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Pronouns
A pronoun is a word that is substituted for a noun. Grammatically, it therefore functions exactly
as a noun does, although it tends not to be modified by adjectives. The noun that it replaces is its
antecedent, so named because it usually goes (cēdō) before (ante) the pronoun. The gender and
number of the pronoun agree with the antecedent, while the case of the pronoun is determined by
its use in its own clause. E.g.,
 Iūlia est mulier Rōmāna. Ea [nom.] in Graeciā vivēbat, sed tum cōnsul eam [acc.]
Rōmam arcessīvit ut eī [dat.] cōnsilium daret. (Julia is a Roman woman. She used to
live in Greece, but then the consul summoned her to Rome to give some advice to her.)
The italicized pronouns are all feminine singular, in agreement with their antecedent,
Iūlia; but their case (and therefore their form) changes according to how they are used in
their own clauses.
An adjective is a word that modifies (i.e., describes) a noun, typically indicating which one, what
kind, or how many. It agrees with that noun in gender, number, and case. E.g., in the above
example, Rōmāna (feminine singular nominative) modifies and therefore agrees with mulier.
Latin, like English, has the following categories of pronouns: personal, reflexive, demonstrative,
intensive, relative, interrogative, and indefinite.
Personal pronouns
Latin has 1st- and 2nd-person personal pronouns: ego (I), nōs (we), tū (you [singular]), and vōs
(you [plural]).
ego
nōs
tū
vōs
meī
nostrum / nostrī
tuī
vestrum / vestrī
mihi
nōbīs
tibi
vōbīs
mē
nōs
tē
vōs
mē
nōbīs
tē
vōbīs
Latin lacks a true 3rd-person personal pronoun and must therefore substitute a demonstrative
(usually is) or intensive pronoun (see below).
NOTE: The possessives—meus, -a, -um (my), noster, nostra, nostrum (our), tuus, -a, -um (your
[singular]), and vester, vestra, vestrum (your [plural])—are obviously related to the personal
pronouns in their form and meaning, and they are therefore often mistakenly identified as
pronouns. However, it should be clear from their form and function that they are adjectives.
E.g.,
 Augustus amīcōs meōs salūtat. (Augustus greets my friends.) Meōs is an adjective
(masculine plural accusative); it modifies and therefore agrees with amīcōs.
 Augustus amīcōs meī salūtat. (Augustus greets the friends of me.) Meī is a pronoun
(masculine singular genitive); it neither modifies nor agrees with amīcōs (masculine
plural accusative). This sentence has the same meaning as the previous one, but it sounds
awkward and is therefore not normally used. However, it shows that the possessive
adjectives are superfluous words; the language could get by without them.
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Reflexive pronouns
A reflexive pronoun reflects (i.e., refers back to) the subject of its clause. Since it cannot
actually be the subject, it lacks the nominative case. The 1st- and 2nd-person reflexive pronouns
are simply the oblique (i.e., non-nominative) cases of the 1st- and 2nd-person personal pronouns
listed above. They are usually translated “myself,” “ourselves,” “yourself,” or “yourselves.”
E.g.,
 Ego mē videō. (I see myself.) Mē is reflexive, as it refers to the same person as the
subject.
 Catullus mē videt. (Catullus sees me.) Mē is not reflexive, as it refers to someone other
than the subject.
NOTE: The possessive adjectives listed above may be used reflexively as well. E.g.,
 Ego amīcōs meōs salūtō. (I greet my [own] friends.) Meōs is reflexive, as it refers to the
same person as the subject.
 Augustus amīcōs meōs salūtat. (Augustus greets my friends.) Meōs is not reflexive, as it
refers to someone other than the subject.
Although Latin lacks a true 3rd-person personal pronoun, it does have a 3rd-person reflexive
pronoun: suī (himself / herself / itself / themselves).
—
suī
sibi
sē
sē
It uses the same forms for singular and plural. E.g.,
 Vir sē necāvit. (The man killed himself.)
 Virī sē necāvērunt. (The men killed themselves.)
NOTE: Like the personal pronouns, the 3rd-person reflexive pronoun has a corresponding
possessive adjective: suus, -a, -um (his own / her own / its own / their own). E.g.,
 Augustus amīcōs suōs salūtat. (Augustus greets his [own] friends.) Suōs is reflexive, as
it refers to the same person as the subject.
