👤 Russian Personal Pronouns (All Cases)
Russian personal pronouns declined across all six cases, including the n- rule. Free Russian grammar guide for learners with clear rules and examples.
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Subject Pronouns (Nominative)
Russian has 8 personal pronouns in the nominative case (subject form). Unlike English, Russian distinguishes between informal "you" (ты — one person you know well) and formal/plural "you" (вы — polite address or multiple people). The formal вы is always capitalized in writing when addressing one person politely (Вы).
| Russian | Pronunciation | English | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| я | ya | I | |
| ты | ty | you (informal) | One person — friends, family, children |
| он | on | he / it (masc.) | Also used for masculine nouns |
| она | a-NA | she / it (fem.) | Also used for feminine nouns |
| оно | a-NO | it (neuter) | Used for neuter nouns |
| мы | my | we | |
| вы | vy | you (formal / plural) | Capitalized as Вы for polite singular |
| они | a-NI | they | For all genders |
Full Declension Table
Personal pronouns decline across all six cases. This is the most important pronoun table in Russian — you will use these forms constantly. Unlike nouns, pronoun forms are irregular and must be memorized individually.
| Case | я | ты | он | она | оно | мы | вы | они |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nominative | я | ты | он | она | оно | мы | вы | они |
| Genitive | меня | тебя | его | её | его | нас | вас | их |
| Dative | мне | тебе | ему | ей | ему | нам | вам | им |
| Accusative | меня | тебя | его | её | его | нас | вас | их |
| Instrumental | мной | тобой | им | ей | им | нами | вами | ими |
| Prepositional | мне | тебе | нём | ней | нём | нас | вас | них |
The Prepositional Н- Rule
When third-person pronouns (он, она, оно, они) are used after a preposition, they gain an н- prefix. This only affects the oblique cases (not nominative). First- and second-person pronouns (я, ты, мы, вы) are never affected.
| Without Preposition | With Preposition | Example |
|---|---|---|
| его (his/him) | у него | У него есть книга. (He has a book.) |
| ему (to him) | к нему | Я иду к нему. (I am going to him.) |
| им (with him) | с ним | Я говорю с ним. (I am talking with him.) |
| ей (to her) | к ней | Я иду к ней. (I am going to her.) |
| ей (with her) | с ней | Я говорю с ней. (I am talking with her.) |
| её (her) | у неё | У неё есть кошка. (She has a cat.) |
| им (to them) | к ним | Мы идём к ним. (We are going to them.) |
| их (them) | у них | У них большой дом. (They have a big house.) |
Reflexive Pronoun себя
Russian has a special reflexive pronoun себя meaning "oneself." It refers back to the subject of the sentence, regardless of person, gender, or number. It has no nominative form — you cannot use it as a subject. Declension: Genitive — себя, Dative — себе, Accusative — себя, Instrumental — собой, Prepositional — себе.
| Case | Form | Example | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Genitive | себя | Она не помнит себя в детстве. | She doesn't remember herself in childhood. |
| Dative | себе | Он купил себе книгу. | He bought himself a book. |
| Accusative | себя | Она видит себя в зеркале. | She sees herself in the mirror. |
| Instrumental | собой | Возьми зонт с собой. | Take an umbrella with you(rself). |
| Prepositional | себе | Он думает о себе. | He thinks about himself. |
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