Subject Pronouns

Pronouns replace nouns that have been previously mentioned in a phrase/sentence or are understood based on a given context. These pronouns are separated into 3 types: first person, second person, and third person. Each type has both a singular and plural pronoun.

	Singular	Plural
First Person	ich	wir
Second Person	du	ihr
Third Person	er, sie, es, man	Sie, sie

The first person singular and plural operate essentially the same way in German as they do in English and thus correspond to “I” and “we.” Some of the other pronouns have slightly different functions when compared to their English counterparts:

I. Formality: Du vs. Sie

Saying “you” is a little more involved in German. There are two ways: the second person singular pronoun du is used to address one person informally, and the third person plural pronoun Sie is used to address one person formally.

The first thing you must ask yourself is if you would address the person formally (with Sie) or informally (with du). Colleagues, friends, children, and most family members would be addressed informally. However, to be on the safe side, it’s best to address strangers, superiors at work, and elders formally. Note that the formal Sie is always capitalized.

Examples:

(Formal) Hallo, Professor Müller. Unterrichten Sie den Kurs an der Uni? Hello, Professor Müller. Are you teaching the course at the university? (Informal) Tag, Markus. Was hast du am Wochenende gemacht? Hey, Markus. What did you do this weekend?

II. Number: Singular vs. Plural

The second thing to consider when saying “you” in German is the number of people that you are addressing. If you are speaking to more than one friend or colleague, the informal second person plural pronoun ihr is used. Ihr is only used informally, with multiple people (think of “you guys/ y’all” in English). When addressing multiple people formally, Sie is used.

Examples:

(Informal) Katja und Stefan, welcher Film wollt ihr sehen? Katja and Stefan, which film do you guys want to see? (Formal) Guten Tag Herr und Frau Meier, wohnen Sie noch in Berlin? Hello Mr. and Mrs. Meier, do you still live in Berlin?

III. Lower-case sie

There are two uses of lower-case sie which translate to “they” or “she” in English. To determine which meaning is being used, look at the verb to see which form it is in. If there is no verb, then the context should tell you.

Examples:

Wo sind sie? Where are they? (plural) Wo ist sie? Where is she? (singular) Das Geschenk ist für sie. The gift is for her/them (only with more information can it be clear).

IV. Gender and Pronouns

Although es is often translated as “it,” Germans often use er when referring to masculine nouns and sie when referring to feminine and plural nouns.

Examples:

- Darf ich das Auto Fahren? -Nein. Es ist kaputt. - May I drive the car? -No. It’s broken. - Wo ist meine Jacke? -Sie ist in deinem Zimmer. - Where is my jacket? -It’s in your room. Ich habe gestern Lederschuhe gekauft. Sie waren sehr teuer. I bought leather shoes yesterday. They were very expensive. - Wie war der Film? -Er war echt interessant! - How was the film? -It was really interesting!

V. Use of “man”

Man is used to convey the collective you in German. In English, when referring to an individual in a general situation, “you” is often used or, in older or more literary language, “one” may be used.

Examples:

Man darf nicht ohne Visum reisen. You can’t travel without a visa (One cannot travel without a visa). Man muss Chinesisch sprechen, um in China herumzureisen. You have to speak Chinese to get around China.