Introduction
When you want to replace the name of someone or something that is the subject of a verb in order to avoid repeating it, you can use personal pronouns. Italian personal subject pronouns are:
| io | I |
| tu | you |
| lui | he |
| lei | she |
| noi | we |
| voi | you (all) |
| loro | they |
io (I) Io studio spagnolo. I study Spanish.
tu (You) Tu vivi a Milano. You live in Milan.
lui (He) Lui mangia una pizza. He is eating a pizza.
lei (She) Anna è mia sorella. Lei è un’insegnante. Anna is my sister. She is a teacher.
noi (We) Noi abbiamo un cane. We have a dog.
voi (You all) Voi siete i miei migliori amici. You are my best friends.
loro (They) Loro giocano a tennis. They are playing tennis.
Italian personal subject pronouns are capitalized only when they are placed at the beginning of a new sentence. Here is what a typical written sentence looks like.
Io vivo con la mia famiglia e noi siamo felici. Tu dove vivi? I live with my family and we are happy. Where do you live?
Other Subject Pronouns
You might hear, or most frequently read, other Italian personal subject pronouns that are used for third singular and plural persons instead of “lui”, “lei” and “loro”. These pronouns are actually the standard ones to use; however, nowadays they are less used than in the past and their less formal counterparts have taken over.
| Masculine | Feminine | |
| Third singular person | lui - egli - esso |
lei - ella- essa |
| Third plural person | loro - essi | loro - esse |
A few things to remember about them:
1) “Egli” and “Ella” are used when referring to a person.
2) “Esso” and “Essa” usually refer to a thing or an abstract concept.
3) “Essi” and “Esse” can be used to refer both to people, things or abstract concepts.
Omitting Subject Pronouns
In the Italian language you can choose to omit the subject. Actually, native speakers rarely use personal subject pronouns.
(Io) Esco adesso di casa. I’m leaving home right now.
(Voi) Siete davvero gentili. You are very kind.
A che ora (tu) vuoi pranzare? What time do you want to have lunch?
In some cases, you have to, or you might feel the need to, clearly use the personal subject pronoun. Generally speaking, you expressly mention it:
1) When you want to put emphasis on the subject performing the action.
Tu hai rotto il bicchiere! You broke the glass!
2) When you want to underline a contrast.
Io sono di Milano, lei di Roma. I am from Milan, she is from Rome.
3) When a verb form is the same for multiple subjects and you need to specify who or what you are referring to.
Pensi che io creda a questa storia? Do you think I believe this story?The subjunctive present “creda” can also take “lui” or “lei” as subject and, therefore, without the specific personal subject “io”, it might mean: “Do you think she believes this story?”
4) After the adverb/conjunction “anche”.
Anche io vengo alla festa. I’m coming to the party too.
