Fourth Grade English: Reflexive Pronouns

Have you ever looked into a shiny mirror and seen your own reflection looking right back at you? In the English language, a special group of words called reflexive pronouns performs the exact same mirroring function within a sentence. A reflexive pronoun reflects an action back onto the subject who performed it, making sure your reader understands that the doer and the receiver of the action are the exact same person, animal, or thing.

What Is a Reflexive Pronoun?

A reflexive pronoun is a pronoun ending in "-self" (in singular form) or "-selves" (in plural form) that refers directly back to the subject of the clause.

+-------------------------------------------------------------+
|                THE REFLEXIVE PRONOUN MIRROR                 |
+-------------------------------------------------------------+
|   SUBJECT (Doer)                                            |
|       Leo ---------> made a sandwich for ---------> LEO     |
|                                                      |      |
|   Instead of repeating "Leo", reflect back:         V      |
|       Leo ---------> made a sandwich for ---------> HIMSELF |
+-------------------------------------------------------------+

The Complete Inventory of Reflexive Pronouns

English has eight standard reflexive pronouns divided strictly by number and person:

+-----------------------------------------------------------------+
|                  REFLEXIVE PRONOUN INVENTORY                    |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------+
| Person            | Singular (-self)        | Plural (-selves)  |
+-------------------+-------------------------+-------------------+
| 1st Person        | myself                  | ourselves         |
| 2nd Person        | yourself                | yourselves        |
| 3rd Person        | himself, herself, itself| themselves        |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------+

Non-Standard Words to Avoid

Notice that the third-person reflexive pronouns are "himself" and "themselves." Non-standard words like "hisself," "theirself," or "theirselves" do NOT exist in formal standard English. Always use "himself" and "themselves."

Two Distinct Functions: Reflexive vs. Intensive

Words ending in "-self" and "-selves" serve two related but different grammatical jobs: they can be reflexive pronouns or intensive pronouns.

+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
|               REFLEXIVE VS. INTENSIVE COMPARISON                      |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Feature           | Reflexive Pronoun         | Intensive Pronoun     |
+-------------------+---------------------------+-----------------------+
| Purpose           | Reflects action to subject| Emphasizes a noun     |
| Necessity         | Essential to sentence     | Optional for emphasis |
| If removed?       | Sentence becomes incomplete| Sentence still makes  |
|                   | or changes meaning        | complete sense        |
| Example           | She taught herself coding.| She herself wrote it. |
| Test              | "She taught coding." (Who?)| "She wrote it." (Full)|
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+

Essential Reflexive Pronouns

When a pronoun functions reflexively, it is necessary to the grammatical structure of the sentence because it serves as the direct or indirect object of the action. In "Maya accidentally burned herself on the kettle," the word "herself" is essential; removing it leaves "Maya accidentally burned on the kettle," which is ungrammatical.

Intensive Pronouns for Emphasis

When an author wants to highlight that a person accomplished something personally, with their own hands and without help, they add an intensive pronoun right after the noun. In "The president herself signed the document," the word "herself" emphasizes the subject. If you remove it ("The president signed the document"), the sentence remains completely grammatical.

Misusing Reflexive Pronouns

A common mistake in formal speech and writing is using "myself" when a simple subject pronoun ("I") or object pronoun ("me") is required.

+-------------------------------------------------------------+
|                  COMMON "MYSELF" CORRECTIONS                |
+-------------------------------------------------------------+
| Incorrect:  Marcus and myself built the robot.              |
| Correct:    Marcus and I built the robot. (Subject)         |
|                                                             |
| Incorrect:  Please hand the supplies to Maya and myself.    |
| Correct:    Please hand the supplies to Maya and me. (Object) |
+-------------------------------------------------------------+

The Rule for "Myself"

You can ONLY use "myself" if the subject of the same clause is already "I."
- Correct: "I bought myself a new sketchbook." (Subject is "I").

- Incorrect: "She invited my brother and myself." (Subject is "She," so use the object pronoun "me": "She invited my brother and me").


Practice Exercises

Practice Questions

  1. Fill in the blank with the correct reflexive pronoun: "The hikers prepared ______ for a steep climb up the canyon."
  2. Choose the correct reflexive pronoun: "David accidentally pinched (himself / hisself) with the pliers."
  3. Determine whether the underlined word is reflexive or intensive: "The chef himself prepared the special dessert."
  4. Correct the pronoun error: "If you have any questions, please contact Maya or myself."
  5. Choose the correct plural reflexive pronoun: "We can finish this science experiment by (ourself / ourselves)."

Answer Key and Explanations

  1. Correct pronoun: "themselves." "The hikers" is plural third person.
  2. Correct word: "himself." "Hisself" is an informal non-standard word that is never used in standard English.
  3. Intensive. "Himself" emphasizes "the chef" and can be removed without making the sentence incomplete ("The chef prepared the special dessert").
  4. Corrected sentence: "If you have any questions, please contact Maya or me." (The subject is an understood "you," so the object pronoun "me" is required, not "myself").
  5. Correct word: "ourselves." The plural form for "we" is "ourselves," ending in "-selves."