Welcome to twominenglish.com. Teaching you English through two-minute lessons.
This lesson will help you learn how to use the pronouns ‘I’, ‘You’, ‘He’ and ‘She’ correctly.
Hello, Steven. Today’s lesson is about the correct usage of ‘I’, ‘You’, ‘He’ and ‘She’.
They are called pronouns, aren’t they?
Yes. They replace a noun, more specifically a person’s name.
Why should they replace a person’s name?
Good question, Steven! When we repeat the name of a person throughout our conversation again and again, it might sound annoying.
So we mention the name once or twice as needed and then use these pronouns.
I get it. If I say “Steven gets it”, it is not correct. I am talking about myself here and so I use ‘I’.
That’s a great point! When I am talking to you, I use ‘You’ to address you.
In a conversation, the speaker becomes ‘I’ and the listener becomes ‘You’.
You’ve nailed it! Do you know how to use ‘He’ and ‘She’?
I think so. When I am talking to you about someone else, I have to use ‘He’ if I am talking about a male or ‘She’ if I am talking about a female. Am I right?
That’s absolutely right! You use ‘He’ and ‘She’ instead of repeating the person’s name.
Okay, where is Mark? He should be here by now.
Maybe, he is stuck in traffic. Note that we both used ‘He’ for Mark because we already knew whom we were talking about.
Oh, yeah! If I had asked about Sophie, we would have used ‘She’.
That’s correct! Do you have any other questions on the use of ‘I’, ‘You’, ‘He’ or ‘She’?
Yes. Are all these pronouns used to denote only a single person?
If you closely observe, ‘I’ is used to talk about oneself and hence is used to denote a single person.
‘He’ and ‘She’ are also used to talk about one particular person at a time.
Yes. However, I’ve seen ‘You’ being used to talk to a single person and also to multiple persons.
Good observation, Steven! ‘You’ is used in both singular and plural forms. When I am talking to you, I am addressing you as ‘You’.
When I am talking to you and Mark at the same time, then I will also use ‘You’.
Okay, I got it now. I’d love to listen to some sample conversations.
Sure, Steven. Here you go!
Hey Heidi! Are you coming to Sarah’s tea party?
Sure. What time is she having her party?
Around 4PM. Are you bringing Bob with you?
No, he is held up at his office. So I will be coming alone.
Okay, see you in the evening.
Jack, why are you so dull?
Susie broke up with me.
You are kidding me, right?! Oh my God! Why did she do that?
She says we have nothing in common. But I know it is for Arthur.
He’s not such a great guy. How could Susie choose him over you?
It’s all over. I don’t want to talk about it.
Hi Keith. Have you seen Wendy anywhere?
She is in the library.
I need to talk to her. Where are you going?
I must submit this report to Professor Johnson before he leaves.
Okay. See you later.