German Personal Pronouns Explained: From Ich to Sie
Learning German starts with the basics – one of the most important being personal pronouns. These pronouns are used in place of nouns to avoid repetition and make sentences flow more naturally. In German, just like in English, they change depending on who is speaking, to whom, and about whom. Here's a list of the most common German subject pronouns:
The Personal Pronouns in the Nominative Case
German | English | Number | Used for |
|---|---|---|---|
ich | I | Singular | the speaker (1st person) |
du | you | Singular | informal, 1 person |
er | he | Singular | masculine nouns |
sie | she | Singular | feminine nouns |
es | it | Singular | neuter nouns |
wir | we | Plural | group including the speaker |
ihr | you (plural) | Plural | informal, more than one person |
sie | they | Plural | group of people or things |
Sie | you | Singular/Plural | formal, 1 or more persons |
Key Points to Remember
"du" vs. "Sie": Use du with friends, family, and children. Use Sie in formal settings—like with strangers, colleagues or authority figures. Sie is always capitalized to distinguish it from sie ("she" or "they").
"ihr" vs. "Sie": ihr is informal plural form of "you", used with friends or peers, while Sie (always capitalized) is the formal version of "you" and can refer to one or more people regardless of number.
Gender and Pronouns: German pronouns agree with the grammatical gender of the noun. For example:
der Mann (the man) → er
die Frau (the woman) → sie
das Kind (the child) → es
Examples in Sentences
Ich bin müde. (I am tired.)
Du hast ein schönes Haus. (You have a nice house.)
Er spielt Fußball. (He plays soccer.)
Sie ist meine Schwester. (She is my sister.)
Wir lernen Deutsch. (We are learning German.)
Sie haben recht. (You are right. – formal)
Why Personal Pronouns Matter
Understanding personal pronouns is essential for building sentences, conjugating verbs and holding conversations. They are the backbone of any language interaction, especially in German where formality and gender both play important roles.