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Russian Personal Pronouns in Every Case

Russian pronouns in all six cases: я, ты, он, она, оно, мы, вы, они and себя, the extra н- after prepositions, со мной and обо мне, and formal Вы.

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Key takeaways

  • The nominative pronouns are я, ты, он, она, оно, мы, вы, они; the reflexive себя has no nominative.
  • Accusative and genitive share a form for every pronoun: меня, тебя, его, её, нас, вас, их.
  • After a preposition, third-person forms add н-: у него, с ней, о них; the prepositional always has it.
  • Wikipedia notes the г in его is pronounced в, as in adjectives.
  • Formal 'you' is the plural вы, capitalised as Вы in personal letters, official papers and questionnaires.

Russian pronouns change form for every case, so "I", "me", "to me" and "with me" are four different words: я, меня́, мне and мной. That sounds like a lot until you see the table, where many cells repeat and two small rules explain most of the surprises. This reference gives the full table from Wikipedia's articles on Russian grammar and Russian declension, then the н- rule, the special preposition forms, the reflexive себя and formal Вы.

The full table

Case I you (sg.) he / it she we you (pl./formal) they -self
Nominative я ты он / оно́ она́ мы вы они́ —
Accusative меня́ тебя́ его́ её нас вас их себя́
Genitive меня́ тебя́ его́ её нас вас их себя́
Dative мне тебе́ ему́ ей нам вам им себе́
Instrumental мной тобо́й им ей на́ми ва́ми и́ми собо́й
Prepositional мне тебе́ нём ней нас вас них себе́

The masculine он and neuter оно́ share every form after the nominative. Wikipedia also lists longer instrumental variants: мно́ю, тобо́ю, е́ю and собо́ю.

Some patterns are worth seeing at once:

  • Accusative = genitive for every pronoun: меня, тебя, его, её, нас, вас, их.
  • Dative = prepositional for я, ты and себя: мне, тебе, себе.
  • Нас and вас cover accusative, genitive and prepositional.

If the cases themselves are new, Russian cases explained sets out what each one does.

The н- after prepositions

Wikipedia's Russian grammar article states the rule: when a preposition is used directly before a third-person pronoun, н- is added to the front. So "him" is его, but "at him" is у него́, and "from her" is с неё.

Without preposition With preposition
его (him) у него, для него
ей (to her) к ней
им (by him / to them) с ним (with him)
их (them) без них

Because the prepositional case is only ever used after a preposition, Wikipedia adds, the third-person prepositional always starts with н-: о нём, о ней, о них. That is why the table shows нём, ней, них in that row.

Со мной, обо мне and other special forms

Before the first-person singular, some prepositions grow a vowel. Wikipedia lists:

  • со мной, "with me" (normally с)
  • ко мне, "to me" (normally к)
  • во мне, "in me" (normally в)
  • обо мне, "about me" (normally о)

It notes that these preposition forms are unstressed, so the stress stays on the pronoun.

Two more points come from the same source. The г in его and него is pronounced в, as in adjective endings: ево, нево. And English "it" has two translations: оно́, the neuter pronoun, and э́то, "this", used as a placeholder subject, as in э́то хорошо́, "it's good", and кто э́то?, "who is it?".

Себя, the reflexive

Себя́ is the reflexive "-self" pronoun, and a single column in the table serves every person: myself, yourself, herself, themselves. Wikipedia's Russian grammar table gives it no nominative form. Its forms mirror ты: себя, себе, собой, себе, against тебя, тебе, тобой, тебе. So "I bought it for myself", "she bought it for herself" and "they bought it for themselves" all use the one form себе́.

Choosing the right form in five sentences

Work out each pronoun from the table and the rules above.

  1. "My name is Pyotr." Wiktionary explains that меня́ зову́т means literally "they call me", so me is the accusative: Меня́ зову́т Пётр.
  2. "What is your name?" Formal: Как вас зову́т? Informal: Как тебя́ зову́т? Both accusative.
  3. "I'm going with him." С + instrumental им, plus the н- rule → с ним.
  4. "We're talking about her." О + prepositional ней → о ней.
  5. "Tell me." Dative of я → скажи́ мне.

Count the forms for я in the table: я, меня, мне, мной, which is 4 distinct words across 6 cases, because two pairs repeat. Ты has the same shape: ты, тебя, тебе, тобой, also 4.

Formal Вы

Russian has a T–V distinction: the respectful singular "you" is the same as the plural, вы. Wikipedia notes it is capitalised as Вы, Вас, Вам in personal letters and official papers, where the addressee is definite, and in questionnaires, where the addressee is indefinite. Elsewhere it is written in lower case. Which situations call for вы in speech is covered in Russian greetings.

Practising pronouns

Regal - Learn Russian Language introduces cases, gender and agreement in stages, with exercises that explain why an answer works. It is one of our language-learning apps. For the matching adjective endings, see Russian adjective endings, and for where pronouns sit in a sentence, Russian word order.

Good to know

Frequently asked questions

What are the Russian personal pronouns?
Я (I), ты (you, informal), он (he), она (she), оно (it), мы (we), вы (you, plural or formal) and они (they). Each declines through six cases, and there is a reflexive pronoun, себя ('oneself'), with no nominative form.
Why is it у него and not у его?
Because a preposition directly before a third-person pronoun adds н- to it. Wikipedia's Russian grammar article gives у него ('at him') and с неё ('from her'), and notes that the prepositional case, which always follows a preposition, always starts with н-: о нём, о ней, о них.
How do you say 'with me' in Russian?
Со мной. Wikipedia notes special preposition forms before the first-person singular: со мной ('with me', usually с), ко мне ('to me', usually к), во мне ('in me', usually в) and обо мне ('about me', usually о). These preposition forms are unstressed.
When is вы written with a capital letter?
When it is the respectful singular 'you' in personal letters, official papers and questionnaires, according to Wikipedia's Russian grammar article: Вы, Вас, Вам. Otherwise it is written in lower case, including when it simply means 'you' plural.

Sources

  1. Russian grammar: Pronouns (opens in a new tab)Wikipedia — accessed
  2. Russian declension: Pronouns (opens in a new tab)Wikipedia — accessed
  3. меня зовут (opens in a new tab)Wiktionary — accessed

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