Personal pronouns כִּנּוּי גּוּף kinnui guf
The personal pronouns are the independent words “I, you, he, she, we, you (pl), they.” The first letter shows the person: א for the first, אַתּ for the second, ה for the third. Because a Hebrew verb already contains its subject, the pronoun mostly serves as the subject of a verbless clause or adds emphasis (“he himself”). This page shows all ten forms, one by one, in words actually used in the Bible.
“substitute for a person”
Colour key blue = added at the front · orange = added at the end · purple = a mark inside (dot · doubled letter · changed vowel) · underline = the word this page is about
1What personal pronouns are
Personal pronouns are the words used in place of a name: “I, you, he, she, we, you (pl), they.” Hebrew has them as independent words (this page), and also as short forms attached to the end of a word (the וֹ of סוּסוֹ “his horse”). The attached forms are treated on the Pronominal suffixes page.
The independent pronoun is almost always a subject. For “me, him” as an object Hebrew does not use it; it attaches a suffix to the object marker אֵת: אֹתוֹ “him.”
Counted in the OSHB morphology, 4,978 words in the Old Testament are personal pronouns (including those with the conjunction וְ or the article הַ).
2The name — כִּנּוּי גּוּף kinnui guf
Hebrew grammar calls the personal pronoun כִּנּוּי גּוּף (kinnui guf). כִּנּוּי (kinnui) is “a substitute name,” and גּוּף (guf) is “body,” which in grammar means “person” (first, second, third). So: “the substitute for a person.”
In English it is the personal pronoun, or the independent personal pronoun to distinguish it from the suffixes.
3At a glance — the first letter shows the person
- First person (I · we)Begins with א — אֲנִי אָנֹכִי (I) · אֲנַחְנוּ (we). No masculine/feminine distinction.
- Second person (you)Begins with אַתּ (att-) — אַתָּה (you m) · אַתְּ (you f) · אַתֶּם (you m pl) · אַתֵּנָה (you f pl). The ת always has a dot.
- Third person (he · she · they)Begins with ה — הוּא (he) · הִיא (she) · הֵם הֵמָּה (they m) · הֵנָּה (they f).
- Gender and number at the endMasculine plural ends in ם (אַתֶּם הֵם), feminine plural in נָה (אַתֵּנָה הֵנָּה), and “we” in נוּ.
4The personal pronouns
The standard grammar-book forms. Two forms in one cell are two forms with the same meaning (short · long).
| Who | Hebrew | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1cs (common) | אֲנִי · אָנֹכִי | ani · anokhi | I |
| 2ms | אַתָּה | attah | you (m) |
| 2fs | אַתְּ | at | you (f) |
| 3ms | הוּא | hu | he, it |
| 3fs | הִיא | hi | she, it |
| 1cp (common) | אֲנַחְנוּ · נַחְנוּ | anaḥnu · naḥnu | we |
| 2mp | אַתֶּם | attem | you (m pl, or mixed) |
| 2fp | אַתֵּנָה · אַתֵּן | attenah · atten | you (f pl) |
| 3mp | הֵם · הֵמָּה | hem · hemmah | they (m, or mixed) |
| 3fp | הֵנָּה | hennah | they (f) |
The first person has only one form for both genders (“common”). A mixed group is referred to with the masculine plural. נַחְנוּ is rare; it appears in Gen 42:11, כֻּלָּנוּ בְּנֵי אִישׁ־אֶחָד נָחְנוּ “we are all sons of one man.”
5Pronouns in Genesis 1–2 — all הוּא
In Genesis 1–2 the only independent personal pronoun is the 3ms הוּא (2:11, 13, 14, 14, 19). Each one forms “it is …” in a verbless clause.
hu — it (m) — “it is the one …”
The 3ms הוּא. It points back to the river name “Pishon” (masculine). No verb follows: הוּא הַסֹּבֵב “it is the one surrounding” — the subject of a verbless clause.
YLVThe name of the first is Pishon; it is the one surrounding all the land of Havilah, where there is gold.
hu — that (was its name)
The clause ends נֶפֶשׁ חַיָּה הוּא שְׁמוֹ: what Adam called it — הוּא — its name. הוּא picks up what came before: “that was its name.” In clauses with no verb “to be,” a 3rd-person pronoun often stands between subject and predicate.
YLVAnd YHWH God formed out of the ground (adamah) every living thing (chai) of the field and every bird of the heavens, and brought it to Adam to see what he would call it; and whatever Adam called it, the living soul (nephesh), that was its name.
6I · you · he · she — real examples from the Bible
Genesis 3 alone has almost all the singular pronouns. Look for the first letters (א · אַתּ · ה).
anokhi — I
The long 1cs form אָנֹכִי. כִּי־עֵירֹם אָנֹכִי “because I was naked” — “naked” + “I,” a clause with no verb. First-person pronouns begin with א.
