Today we will talk about the gender of nouns and pronouns in English grammar and how to use them in a sentence.
If you have been following our previous posts, you will notice that when we use pronouns instead of nouns, we sometimes use he, him, and other times she, her. Meanwhile, I’m sure you know when we use each of them, that’s if you have seen our posts about that. If you have not check it out here.
The pronouns he and him are used of course when they stand for nouns like man or boy, that is, for males. While pronouns she and her are used when they stand for nouns like women or girl, that is, for females.
In grammar, we say that the forms he and she (or him and her) show a difference in gender. And that where our topic today gender of nouns and pronouns are gotten from.
Also, as we learned earlier, words that stand for males are masculine gender. So, the nouns man, boy, king, prince, etc., and the pronouns he and him are masculine gender. While words that stand for females are feminine gender. That is the nouns woman, girl, daughter, queen, princess, etc., and the pronouns she and her are feminine gender.
Then finally, words that stand for things are neuter gender. (Neuter means neither masculine nor feminine). So, the nouns book, house, river, tree, city, etc., and the pronoun it are neuter gender.
Sometimes the words used for animals are neuter gender.
E.g.
- Where is the cat? – It is on the mat
- Where is the dog? – It is in the garden
But sometimes (especially when they are our own) we think of them as masculine or feminine;
For Example;
- My cat is called Sally. She is a very pretty cat
- The lady told her dog Rover to lie down, and he lay down at once
The pronouns I, me, you, we, us, can be either masculine or feminine. The pronouns they and them may be masculine, feminine, or neuter.
For example;
- The boys have just come home. Ask them if they want their dinner (Masculine)
- The girls have been to the cinema. Ask them if they enjoyed the movies ( Feminine)
- The orange trees are covered with blossoms. They ought to have plenty of oranges on them later in the year (Neuter).
The above is much you should know about the gender of nouns and pronouns.
Pronouns Number
Going back to our previous articles, we saw how useful the pronouns are. Instead of having to repeat nouns, we use pronouns. Meanwhile, all the pronouns we had mentioned in the past (except “it”) are used instead of nouns that mean persons.
Pronouns that stand for persons are called personal pronouns as we discussed in the types of pronouns.
- The pronouns I, me, he, she, him, and her, are used when they refer to only one person. Therefore, they are the singular number.
- The pronouns we, us, they, and them are used when they refer to more than one person. Thus, they are plural numbers.
- While “you” is both for singular and plural.
E.g.,
– You are a good boy (one boy, Singular)
– You are good boys (more than one boy, Plural).
“It” is an impersonal pronoun because it is used for a thing and not for a person. The plural of it is “they or them.”
There is also another use for ‘it’ which is as an “impersonal subject” in such sentences as;
E.g.,
– It is raining
– It was a fine day yesterday
– It’s a long way to Delhi
The Three Persons (Persons)
The word persons means people. But in grammar, Persons (first person, second person, and third person) have another meaning. It simply means;
- The first person is the person speaking
E.g.,
– I am the teacher; listen to me
- The second person is the person spoken to
E.g.,
– You are brilliant
- And the third person is the person spoken about
E.g.,
– Johnson is looking through the windows
– The teacher is pointing at him
– Joyce’s mother thinks she is in the classroom.
That’s much we can discuss on the gender of nouns and pronouns for now. However, to build on the knowledge you have acquired from this page, do well to take the exercises on the gender of nouns and pronouns below!
Exercises
a). What is the gender of words that stand for males?
b). What is the gender of words that stand for females?
c). What is the gender of words that stand for things or animals?
d). Write down four nouns in the masculine gender and four nouns in the feminine gender
e). Write down two pronouns in the feminine gender and two in the masculine gender.
f). Write down two pronouns in the feminine gender and two in the masculine gender.
ga). What is meant by
i) The first person (ii) The second person (iii) The third person.
b). Change the pronouns in the following sentences from singular to plural (in some cases you will have to change the verbs also).
i). I come to school every day
ii). He is hungry
iii). She can sing very well
iv). The teacher gives me an English lesson
v). The teacher asked him a question
vi). I am Nepalese; what is he?
vii). He doesn’t see me.
Good luck!