = alone → I live by myself. (alone)
  • Common verbs: enjoy, hurt, cut, teach, introduce, behave, express
  • NOT as subject! → 'Myself like pizza' ✗ → 'I like pizza' ✓
6

Natural conversation example

Talking about accomplishments

T

Tom

Did you make this cake yourself?
L

Lisa

Yes! I taught myself to bake last year.
T

Tom

Wow! I wish I could do that. I usually hurt myself in the kitchen!
L

Lisa

Don't be hard on yourself! Everyone can learn.
T

Tom

Did you learn by yourself or did someone help?
L

Lisa

I learned by myself using online videos.
T

Tom

That's amazing! We should enjoy ourselves with this cake now!

Practice Exercises

Complete with reflexive pronouns.

  1. 1.
    I hurt .
  2. 2.
    She cut .
  3. 3.
    He looked at in the mirror.
  4. 4.
    We enjoyed .
  5. 5.
    They taught Spanish.
  6. 6.
    You should be proud of . (singular)
Possessive Pronouns and Possessive AdjectivesAll TopicsIntensive Pronouns

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