ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

English personal pronouns

Okay kiddo, let's talk about personal pronouns in English. Pronouns are words that take the place of nouns. A noun is a person, place, or thing. For example, your name is a noun because it is a word that refers to you as a person.

When we talk about personal pronouns, we mean words that take the place of a person's name. So instead of saying "Lily went to the store," we might say "She went to the store." "She" is a personal pronoun that stands in for Lily.

There are different kinds of personal pronouns in English. There are subject pronouns, which come at the beginning of a sentence and act as the subject of the sentence. For example, "I am going to the park." "I" is a subject pronoun that refers to the person speaking. Other subject pronouns include "you," "he," "she," "it," "we," and "they."

There are also object pronouns, which come after a verb or preposition and act as the object of the sentence. For example, "He gave me the ball." "Me" is an object pronoun that refers to the person receiving the ball. Other object pronouns include "you," "him," "her," "it," "us," and "them."

Lastly, there are possessive pronouns, which show ownership or possession. For example, "That is my toy." "My" is a possessive pronoun that shows ownership of the toy. Other possessive pronouns include "your," "his," "her," "its," "our," and "their."

So, personal pronouns are words that take the place of a person's name, and there are different types of personal pronouns, including subject pronouns, object pronouns, and possessive pronouns.