4. Personal pronouns
Personal pronouns are words used instead of nouns to represent people or things.
| Singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| 1. yo (I) | 1. nosotros, nosotras (we) |
| 2. tú (you) | 2. vosotros, vosotras (you) |
| 3. él, ella, usted (he, she, You) | 3. ellos, ellas, ustedes (they, You) |
Spanish personal pronouns are similar to those in English, but note that there is no equivalent for the English it form – in Spanish all things are either masculine or feminine. In Spanish, pronouns are not usually used to refer to things, but the pronoun is most often omitted and the sentence begins directly with the verb, because the verb form shows the subject of the sentence.
La ciudad es bonita. _ Es bonita.
The city is beautiful. It is beautiful.
El coche es nuevo. _ Es nuevo.
The car is new. It is new.
The English singular “you” exists in two forms in Spanish: tú (informal) and usted (formal). Similarly, there are two plural forms, vosotros (informal) and ustedes (formal).
Note that these two formal forms – usted, ustedes (and their abbreviated forms, Ud/Vd and Uds/Vds) – are followed by the verb conjugated in the 3rd person, not the 2nd:
Veo que tú escribes muy bien en inglés.
I see you write very well in English.
Veo que usted escribe muy bien en ingles.
I see You write very well in English.
The vosotros form is used primarily in Spain. Throughout Latin America, the ustedes form is used to say “you” in both formal and informal contexts, and the verb conjugates as explained above:
¡Vosotros dos siempre llegáis tarde al colegio! (in Spain, talking to children)
¡Ustedes dos siempre llegan tarde al colegio! (in Latin America, talking to children)
You two are always late for school!
Con la tarjeta de fidelidad, ustedes pueden entrar a la zona VIP. (both in Spain and Latin America, talking to clients)
With your membership card, You can access the VIP area.