Demonstrative pronouns
A demonstrative pronoun demonstrates (i.e., points out) something. Latin has 5
demonstratives: hic, ille, iste, is, and īdem. Note the irregular forms marked in boldface type.
Hic (this / these) refers to something near the speaker; it may also mean “the latter.”
hic
haec hoc
hī
hae
haec
huius huius huius
hōrum hārum hōrum
huic huic huic
hīs
hīs
hīs
hunc hanc hoc
hōs
hās
haec
hōc hāc hōc
hīs
hīs
hīs
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Ille (that / those) refers to something far from the speaker and the listener; it may have a positive
connotation, and it may also mean “the former.”
ille
illa
illud
illī
illae illa
illīus illīus illīus
illōrum illārum illōrum
illī
illī
illī
illīs illīs illīs
illum illam illud
illōs illās illa
illō
illā
illō
illīs illīs illīs
Iste (that / those) refers to something far from the speaker but close to the listener; it may have a
negative connotation (e.g., iste amīcus may be translated “that friend of yours,” implying that
he’s no friend of mine). It is declined like ille.
Is (this / that / these / those) is simply a weak demonstrative; it does not clearly distinguish
among the meanings of the 3 demonstratives listed above.
is
ea
id
eī
eae
ea
eius eius eius
eōrum eārum eōrum
eī
eī
eī
eīs
eīs
eīs
eum eam id
eōs
eās
ea
eō
eā
eō
eīs
eīs
eīs
Īdem (the same) is formed by adding -dem to the forms of is.
īdem
eadem
idem
eīdem
eiusdem
eiusdem
eiusdem
eōrundem
eīdem
eīdem
eīdem
eīsdem
eundem
eandem
idem
eōsdem
eōdem
eādem
eōdem
eīsdem
eaedem
eārundem
eīsdem
eāsdem
eīsdem
eadem
eōrundem
eīsdem
eadem
eīsdem
As noted above, is (or any other demonstrative) may serve in place of the 3rd-person personal
pronoun, which is absent in Latin. E.g.,
 Is est malus dux. (He is a bad leader—or more literally, this one is a bad leader.)
However, it may not be used in place of the 3rd-person reflexive pronoun. E.g.,
 Dux sē amat. (The leader likes himself.) Sē is reflexive, as it refers to the subject.
 Dux eum amat. (The leader likes him.) Eum is not reflexive, as it refers to some other
person.
There is no demonstrative form comparable to the possessive adjectives. E.g.,
 Augustus amīcōs suōs salūtat. (Augustus greets his [own] friends.) Suōs is the 3rdperson reflexive possessive adjective (masculine plural accusative); it modifies and
therefore agrees with amīcōs.
 Augustus amīcōs eius salūtat. (Augustus greets his [i.e., someone else’s] friends—or
more literally, Augustus greets the friends of him.) Eius is a pronoun (masculine singular
genitive); it neither modifies nor agrees with amīcōs (masculine plural accusative).
NOTE: All the demonstratives may also be used as adjectives, with no significant change in
meaning. E.g.,
 Hic liber est longus. (This book is long.) Hic is an adjective, modifying liber.
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
Hic est liber longus. (This is a long book.) Hic is a pronoun.
Intensive pronoun
The intensive pronoun ipse, ipsa, ipsum intensifies (i.e., emphasizes) something. It is declined
like ille, except that the neuter ends with -um rather than -ud.
It may be translated like a reflexive pronoun (myself, yourself, etc.) or with a phrase such as “the
very” or “the actual.” E.g.,
 Rēgīnam ipsam vīdī. (I saw the queen herself; I saw the very queen; I saw the actual
queen.)
The fact that English often translates the intensive and reflexive pronouns identically is a
potential source of confusion. The key difference is that the reflexive pronoun is essential to the
meaning of the sentence, while the intensive pronoun merely alters the emphasis. E.g.,
 Cicerō sē laudat. (Cicero praises himself.) Sē is reflexive; if it were removed, the
meaning of the sentence would be significantly altered.
 Cicerō ipse rem pūblicam laudat. (Cicero himself praises the republic.) Ipse is intensive;
if it were removed, the meaning of the sentence would be essentially the same.
It may refer to a 1st-, 2nd-, or 3rd-person pronoun, and its translation will vary accordingly. E.g.,
 [Ego] ipse adsum. (I myself am present.)
