Language/Western-frisian/Grammar/Personal-Pronouns

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Western Frisian → Grammar → 0 to A1 Course → Pronouns and Prepositions → Personal Pronouns

Introduction

In this lesson, you will learn about the Western Frisian personal pronouns, including both the subject and object forms, as well as reflexive pronouns. Personal pronouns are used instead of nouns to refer to people or things in a sentence, and they play an essential role in communication. By the end of this lesson, you will be able to use them in various contexts.

Once you've mastered this lesson, take a look at these related pages: Comparative and Superlative & Questions.

Subject Pronouns

Subject pronouns are used as the subject of a sentence, indicating who or what is doing the action. In Western Frisian, subject pronouns are as follows:

Pronoun	Pronunciation	English
ik	IPA: [/ɪk/]	I
do	IPA: [/do/]	you (singular)
hy	IPA: [/haɪ̯/]	he
sy	IPA: [/səi̯/]	she
it	IPA: [/ɪt/]	it
wy	IPA: [/wɛi̯/]	we
jim	IPA: [/jɪm/]	you (plural)
sy	IPA: [/səi̯/]	they

Examples:

• Ik bin bliid ("I am happy")
• Sy sjongt ("She is singing")
• Do fleanst nei London ("You fly to London")

Object Pronouns

Object pronouns are used as the object of a sentence, indicating who or what is receiving the action. In Western Frisian, object pronouns are as follows:

Pronoun	Pronunciation	English
my	IPA: [/mɛi̯/]	me
dy	IPA: [/dəi̯/]	you (singular)
him	IPA: [/hɪm/]	him
har	IPA: [/hɔr/]	her
it	IPA: [/ɪt/]	it
ús	IPA: [/ys/]	us
jim	IPA: [/jɪm/]	you (plural)
har	IPA: [/hɔr/]	them

Examples:

• Ik sjoch dy ("I see you")
• Hy hellet ús op ("He picks us up")
• Sy joegen harren in kado ("They gave them a present")

Reflexive Pronouns

Reflexive pronouns are used to refer back to the subject of a sentence. In Western Frisian, reflexive pronouns are formed by adding the suffix "-sels" to the relevant pronoun, like so:

Pronoun	Reflexive Pronoun	Pronunciation	English
ik	mysels	IPA: [/mɛi̯səls/]	myself
do	dysels	IPA: [/dəi̯səls/]	yourself (singular)
hy	himsels	IPA: [/hɪm.səls/]	himself
sy	har sels	IPA: [/hɔr səls/]	herself
it	it sels	IPA: [/ɪt səls/]	itself
wy	ússels	IPA: [/ys.səls/]	ourselves
jim	jim sels	IPA: [/jɪm səls/]	yourselves (plural)
sy	harren sels	IPA: [/hɔrən səls/]	themselves

Examples:

• Wy kinne ússels hjir prima rêde ("We can handle ourselves here just fine")
• Do keapest dysels in nije auto ("You're buying yourself a new car")
• Hy fertelt oer himsels ("He talks about himself")

Pronouns with Prepositions

Pronouns are commonly used with prepositions to indicate location or direction. In Western Frisian, the most common prepositions used with pronouns are "mei", "foar", and "op". Here are the pronouns used with these prepositions:

Preposition	Pronoun	Pronunciation	English
mei	my	IPA: [/mɛi̯/]	with me		dy	IPA: [/dəi̯/]	with you (singular)		him	IPA: [/hɪm/]	with him		har	IPA: [/hɔr/]	with her		it	IPA: [/ɪt/]	with it		ús	IPA: [/ys/]	with us		jim	IPA: [/jɪm/]	with you (plural)		har	IPA: [/hɔr/]	with them
foar	my	IPA: [/mɛi̯/]	for me		dy	IPA: [/dəi̯/]	for you (singular)		him	IPA: [/hɪm/]	for him		har	IPA: [/hɔr/]	for her		it	IPA: [/ɪt/]	for it		ús	IPA: [/ys/]	for us		jim	IPA: [/jɪm/]	for you (plural)		har	IPA: [/hɔr/]	for them
op	my	IPA: [/mɛi̯/]	on me		dy	IPA: [/dəi̯/]	on you (singular)		him	IPA: [/hɪm/]	on him		har	IPA: [/hɔr/]	on her		it	IPA: [/ɪt/]	on it		ús	IPA: [/ys/]	on us		jim	IPA: [/jɪm/]	on you (plural)		har	IPA: [/hɔr/]	on them

Examples:

• Jim kinne mei ús mei ("You can come with us")
• Sy geane ôf op himsels ("They rely on themselves")
• Hy fynt in geskenk foar har ("He finds a present for her")

Conclusion

In this lesson, you learned about the Western Frisian personal pronouns, including the subject and object forms, as well as reflexive pronouns. You also learned how to use them in various contexts, including with prepositions. Now that you have learned this essential grammatical structure, you can continue to build on your knowledge of Western Frisian and become more fluent in the language. Keep practicing and using these pronouns to improve your communication skills!

Having concluded this lesson, consider checking out these related pages: Conditional Mood & How to Use Have.

Table of Contents - Western Frisian Course - 0 to A1

• Course Presentation

  ---

Introduction to Western Frisian

• Alphabet and Pronunciation
• Basic Sentence Structure

  ---

Greetings and Introductions

• Common Greetings
• Introducing Yourself

  ---

Nouns and Articles

• Noun Gender and Plurals
• Definite and Indefinite Articles

  ---

Numbers and Time

• Numbers 1-20
• Telling Time

  ---

Adjectives and Adverbs

• Descriptive Adjectives
• Comparative and Superlative

  ---

Family and Relationships

• Family Members
• Describing Relationships

  ---

Pronouns and Prepositions

• Personal Pronouns
• Prepositions of Place

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Food and Dining

• Common Foods
• At the Restaurant

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Verbs and Tenses

• Regular Verbs
• Irregular Verbs

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Travel and Transportation

• Modes of Transportation
• Asking for Directions

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Western Frisian Traditions

• Holidays and Celebrations
• Traditional Foods

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Hobbies and Leisure Activities

• Common Hobbies
• Discussing Leisure Activities

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Conjunctions and Interjections

• Coordinating Conjunctions
• Interjections

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Weather and Seasons

• Describing Weather
• Seasons and Months

Other Lessons

• Regular Verbs
• Comparative and Superlative
• Basic Sentence Structure
• Give your Opinion
• Plurals
• Descriptive Adjectives
• Prepositions of Place
• Coordinating Conjunctions
• Gender
• How to Use Be

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