Language/German/Grammar/Personal-Pronouns

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German Grammar → Pronouns and Possessives → Personal Pronouns

As a German language teacher for over 20 years, I believe that personal pronouns are one of the most important elements of the German language. Without them, sentences would sound awkward and unclear. In this lesson, you will learn how to correctly use personal pronouns in sentences and conjugate them for different persons.

With the completion of this lesson, consider investigating these related pages: Cases & How to Use Be.

Pronouns

In German, personal pronouns are used to replace nouns in a sentence. They are declined (conjugated) based on the person, gender, and case they are in. Here are the personal pronouns in German with their corresponding English equivalents:

German	Pronunciation	English
ich	ɪç	I
du	duː	you (singular)
er	eːɐ̯	he/it
sie (feminine)	ziː	she/it
es	ɛs	it
wir	vɪʁ	we
ihr	iːɐ̯	you (plural)
sie (plural)	ziː	they
Sie (formal)	ziː	you (formal)

Notice that the formal "you" (Sie) is capitalized in German. This is an important distinction between the formal and informal pronoun, as the informal "you" (du) is not capitalized.

Conjugation

Personal pronouns must be conjugated based on the case they are in. In German, there are four cases: nominative, accusative, dative, and genitive. In this lesson, we will only focus on the nominative case, which is used for the subject of the sentence.

Here are the nominative case pronouns with their corresponding English equivalents:

German	Pronunciation	English
ich	ɪç	I
du	duː	you (singular)
er	eːɐ̯	he
sie (feminine)	ziː	she
es	ɛs	it
wir	vɪʁ	we
ihr	iːɐ̯	you (plural)
sie (plural)	ziː	they
Sie (formal)	ziː	you (formal)

When conjugating personal pronouns, you must also pay attention to the gender of the noun they are replacing. For example, if the noun is masculine, you would use "er" instead of "sie" to mean "he" rather than "she."

Here are some example sentences with correct personal pronoun usage:

• Ich bin müde. (I am tired.)
• Du isst einen Apfel. (You are eating an apple.)
• Er liest ein Buch. (He is reading a book.)
• Sie (feminine) singt gut. (She sings well.)
• Es ist kalt. (It is cold.)
• Wir gehen ins Kino. (We are going to the cinema.)
• Ihr sprecht Deutsch. (You all speak German.)
• Sie (plural) kommen später. (They are coming later.)
• Wie geht es Ihnen? (How are you?)

Reflexive Pronouns

Reflexive pronouns are used when the subject of the sentence is also the object of the sentence. For example, "I see myself in the mirror." In German, reflexive pronouns are formed by adding "sich" to the appropriate nominative personal pronoun. Here are the reflexive pronouns with their corresponding nominative personal pronouns:

German	Pronunciation	English
ich	ɪç	myself
du	duː	yourself
er	eːɐ̯	himself
sie (feminine)	ziː	herself
es	ɛs	itself
wir	vɪʁ	ourselves
ihr	iːɐ̯	yourselves
sie (plural)	ziː	themselves
Sie (formal)	ziː	yourself

Here is an example sentence with a reflexive pronoun:

• Ich rasiere mich. (I am shaving myself.)

Summary

Personal pronouns are essential to German sentence structure, and proper conjugation is crucial for clear communication. Pay attention to the gender of the noun, the case used in the sentence, and whether or not the pronoun is reflexive. Practice using personal pronouns in common sentence structures to improve your German skills.

Sources

• German Personal Pronouns: Your Essential Guide
• German Pronouns: 9 Types to Learn | An Actually Fun Guide
• German pronouns: a fun beginner's guide – Busuu Blog

Table of Contents - German Course - 0 to A1

• Course Presentation

  ---

Basic Sentence Structures

• Subject and Verb
• Noun and Gender

  ---

Greetings and Introduction

• Greetings and Goodbyes
• Introducing Yourself

  ---

Definite and Indefinite Articles

• Gender and Articles
• Plural Forms
• Cases: Nominative and Accusative

  ---

Numbers, Dates and Time

• Numbers 1-100
• Days of the Week and Months
• Telling Time

  ---

Verbs and Conjugation

• Verb Forms
• Present Tense
• Separable Verbs

  ---

Family and Friends

• Family Members
• Talking About Your Friends

  ---

Prepositions

• Using Prepositions
• Two-Way Prepositions

  ---

Food and Drinks

• Food and Meals
• Drinks and Beverages

  ---

Germany and German-Speaking Countries

• Geography and Landmarks
• Cuisine and Traditions

  ---

Pronouns and Possessives

• Personal Pronouns
• Possessive Pronouns

  ---

Travel and Transportation

• Booking a Trip
• Public Transportation

  ---

Modal Verbs

• Expressing Abilities
• Talking About Obligations

  ---

Shopping and Clothes

• Shopping for Clothes
• Buying Groceries

  ---

Music and Entertainment

• Popular Musicians and Genres
• Movies, TV and Literature

  ---

Adjectives

• Descriptive Adjectives
• Comparative and Superlative Forms

  ---

Health and Body

• Talking About Health
• Body Parts

  ---

Time and Temporal Prepositions

• Using Time Expressions
• Temporal Prepositions

Other Lessons

• Give your Opinion
• How to Use Be
• 0 to A1 Course
• Two Way Prepositions
• Descriptive Adjectives
• Plural Forms
• Expressing Abilities
• Using Prepositions
• Indefinite Articles in German
• Past Tense Part 1 Perfect Tense

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