What are reflexive pronouns?
Reflexive pronouns are used when the subject and the object of a sentence refer to the same person or thing. They are also used to emphasize that someone did something alone, without help.
Subject → same person → reflexive pronoun
I → myself | you → yourself | he → himself | she → herself
it → itself | we → ourselves | you (pl.) → yourselves | they → themselves
| Subject | Reflexive Pronoun | Example |
|---|
| I | myself | I cut myself while cooking. |
| you (singular) | yourself | Did you enjoy yourself? |
| he | himself | He made himself a sandwich. |
| she | herself | She introduced herself to the class. |
| it | itself | The machine switches itself off. |
| we | ourselves | We enjoyed ourselves at the party. |
| you (plural) | yourselves | Help yourselves to some food! |
| they | themselves | They built the house themselves. |
Use 1 — Subject and object are the same person
When the person doing the action and the person receiving the action are the same, use a reflexive pronoun.
I see myself as a professional person.
She blamed herself for the mistake.
He hurt himself during training.
Use 2 — To emphasize "without help"
Reflexive pronouns can come after the verb or at the end of a sentence to emphasize that someone did something alone, without help from anyone else.
Did you start the fan club yourself, or did you have help?
She decorated the whole apartment herself.
We cooked the entire meal ourselves.
Common mistakes
⚠ Watch out:
✗ He hurt hisself. → ✓ He hurt himself. (there is no word "hisself")
✗ They did it theirself. → ✓ They did it themselves. (plural = themselves)
✗ Yourself should try harder. → ✓ You should try harder. (reflexive pronouns cannot be the subject of a sentence)
✗ We enjoyed ourself. → ✓ We enjoyed ourselves. (plural subject = ourselves)