 [Tū] ipse ades. (You yourself are present.)
 [Is] ipse adest. (He himself is present.)
NOTE: Like the demonstratives, the intensive pronoun may also be used as an adjective, with no
significant change in meaning.
Relative pronoun
The relative pronoun introduces a type of subordinate clause known as a relative clause. The
relative pronoun is found within (usually at or near the beginning of) the relative clause, while its
antecedent is found in the main clause. Any subordinate clause, as a unit, functions as if it were
a single word and can be analyzed accordingly. A relative clause functions as an adjective and
must therefore modify a noun; that noun is the antecedent of the relative pronoun. E.g.,
 Caesar erat homō quem Rōmānī dīligēbant. (Caesar was a man whom the Romans
loved.) The relative pronoun quem introduces the relative clause quem Rōmānī
dīligēbant, an adjectival clause modifying homō, the antecedent of quem.
The forms of the relative pronoun are:
quī
quae quod
quī
quae quae
cuius cuius cuius
quōrum quārum quōrum
cui
cui
cui
quibus quibus quibus
quem quam quod
quōs quās quae
quō
quā
quō
quibus quibus quibus
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It may be translated “who,” “whom,” “whose” (genitive), “which,” or “that.” Use “who” only
for the nominative case and “whom” only for the oblique cases, not only because this is correct
English, but also because it will help you see how the relative pronoun is being used in Latin.
E.g.,
 Caesar erat homō quī [nom.] complūrēs librōs scrīpsit. (Caesar was a man who wrote
several books.)
 Caesar erat homō quem [acc.] Rōmānī dīligēbant. (Caesar was a man whom the Romans
loved.)
The antecedent of the relative pronoun is often omitted, particularly when it is another pronoun.
E.g.,
 Videō [id] quod agis. (I see [that] which you are doing; I see what you are doing.)
NOTE: This is a pronoun only; there is no relative adjective.
Interrogative pronoun
The interrogative pronoun introduces a question. Because it inquires about the identity of its
own antecedent, that antecedent typically is not clearly defined, if it exists at all.
quis quid
cuius cuius
cui
cui
(The plural is declined like the relative pronoun.)
quem quid
quō
quō
It may be translated “who,” “whom,” “whose” (genitive), “which,” or “what.” As with the
relative pronoun, use “who” only for the nominative case and “whom” only for the oblique
cases. E.g.,
 Quis [nom.] adest? (Who is here?)
 Cui [dat.] pecūniam dedistī? (To whom did you give the money?)
NOTE: A closely related word is the interrogative adjective, which is declined like the relative
pronoun. E.g.,
 Cuius librī scrīptor es? (Of which book are you the author?) Cuius is the interrogative
adjective (masculine singular genitive); it modifies and therefore agrees with librī.
 Cuius liber est hic? (Whose book is this?) Cuius is the interrogative pronoun (masculine
singular genitive); it neither modifies nor agrees with liber (masculine singular
nominative).
Indefinite pronouns
An indefinite pronoun refers to an unspecified person or thing. By the nature of its meaning, its
antecedent typically is not clearly defined, if it exists at all. Examples include aliquis (someone /
something), quisquam (anyone / anything), quisque (everyone / everything), quisquis (whoever /
whatever) and quīdam (a certain one).
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NOTE: Some of these have a closely related indefinite adjective. As a general rule, with some
exceptions, the indefinite pronouns are built from the interrogative pronoun, while the indefinite
adjectives are built from the interrogative adjective. E.g., aliquis, aliquid is an indefinite
pronoun, while aliquī, aliqua, aliquod (some) is an indefinite adjective.
Morphological note
Many of the these pronouns and adjectives are included in a fairly small category of words that
are similarly irregular—for the most part, they have 1st- and 2nd-declension forms, but they end
with -īus in the singular genitive and -ī in the singular dative. These words are:
 Ūnus, Nūllus, Ūllus, Sōlus, Neuter, Alius, Uter, Tōtus, Alter—9 total. Note the acronym:
UNUS NAUTA (one sailor). All of these words deal with numerical concepts.
 The 5 demonstratives, the intensive, the relative pronoun, and the 2 interrogative words—
9 total.
 Various indefinite pronouns and adjectives built from the interrogative pronoun and
adjective.