YLVAnd he said, "I heard your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked, and I hid myself."
ani — I (am)
The short 1cs form אֲנִי. אֲנִי יְהוָה “I am YHWH” — “I” + “YHWH,” with no verb, means “I am ….” אֲנִי and אָנֹכִי mean the same.
YLVAnd he said to him, "I am YHWH who brought you out from Ur of the Chaldeans, to give you this land to inherit it."
attah — you (m)
The 2ms. כִּי עֵירֹם אָתָּה “that you were naked” — the subject of a verbless clause. The dot (dagesh) in ת marks a merged נ (see “Why” below). The first vowel is ָ instead of ַ because the word stands at the main pause in the middle of the verse (the accent atnaḥ), where vowels lengthen — compare אַתָּה in 3:14.
YLVAnd he said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree which I commanded (tzivvah) you not to eat of it?"
at — you (f)
The 2fs. Abram says to Sarai כִּי אִשָּׁה יְפַת־מַרְאֶה אָתְּ “that you are a woman beautiful of appearance.” The final תְּ has both a dot and a sheva. It is the masculine אַתָּה without the final “a.”
YLVAnd it came to pass, when he had come near to enter Egypt, that he said to Sarai his wife (ishah): "Behold now, I know that you are a woman (ishah) beautiful of appearance.
hi — she
The 3fs. הִוא נָתְנָה־לִּי “she gave me.” The verb נָתְנָה already says “she” with its ending ָה, yet the pronoun is put first — “she (and no one else).” It is written הוא (with ו) but pointed with ִ and read “hi” (see “The הִוא of the Torah” below).
YLVAnd Adam said, "The woman (ishah) whom you gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate."
hu — he
הוּא יְשׁוּפְךָ רֹאשׁ וְאַתָּה תְּשׁוּפֶנּוּ עָקֵב. The י of יְשׁוּפְךָ already means “he,” yet הוּא is put first; then וְאַתָּה “and you” is put first. The two pronouns set the two sides against each other: “he … you ….” הוּא is masculine singular.
YLVAnd I will put enmity between you and the woman (ishah), and between your seed and Seed-H(Seed of YHWH) (zarah); He (masculine 3rd singular) shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.
7we · you (pl) · they — real examples from the Bible
Look at the endings (ם masculine plural · נָה feminine plural · נוּ we).
anaḥnu — we (are)
The 1cp. כִּי־אֲנָשִׁים אַחִים אֲנָחְנוּ “for we are men, brothers” — a verbless clause. The א in front marks the first person; the ending נוּ is “we,” the same as the end of the perfect קָטַלְנוּ (we killed). The long vowel under נ is due to the pause; the ordinary form is אֲנַחְנוּ (19:13).
YLVAnd Abram said to Lot, "Let there be no strife, I pray, between me and you, and between my herdsmen and your herdsmen, for we are men (ish), brothers.
attem — you (m pl)
The 2mp. Jacob asks מֵאַיִן אַתֶּם “from where are you?” The dot in ת is the merged נ, as in אַתָּה; the final ם is the masculine plural. The answer in the same verse, מֵחָרָן אֲנָחְנוּ “we are from Haran,” is also verbless.
YLVAnd Jacob said to them, "My brothers, where are you from?" And they said, "We are from Haran."
ve’attenah — and you (f pl)
וְ (and) + the 2fp אַתֵּנָה. Jacob to Rachel and Leah: וְאַתֵּנָה יְדַעְתֶּן “and you yourselves know.” The feminine plural נָה replaces the masculine ם. In the whole Old Testament this pronoun (אַתֵּנָה · אַתֵּן) occurs only five times (counted in OSHB).
YLVAnd you yourselves know that with all my strength I have served (avad) your father.
hem — they
The 3mp. כִּי עֵירֻמִּם הֵם “that they were naked” — “naked (ones)” + “they,” a verbless clause. The masculine plural is used for a man and a woman together. The final ם marks the masculine plural (as in אַתֶּם you).
YLVAnd the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves and made for themselves girdles.
hemmah — they
The long form הֵמָּה of הֵם. הֵמָּה הַגִּבֹּרִים “they are the mighty ones” — the subject of a verbless clause. The מ takes a dot and ָה is added; the meaning is the same as הֵם.
YLVThe Nephilim were in the earth in those days, and also after that, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of man (adam), and they bore to them; they are the mighty ones who were of old, the men (ish) of the name.
hennah — they (f)
The 3fp. כִּי טֹבֹת הֵנָּה “that they were good” — the subject “the daughters of man” is feminine plural, so both the adjective טֹבֹת (good, fp) and the pronoun הֵנָּה are feminine plural. נ (hen-) replaces the masculine ם (hem).
