German Personal Pronouns

In this lesson of Learn German, you'll learn about the personal pronouns in the German language. Pronouns are words that can replace a noun or noun phrase in a sentence. For example, "it" is a common English pronoun. Examples are given to show how the German pronouns are used in sentences.

You'll also learn some more useful german phrases that are used in everyday life.

Flashcards are included at the end of the lesson to help you learn the words and phrases included in this lesson.

Introduction

Using pronouns in German can be tricky to use correctly for an English speaker. If you are just starting to learn German, don't worry about memorizing all of the different forms that the pronouns can have. There will be lots of practice with them throughout this course. Just be aware that the different forms exist. You can always come back to this lesson as a reference.

Pronouns

Pronouns in German have different forms depending on whether they are the subject, object, or indirect object of a sentence. Since German nouns have either a feminine, masculine, or neuter grammatical gender, the version of it to use depends on the gender of the noun it replaces. A feminine noun is replaced by sie, a masculine noun is replaced by er and a neuter noun is replaced by es.

Subject Pronouns

The subject of a sentence refers to who or what is doing the action in a sentence, or what the sentence is about. For example, in the sentence I go, I is the subject. I is an English subject pronoun, so will always be the subject of a sentence. The subject is also called the nominative.

The following table shows the German subject pronouns, along with the English equivalent.

ich	I
du	you (referring to one person)
sie	she, they
er	he
es	it
wir	we
ihr	you (referring to more than one person)

Du, Ihr, and Sie

Du is the familiar singular form of you in German. It is used when adressing one friend, close family member, or child.

Ihr is the familiar plural form of you. It is used when talking to more than one friend, close family member, or children.

Sie is the formal version of you and is used to address any number of people. If unsure, this is the version that you should use. Sie is always capitalized when it means you.

Direct Object Pronouns

The direct object of a sentence refers to what is being acted upon by the subject. The direct object is also called the accusative.

For example, in the sentence I saw him., him is the direct object and refers to who is being seen.

The following table shows the German direct object pronouns, along with the English equivalents.

mich	me
dich	you (referring to one person)
sie	her, them
ihn	him
es	it
uns	us
euch	you (referring to more than one person)

Indirect Object Pronouns

An indirect object refers to the person or thing that is the recipient of the action, or who the action happens to. The indirect object is also called the dative.

In the sentence:

I gave it to him.

I is the subject (who is doing the giving), it is the direct object (what is being given), and him is the indirect object (the person who is the recipient of the action).

The following table shows the German indirect object pronouns, along with the English equivalents.

mir	(to) me
dir	(to) you (referring to one person)
ihr	(to) her, them
ihm	(to) him
es	it
uns	(to) us
euch	(to) you (referring to more than one person)
ihnen	(to) them

Note: Ihnen is also used as the polite form of the indirect object for the pronoun you. In this case it is always capitalized.

Pronoun Forms Summary

The following table lists all the subject, direct object and indirect object versions of the German personal pronouns.

Subject	Direct Object	Indirect Object	English
ich	mich	mir	I
du	dich	dir	you (one person informal)
Sie	Sie	Ihnen	you (formal)
er	ihn	ihm	he, it
sie	sie	ihr	she, it
es	es	ihm	it
wir	uns	uns	we
ihr	euch	euer	you (plural informal)
sie	sie	ihnen	they
wer	wen	wem	who

Examples

Gib sie mir.	Give them to me.
Willst du es?	Do you want it?
Wer ist das?	Who is that?
Kommst du mit uns?	Are you coming with us? (informal singular)
Kommen Sie heute?	Are you coming today? (formal)
Kommen sie heute?	Are they coming today?
Ich sah ihn.	I saw him.
Sie sah mich.	She saw me.
Wir sahen sie.	We saw her/them.
Wir sahen Sie.	We saw you. (formal)
Habe ich dir davon erzählt?	Did I tell you about it?

German Phrases

Here are some more very useful German phrases. See the lesson Common German Phrases for even more useful everyday phrases.

Wo wohnen Sie?	Where do you live?
Ich wohne in ___.	I live in ___.
Keine Sorge!	Don't worry!
So bald wie möglich.	As soon as possible.
Ich weiß nicht.	I don't know.
Was ist das?	What is that?
Wer ist das?	Who is that?
Was ist los?	What's wrong?
Was ist passiert?	What happened?
Was bedeutet das?	What does that mean?
Keine Ahnung.	No idea.

Flashcards

Here are some flashcards to help you learn the German words and phrases introduced in this lesson.

Quiz

This quiz covers the German pronouns and phrases included in this lesson. Each time you take the quiz the questions will be a bit different.

Nouns Present