Subject pronouns: yo, tú, él, ella…
yo, tú, él, ella, usted, nosotros/as, vosotros/as, ellos/as, ustedes; dropping the pronoun
Part of the free A0 Spanish course. Press the speaker next to an example to hear it.
A pronoun is a small word that stands in for a person's name: I, you, he, she, we, they. A subject pronoun is the one that does the action or is being described: she in "she is tall".
The Spanish subject pronouns
| Spanish | English | Who |
|---|---|---|
| yo | I | |
| tú | you | one person you know well |
| él | he | |
| ella | she | |
| usted | you | one person, polite |
| nosotros / nosotras | we | -as if the group is all female |
| vosotros / vosotras | you (plural) | friends, family (Spain) |
| ellos / ellas | they | -as if the group is all female |
| ustedes | you (plural) | polite in Spain; everyone in Latin America |
Spanish has four words for "you": one person or several, friendly or polite. How to choose is the subject of Tú or usted; vosotros or ustedes.
- Yo soy de Madrid.I'm from Madrid.
- Tú eres muy simpático.You're very nice.
- Ella es mi amiga.She is my friend.
- Nosotras somos estudiantes.We are students. (all women)
- Vosotros sois de Granada.You are from Granada. (several friends)
- Ellos son de México.They are from Mexico.
Mixed groups
Use the masculine forms (nosotros, vosotros, ellos) for a group of men or a mixed group, even with just one man among many women. Use nosotras, vosotras, ellas only when everyone is female.
- Ellas son hermanas.They are sisters.
Usted and ustedes
Usted and ustedes mean "you", but they use the same verb form as él/ella and ellos/ellas: usted es, ustedes son. They are often written in short as Ud. and Uds. (or Vd. and Vds. in Spain).
- Usted es muy amable.You are very kind. (polite)
- Ustedes son muy amables.You are very kind. (polite, plural)
Leaving the pronoun out
In Spanish, the verb's ending already shows who is speaking. Soy can only mean "I am", and somos can only mean "we are". So Spanish speakers usually leave the pronoun out:
- Soy de Sevilla.I'm from Seville.
- Es mi hermano.He's my brother.
Use the pronoun when you want to contrast or stress who you mean: Yo soy de Madrid y él es de Lima (I'm from Madrid and he is from Lima). Usted is kept more often, because es alone could mean he, she or you.
No word for "it"
Spanish has no subject pronoun for "it". You just use the verb:
- Es grande.It's big.
Accents that matter
Tú (you) and él (he) need their accents. Without them, tu means "your" and el means "the" (Word stress, written accents, ¿ and ¡).
Latin America
In Latin America, vosotros is not used: ustedes is the plural "you" for everyone, friends included. In Argentina and Uruguay, and in parts of Central America and some other areas, vos replaces tú; you will meet it at higher levels.
Common mistakes
- Saying yo in every sentence:
Yo soy Tom. Yo soy de Leeds. Yo soy profesor.sounds heavy. Use yo only for contrast. - Using él or ella for things:
Ella es grandeabout a table. Just say Es grande. - Writing tu or el without accents when you mean "you" or "he".
- Using ellas for a mixed group: one man in the group makes it ellos.
Practice
- Which pronoun means 'she'?Options: ella · él · ellas · usted
Show the answer
ella
- You are talking about three women. 'They' is…Options: ellas · ellos · nosotras · vosotras
Show the answer
ellas
- A group of five women and one man. 'They' is…Options: ellos · ellas · ustedes
Show the answer
ellos — One man in the group makes it masculine: ellos.
- María and her sister talk about themselves. 'We' is…Options: nosotras · nosotros · ellas · vosotras
Show the answer
nosotras