Personal pronouns

What is a personal pronoun?

A pronoun replaces a noun so you don’t repeat it: Paul ist müde → Er ist müde. German pronouns change with their job in the sentence, just like articles.

When you use them

• Talking about yourself and others: ich, du, er, sie …
• Avoiding repetition: Das ist Paul. Er ist mein Bruder.
• Choosing between friendly du and formal Sie.

Pattern

person + job → pronoun form

What changes

the form changes with the case: ich → mich → mir

Examples

• Er sieht **mich**. — He sees me.
• Ich sehe **ihn**. — I see him.
• Ich helfe **ihm**. — I help him. — helfen takes the dative

Remember: English does it too: I → me, he → him. German just has one more step: ich → mich → mir.

Watch out: sie can mean she or they, and Sie is formal “you”. Look at the verb: sie ist = she is · sie sind = they are.

Same jobs as in: The four cases — overview.