The Russian personal pronouns at a glance
In Russian, just as in other languages, personal pronouns play an important role. They replace nouns and make it easier for us to speak. In this article, I’ll explain the different personal pronouns in Russian and show you how they are used in different cases. Don’t worry, it’s not as difficult as it might seem!
Russian personal pronouns in Nominativ
Here is an overview of personal pronouns in the nominative form, i.e. the basic form:
| English | Russian |
|---|---|
| I | Я |
| You (singular) | Ты |
| He / She / It | Он / Она / Оно |
| We | Мы |
| You (plural/formal) | Вы |
| They | Они |
Russian personal pronouns complete
| Case | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nominative (Именительный падеж) |
я | ты | он | оно | она | мы | вы | они |
| Genitive (Родительный падеж) |
меня | тебя | (н)его | (н)его | (н)её | нас | вас | (н)их |
| Dative (Дательный падеж) |
мне | тебе | (н)ему | (н)ему | (н)ей | нам | вам | (н)им |
| Accusative (Винительный падеж) |
меня | тебя | (н)его | (н)его | (н)её | нас | вас | (н)их |
| Instrumental (Творительный падеж) |
мной | тобой | (н)им | (н)им | (н)ей | нами | вами | (н)ими |
| Prepositional (Предложный падеж) |
мне | тебе | (н)ём | (н)ём | (н)ей | нас | вас | (н)их |
When do you use the «H» before Russian personal pronouns?
In Russian, the 3rd person singular and plural personal pronouns (он, оно, она, они) are preceded by an «Н» if the pronoun comes after a preposition. This serves to make the sentence sound more fluent and to facilitate pronunciation.
Rules
Use of the «Н»: If there is a preposition before the personal pronouns он, оно, она, они, an «Н» is added before the pronoun (e.g. «у него», «с ней»).
No use of «Н»: Prepositions that are derived from other word types such as adverbs or participles (e.g. «навстречу», «благодаря») are not preceded by «Н».
Examples
с ним – «with him»
«Я пойду с ним.» – «I will go with him. »
для неё – «for her»
«Этот подарок для неё.» – «This gift is for her.»
навстречу им – «towards them»
«Она бежала навстречу им.» – «She ran towards them.»
The preposition навстречу (towards), which is derived from an adverb, does not require «Н» before the pronoun «им» (them). This is used to describe movement or direction towards someone.
Common Prepositions That Require «Н»:
у (with/at), с (with), к (to), для (for), в (in), на (on/at)