Latin pronouns: overview with charts
In short
Pronouns replace or accompany nouns. In Latin these are mainly possessive pronouns (meus, tuus, suus), demonstrative pronouns (is, ea, id), relative pronouns (qui, quae, quod) and interrogative pronouns (quis, quid and qui, quae, quod). Relative and adjectival pronouns agree with their antecedent in gender and number; their case depends on the clause in which they stand.
The pronouns at a glance
| Kind | Examples | Disce ludens |
|---|---|---|
| interrogative (as a noun) | quis, quid | lesson 16 (Disce I) |
| interrogative (adjectival) | qui, quae, quod | lesson 25 (Disce I) |
| possessive | meus, tuus, suus, noster, vester | lesson 24 (Disce I) |
| demonstrative | is, ea, id | lesson 6 (Disce II) |
| relative | qui, quae, quod | lesson 5 (Disce II) |
Possessive pronouns: meus, tuus, suus
Possessive pronouns show ownership or belonging. They agree with the noun they refer to in case, gender and number, not with the owner.
| Person | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| 1st person (I, we) | meus, mea, meum (my) | noster, nostra, nostrum (our) |
| 2nd person (you) | tuus, tua, tuum (your) | vester, vestra, vestrum (your, pl.) |
| 3rd person, reflexive | suus, sua, suum (his, her, its) | suus, sua, suum (their) |
Suus always refers to the subject of the sentence. If the possessive refers to another person, use the genitive of is: eius (his, her), eorum (their, plural).
Examples from Disce ludens I, lesson 24: “patri” takes “meo” (to my father, card 12), “ihrer Tochter” takes “filiae suae” (card 10), “matri” takes “nostrae” (to our mother, card 7), “e villis” takes “vestris” (out of your houses, card 4).
Demonstrative pronoun is, ea, id
The pronoun is, ea, id points to a person or thing. Depending on the context it is translated as “he, she, it”, “this” or “that”. Disce ludens II, lesson 6, practices the three functions.
| Case | Singular (m, f, n) | Plural (m, f, n) |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | is, ea, id | ii, eae, ea |
| Genitive | eius | eorum, earum, eorum |
| Dative | ei | iis (eis) |
| Accusative | eum, eam, id | eos, eas, ea |
| Ablative | eo, ea, eo | iis (eis) |
Examples from Disce ludens II, lesson 6: “cum” takes “ea” (with her, card 3), “de” takes “eo” (about him, card 4), “ab” takes “iis” (from them, card 6). The card asks for iis, not the variant eis.
Relative pronoun qui, quae, quod
A relative clause gives more detail about a word in the main clause. The relative pronoun agrees with its antecedent in gender and number; its case follows its role in the relative clause. Disce ludens II, lesson 5, shows this with an example:
Qui vir venit? Vir, qui aegrotus est, venit.
Which man is coming? The man, who is ill, is coming.
| Case | Singular (m, f, n) | Plural (m, f, n) |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | qui, quae, quod | qui, quae, quae |
| Genitive | cuius | quorum, quarum, quorum |
| Dative | cui | quibus |
| Accusative | quem, quam, quod | quos, quas, quae |
| Ablative | quo, qua, quo | quibus |
Interrogative pronouns: quis, quid and qui, quae, quod
The noun-type interrogative quis (who) and quid (what) has no plural. The adjectival interrogative qui, quae, quod (which) stands with a noun and agrees with it. Disce ludens I, lesson 25, practices it with examples such as quas feminas (which women) and quod templum (which temple).
| Case | Form | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | quis / quid | who / what |
| Genitive | cuius | whose |
| Dative | cui | to whom |
| Accusative | quem / quid | whom / what |
| Ablative | quo | with what / with whom |
Common pitfalls
- suus or eius? For a reference to the subject use suus; for any other reference use eius.
- quod is a relative pronoun (nominative or accusative neuter), but also a conjunction meaning “that” or “because”.
- Relative pronoun: gender and number follow the antecedent, the case follows the relative clause. Looking only at the case leads to wrong translations.
- Interrogative pronoun: quis has no plural; the adjectival interrogative qui, quae, quod takes that role.
Try it
A real exercise from Disce ludens:
Disce ludens I · Lesson 16 · Interrogative pronoun as a noun, card 9
Fill in the missing interrogative pronoun! Imperator militibus imperat. The commander gives orders to the soldiers. Question: ____ imperator imperat?
Error points: 0
© Disce ludensWhat Disce ludens does – and what it doesn’t
What Disce ludens does
- Practices interrogative pronouns in lesson 16, adjectival interrogatives in lesson 25 and possessive pronouns in lesson 24 (Disce ludens I).
- Practices relative and demonstrative pronouns in lessons 5 and 6 of Disce ludens II.
- Lets you type the forms and gives graded hints when an answer is wrong.
What it doesn’t do
- Does not explain the pronouns in the depth of a textbook.
- Does not give every pronoun a lesson of its own.
- Does not show vowel length marks (macrons).
Frequently asked questions
Which pronouns does Latin have?
Personal, possessive, demonstrative, relative and interrogative pronouns. The charts above show the most important forms.
What is the difference between relative and interrogative pronouns?
The relative pronoun introduces a subordinate clause and refers to a word in the main clause. The interrogative pronoun asks a question: quis? (who?), cuius? (whose?).
When do I use suus and when eius?
Suus refers to the subject of the sentence (the mother sees her daughter: mater filiam suam videt). Eius refers to another person in the sentence.
Which pronoun forms do I need to know by heart?
The charts above. For the common mix-ups, looking at the antecedent and the role in the sentence helps more than memorising alone.