Grammar: Pronouns

Classifications of Pronouns

In Italian, pronouns (pronome) are used in place of nouns. They can be grouped into different types: personal pronouns, possessive pronouns, reflexive pronouns, demonstrative pronouns, interrogative pronouns, relative pronouns, and indefinite pronouns.

Personal pronouns (pronomi personali) are used to replace a person or thing.
The main Italian personal pronouns are: io (I), tu (you singular), lui/lei (he/she), noi (we), voi (you plural), loro (they).
Remember that ‘you’ can be both ‘tu’ (singular familiar) and ‘Lei’ (singular polite form), the latter always capitalised.
Many personal pronouns often get dropped in Italian as the verb endings provide information about the subject.

Possessive pronouns (pronomi possessivi) express ownership.
They are similar to possessive adjectives, but are used in place of a noun (e.g., Questa è la mia macchina, but Questa è la mia).
The main Italian possessive pronouns are: il mio/la mia (mine), il tuo/la tua (yours), il suo/la sua (his/her), il nostro/la nostra (ours), il vostro/la vostra (yours), il loro/la loro (theirs).
Note that they must agree in gender (male or female) and number (singular or plural) with the noun they replace.

Reflexive pronouns (pronomi riflessivi) are used with reflexive verbs when the subject and the object are the same (e.g., Mi lavo. - ‘I wash myself.’).
The Italian reflexive pronouns are: mi (myself), ti (yourself singular), si (himself/herself), ci (ourselves), vi (yourselves), si (themselves).
They always go before the verb.

Demonstrative pronouns (pronomi dimostrativi) substitute a known entity (e.g., Questo è il mio libro. - ‘This is my book.’).
Italian demonstrative pronouns include: questo (this), quella (that), questi (these), quelle (those).
Like possessive pronouns, they must agree in gender and number with the noun they’re replacing.

Interrogative pronouns (pronomi interrogativi) are used in questions (e.g., Chi ha preso il mio libro? - ‘Who took my book?’).
The most common ones are: chi (who), che/cosa (what), quale (which), quanto (how much).

Relative pronouns (pronomi relativi) connect clauses or phrases to a noun or pronoun (e.g., La ragazza che hai visto è mia sorella - ‘The girl you saw is my sister’).
Main Italian relative pronouns include: che (that/which/who), cui (whom, that, which), il quale (the one that/whom), quanto (what, as much as), chi (who, that).

Indefinite pronouns (pronomi indefiniti) refer to nonspecific people or things.
Common Italian indefinite pronouns are: tutto (all), molti (many), nessuno (none), ognuno (everyone), qualche (some).
Majority of them reflect gender and number. E.g. the ‘everyone’ could be translated as ‘ogniuno’ (masculine) or ‘ogniuna’ (feminine) based on context.