ech / du / hien / si / et
Subject Pronouns: Singular
ech I, du you (one person you know well), hien he, si she, et it. Each takes its own verb form: ech sinn, du bass, hien ass.
How It Works
1. The pronouns with sinn (to be)
- ech sinn (I am)
- du bass (you are, to one person you know well)
- hien ass (he is)
- si ass (she is)
- et ass (it is)
Unlike English I, ech is written lowercase inside a sentence.
2. Hien or hie?
Hien keeps its n before a vowel and before d, h, n, t and z: Hien ass midd. Hien huet en Hond. Before other consonants it becomes hie: Hie schafft vill. Hie kënnt muer.
3. Things have gender too
Use the pronoun that matches the noun's gender, not English it:
- Masculine: Den Dësch ass al, mee hien ass schéin.
- Feminine: D'Zopp ass waarm, si ass gutt.
- Neuter: D'Haus ass al, mee et ass schéin.
4. Good to know
- A woman or girl you call by her first name is usually hatt, not si.
- Du is informal. Use Dir (polite you) with adults you do not know well.
- Si can also mean they. The verb shows which: si kënnt (she comes), si kommen (they come). See mir/dir/si.
- When they are not stressed, du, hien and si often become de, en and se, in speech and in everyday writing (see unstressed pronouns).
Examples (6)
- Ech wunnen zu Lëtzebuerg.
I live in Luxembourg.
- Wou wunns du?
Where do you live?
Du is the informal you for one person.
- Hien ass midd.
He is tired.
Hien keeps its n before a vowel.
- Hie schafft vill.
He works a lot.
Hien becomes hie before sch.
- Si kënnt aus Frankräich.
She comes from France.
The singular verb kënnt shows that si means she.
- D'Haus ass al, mee et ass schéin.
The house is old, but it is beautiful.
Haus is neuter, so the pronoun is et.
Common Mistakes
Keeping the n of hien before most consonants.
Hien schafft vill.Hie schafft vill.Before s the n drops, so hien is written hie.
Using et for a masculine thing.
Den Dësch ass al, mee et ass schéin.Den Dësch ass al, mee hien ass schéin.Dësch is masculine, so the pronoun is hien, even though English says it.
Using the wrong verb form with du.
Du ass midd.Du bass midd.Every pronoun has its own verb form. With du, sinn is bass.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Before Subject Pronouns: Singular, learn Three Noun Genders and The N-Rule (Eifeler Regel).
Related Patterns
- mir / dir / siSubject Pronouns: Plural
The plural subject pronouns.
Level 1 - hattHatt: She for Women and Girls by Name
The neuter pronoun for women and girls called by their first name.
Level 1 - Polite Dir
The polite alternative to du.
Level 1 - sinnTo Be: Sinn
Shows the verb forms that go with each pronoun.
Level 1 - Short Unstressed Pronouns
The short unstressed forms de, en and se.
Level 2
Learn Next
Patterns that build on this one.
Words in This Pattern
Practice ech / du / hien / si / et in Bubblegum
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