Subject pronouns and who does what

What you’ll learn

• Identify first, second and third person.
• Distinguish familiar and formal ways to address someone.
• Recognize an omitted subject from context.

Choose the person

A subject tells us who performs an action or who a description concerns. Yo means I; tú means one familiar you; él and ella mean he and she. Usted also means one you, usually with a respectful or socially appropriate distance, but it uses third-person verb forms. The choice between tú and usted varies with region, relationship and situation.

Nosotros and nosotras mean we. Ellos and ellas mean they. The -as forms identify an all-female group. Ellos and nosotros can refer to male or mixed groups in conventional grammar. Learn these forms with the verb rather than treating the pronoun as a substitute for the correct verb ending.

Plural you and omitted subjects

Ustedes addresses more than one person throughout Latin America and in formal use in much of Spain. In much of Spain, vosotros or vosotras is the familiar plural. These choices have different verb endings. You will also encounter vos as a familiar singular in several regions; a later regional lesson introduces its patterns.

Spanish often omits subject pronouns because a verb ending or the conversation supplies the subject. Hablo español can mean I speak Spanish without yo. Keep the pronoun when you need contrast or clarity: Yo hablo español; ella habla francés. The accent in él distinguishes the pronoun from el, the masculine article.

Useful vocabulary

yo

I

nosotros / nosotras

we

ustedes

you (plural)

Common mistakes

• Usted addresses the listener but takes a third-person verb form.
• Do not confuse él (he) with el (the).
• Do not label ustedes as exclusively formal in Latin America.

Keep these ideas

• Match a subject to the correct verb person.
• Select forms of you according to the local context.
• An understood subject pronoun can be omitted.

Use it in your life

Find three verbs in a sample story. Identify their subjects even when no pronoun is written.

Read it in context

Look for this lesson’s ideas in a complete Spanish story. Read the passage first, then use its translations to check your understanding.