eu / ti / el / ela / nós / vós / eles / elas
Subject Pronouns
The words for I, you, he, she, we and they are eu, ti, el, ela, nós, vós, eles and elas.
How It Works
The set.
- eu: I, Eu son de Santiago (I am from Santiago)
- ti: you, to one person you know well, Ti es moi amable
- el: he; ela: she
- nós: we
- vós: you, to two or more people, Vós sodes de Lugo?
- eles: they, for men or a mixed group; elas: they, for women only
The accent matters. Nós and vós have an accent because nos and vos, without it, are different words: object pronouns meaning "us" and "you". See Diacritic Accent.
Galician forms, not Spanish ones. Standard Galician says ti, never Spanish tú (the form tu is heard in some speech, but the standard uses ti), el only for "he" (the article "the" is o), and vós for plural you (not vosotros). The forms nosoutros and vosoutros also exist, but with a special meaning; see Nós vs Nosoutros.
Polite you. For someone you address formally, use vostede with a he/she verb form, and vostedes for several people. See Informal Ti and Formal Vostede and Plural You: Vós and Vostedes.
Often left out. Because the verb ending already shows the person, these pronouns are often dropped. See Dropping Subject Pronouns.
Examples (6)
- Eu son de Santiago.
I am from Santiago.
- Ti es moi amable.
You are very kind.
Ti takes the verb form es.
- El traballa nun banco e ela traballa nun hospital.
He works in a bank and she works in a hospital.
The pronouns show which person does which job.
- Nós somos irmáns.
We are brothers.
Nós has an accent.
- Vós sodes de Lugo?
Are you (all) from Lugo?
Vós is plural you and takes sodes.
- Eles xogan ao fútbol e elas nadan.
They (the boys) play football and they (the girls) swim.
Eles and elas separate a male or mixed group from a female group.
Common Mistakes
Writing nós without its accent.
Nos somos amigos.Nós somos amigos.Without the accent, nos is the object pronoun "us". The subject "we" is nós.
Using the Spanish form tú.
Tú es de aquí?Ti es de aquí?The standard Galician subject pronoun for "you" is ti. Tú with an accent is Spanish.
Using the Spanish vosotros.
Vosotros sodes de Lugo?Vós sodes de Lugo?The usual Galician plural "you" is vós.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Subject pronouns identify the person and number of the subject.
Related Patterns
- Dropping Subject Pronouns
When these pronouns can be left out.
Level 1 - ti / vostedeInformal Ti and Formal Vostede
Informal ti and formal vostede.
Level 1 - vós / vostedesPlural You: Vós and Vostedes
The two ways to say plural you.
Level 1 - Diacritic Accent
Why nós and vós have an accent.
Level 1 - Present of ser
The verb ser shows each form with its pronoun.
Level 1 - nós / nosoutrosNós vs. Nosoutros
The difference between nós and nosoutros.
Level 4
Learn Next
Patterns that build on this one.
- Present of estarLevel 1
- Present of irLevel 1
- Present of terLevel 1
- Present of -ar VerbsPresent Tense of -ar VerbsLevel 1
- me / che / lle / nos / vos / llesIndirect Object PronounsLevel 2
- me / te / o / a / nos / vos / os / asDirect Object PronounsLevel 2
- min / ti After PrepositionsPronouns After PrepositionsLevel 2
- eu mesmo / o mesmoMesmo: Self and SameLevel 3
And 1 more in the full list.
Words in This Pattern
Practice eu / ti / el / ela / nós / vós / eles / elas in Bubblegum
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