YLVthe sons of God saw the daughters of man (adam), that they were good; and they took for themselves women (ishah) of all whom they chose.
8Why the second-person ת always has a dot
- 1. The original shapeThe second-person pronoun was originally like אַנְתָּה (anta), with נ after א (compare Arabic “anta”). The נ that remains in the first person אֲנִי (ani) belongs to the same stock.
- 2. A closing נThat נ has no vowel and closes the syllable right before ת.
- 3. The נ mergesA closing נ assimilates to the next sound, so “an-ta” becomes “at-ta” (the same thing that happens to the נ of the Niphal imperfect).
- 4. A doubled letter = a dotThe doubled תּ is written once with a dot (dagesh) → אַתָּה. So אַתָּה אַתְּ אַתֶּם אַתֵּנָה all have a dot in ת.
9What the pronoun does — verbless clauses · emphasis · contrast
(1) Subject of a verbless clause — Hebrew has no present-tense verb “to be”; subject and predicate placed side by side make a sentence, and a pronoun is often the subject: אֲנִי יְהוָה “I am YHWH” (15:7) · עָפָר אַתָּה “dust you are” (3:19) · עֵירֹם אָנֹכִי “I was naked” (3:10).
(2) Emphasis beside a verb — a Hebrew verb already contains who did it (נָתְנָה = “she gave”). Adding the pronoun puts weight on the person: הִוא נָתְנָה־לִּי “she gave me” (3:12).
(3) Contrast — two pronouns placed first set two parties against each other: הוּא יְשׁוּפְךָ … וְאַתָּה תְּשׁוּפֶנּוּ “he … and you …” (3:15).
(4) Picking up what came before — the 3rd-person הוּא הִיא הֵם refers back and links: הוּא שְׁמוֹ “that was its name” (2:19) · הוּא הַסֹּבֵב “it is the one surrounding” (2:11).
(5) With the article: “that” — with הַ, after a noun, it means “that”: הָאָרֶץ הַהִוא “that land” (2:12) · בַּיָּמִים הָהֵם “in those days” (6:4). See Demonstratives.
10The 3rd person with the article — a real example
hahi — that (land)
The article הַ + הִוא (she). הָאָרֶץ הַהִוא “that land” — after the noun it means “that.” A 3rd-person pronoun with the article becomes the demonstrative “that” (see Demonstratives). “Land” is feminine, so הִוא.
YLVAnd the gold of that land is good; there is the bdellium and the onyx stone.
11Variant forms — pausal vowels · the הִוא of the Torah
Pausal vowels — a word standing at a major pause (the end of a verse or half-verse) lengthens or changes its stressed vowel. So the same pronoun appears as אַתָּה (3:14) and אָתָּה (3:11), אֲנַחְנוּ (19:13) and אֲנָחְנוּ (13:8), אֲנִי and אָנִי (27:24). The meaning is the same (see Pausal forms).
The הִוא of the Torah — in the five books of Moses (Genesis–Deuteronomy) the 3fs “hi” is mostly written הוא (with ו), not היא. The Masoretes kept the letters and added the vowel ִ so it is read “hi” → הִוא. Counting in OSHB only the forms with nothing prefixed, the 3fs pronoun in the Torah is written הוא 127 times and היא 8 times. הִוא (hi, she) and הוּא (hu, he) are told apart by the vowel.
12Easy to confuse
אַתְּ (you f) and אֵת (the object marker). Both have the consonants את. The pronoun has אַ (a) and a dotted ת with sheva (אַתְּ 12:11); the marker has אֵ (e), or אֶת־ before a maqqef (אֵת הַשָּׁמַיִם 1:1), and usually stands before a definite noun.
הֵנָּה (they f), הִנֵּה (behold), and הֵנָּה (hither). The pronoun הֵנָּה (hennah, 6:2) has ֵ (e) first; “behold” הִנֵּה (hinneh, 1:29) has ִ (i). The adverb הֵנָּה “here, hither” looks exactly like the pronoun and is told apart by its place in the sentence (in Genesis OSHB marks three as pronouns and three as adverbs).
Independent and attached pronouns. הוּא (he) and the וֹ of שְׁמוֹ (his) are both 3ms, but the independent form is a subject, the attached form “his / him.”
הוּא is not always “he.” Things, rivers and lands are referred to by grammatical gender with הוּא הִיא (2:11 a river · 2:12 a land); English “it” is often right.
13Where this appears in Genesis 1–2
All 6 places, found from the OSHB morphology. Tap one to go to that word’s notes.