Subject Pronouns in Spanish

Spanish Grammar Rules: Pronombres Personales


The subject pronouns in Spanish are:

Singular Plural
1st Person yo nosotros, nosotras
2nd Person tú, usted vosotros, vosotras, ustedes
3rd Person él, ella ellos, ellas

1st Person = the person who is speaking
2nd Person = the person you are speaking to or listening to
3rd Person = the person you are talking about

An explanation of what each Personal Pronoun is:

Personal
Pronoun
Situation
Yo I = it refers to yourself
You = the person you are speaking to - informal (family or friend)
Vos You = you in Argentina
Usted You = the person you are speaking to - formal (respect, older people)
Él He = man or boy (another person)
Ella She = woman or girl (another person)
Nosotros * We = tú + yo OR Usted + yo
Nosotras * We (fem) = tú + yo OR Usted + yo (both are women / girls)
Vosotros You = tú + tú (this is not used much in Latin America)
Vosotras You (fem) = tú + tú (only women - this is not used much in Latin America)
Ellos ** They = él + él OR él + ella
Ellas ** They (fem) = ella + ella (only women or girls)
Ustedes You = Usted + Usted (= tú + tú in Latin America)

* Nosotros vs Nosotras

There are two ways of saying "We" in Spanish depending on who is speaking or in the "group".

If there is at least one man (or boy) in the "group" of people, then "We" will be Nosotros in Spanish.

If there are only women (or girls) in the group, and no men, then "We" will be Nosotras in Spanish.

You (man) + Man = Nosotros (= yo + él)
You (man) + Woman = Nosotros (= yo + ella)
You (woman) + Man = Nosotros (= yo + él)
You (woman) + Woman = Nosotras (= yo + ella)

** Ellos vs Ellas

The same applies to "They" (ellos or ellos). If there is one or more men in the group, then it will be ellos.

If everyone in the group is female, then you would use ellas.

Subject Pronouns in Spanish - Summary Charts

Spanish Subject Pronouns
Subject Pronouns in Spanish Chart

Next Activities

Try our interactive Spanish Grammar Games to practice Subject Pronouns:

Game: Choose the correct Personal Pronoun for the Verb

Game: Choose the English translation of the Personal Pronoun that appears in Spanish

You may want to check out the difference between Tú and Tu in Spanish.

Ver nuestra página de los pronombres personales en español.

For Teachers and Parents

Spanish subject pronouns flash cards and charts Spanish subject pronouns worksheets - pronombres personales

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