Reflexive Pronouns

Reflexive pronouns are words that end with -self. We use them when the person doing the action and the person receiving the action are the same.

What You'll Learn

When you do something to yourself: "I cut myself while peeling the apple."
When someone does something alone: "She tied her shoelaces by herself."
When you want to say "on your own": "He made his bed all by himself."
To show the same person: "You should be proud of yourself."

Each person has a matching reflexive pronoun. The reflexive pronoun must match the person in the sentence.

Person	Pronoun	Reflexive Pronoun	Example
I	I / me	myself	I wash myself.
You	you	yourself	You can do it yourself.
He	he / him	himself	He dressed himself.
She	she / her	herself	She drew a picture of herself.

Remember: Look at who is doing the action. Pick the reflexive pronoun that matches!

Match the pronoun to the person: "I" goes with "myself", "you" goes with "yourself", "he" goes with "himself", and "she" goes with "herself".
The doer and receiver are the same person: Use a reflexive pronoun when the same person does and receives the action. "He hurt himself." (He did the hurting. He got hurt.)
"By + reflexive pronoun" means alone: "I did my homework by myself." means I did it without help.
Do not use reflexive pronouns for different people: If the doer and receiver are different people, do not use a reflexive pronoun. Say "She helped him," not "She helped himself."

Wrong	Right	Why
I wash meself.	I wash myself.	The correct form is "myself", not "meself"
He cut hisself.	He cut himself.	The correct form is "himself", not "hisself"
She made it by himself.	She made it by herself.	"She" matches with "herself", not "himself"
Myself went to the shop.	I went to the shop.	Do not use "myself" in place of "I"

by, hurt, cut, wash, dress, enjoy, help, introduce, look at, proud of, take care of

"He ... himself", "She ... herself", "I ... myself", "You ... yourself"

Tip: Ask yourself: "Is the person doing the action the same as the person receiving it?" If yes, use a reflexive pronoun!

Match check: Find who is doing the action. Then check -- does the reflexive pronoun match? "I" with "myself", "you" with "yourself", "he" with "himself", "she" with "herself".
Same person test: Cover the reflexive pronoun. Ask: "Who is doing it? Who is it happening to?" If both answers are the same person, a reflexive pronoun is correct.
By + self = alone: Whenever you see "by ___self", it means the person did it without help. Pick the reflexive pronoun that matches the doer.

Person	Reflexive Pronoun	Example Sentence
I	myself	I packed my bag myself.
You	yourself	You should believe in yourself.
He	himself	He cleaned up by himself.
She	herself	She bought herself a new book.