Reflexive Pronouns

Reflexive pronouns are words ending in -self (singular) or -selves (plural) that refer back to the subject of the sentence. At this level, you will learn to tell the difference between reflexive pronouns and personal pronouns, and choose the correct one in tricky situations.

What You'll Learn

At the P5 level, you already know the basic reflexive pronouns. Now you will sharpen your skills further:

Decide when a reflexive pronoun is needed and when a personal pronoun is the correct choice
Avoid the common error of using reflexive pronouns where personal pronouns belong
Use reflexive pronouns for emphasis (emphatic use) and understand how they change the meaning of a sentence
Handle reflexive pronouns in complex sentences with more than one clause

When to Use

When the subject and object are the same person: "The chef tasted the soup and accidentally burnt himself." (The chef did the burning; the chef got burnt.)
When you want to emphasise that someone did something personally: "The principal herself presented the awards at the ceremony." (Emphatic -- stresses that it was the principal, not someone else.)
After prepositions when referring back to the subject: "Priya kept the secret to herself throughout the entire school camp."
With "by" to mean alone or without help: "The students decorated the classroom by themselves for National Day."
In idiomatic expressions: "Please help yourselves to the refreshments at the hawker centre." / "He found himself lost in the nature reserve."

How to Form

Complete Reflexive Pronoun Table

You learnt the four singular pronouns in earlier levels. Here is the full set, including the plural forms and "itself":

Subject Pronoun	Object Pronoun	Reflexive Pronoun
I	me	myself
you (singular)	you	yourself
he	him	himself
she	her	herself
it	it	itself
we	us	ourselves
you (plural)	you	yourselves
they	them	themselves

Reflexive vs Personal: Which One to Use?

The key test is whether the subject and the object refer to the same person or thing.

Situation	Correct Pronoun	Example
Subject = Object (same person)	Reflexive	She introduced herself to the new teacher.
Subject and Object are different	Personal (object)	She introduced her to the new teacher. (She introduced another girl.)
After a preposition, referring back to subject	Reflexive	He bought a present for himself.
After a preposition, referring to someone else	Personal (object)	He bought a present for her.
For emphasis (could be removed without changing meaning)	Reflexive (emphatic)	The minister himself attended the event.
As a sentence subject	Personal (subject)	I completed the project. (NOT "Myself completed the project.")

Emphatic vs Reflexive Use

Reflexive pronouns can serve two different purposes. Understanding the difference helps you use them with confidence.

Use	Purpose	Example	Can you remove it?
Reflexive (object)	Shows same person does and receives action	She cut herself.	No -- the sentence would be incomplete.
Emphatic	Stresses that a particular person did it	She herself cut the ribbon.	Yes -- "She cut the ribbon" still makes sense.

Key Rules

Same-person rule: Use a reflexive pronoun only when the subject and the object (or the object of a preposition) refer to the same person or thing. "Arun and I prepared the presentation by ourselves." (Arun and I = ourselves.)
Never use a reflexive pronoun as a subject: Reflexive pronouns cannot be the subject of a sentence. Write "Wei Lin and I went to the library," not "Wei Lin and myself went to the library."
Never use a reflexive pronoun after "between": The preposition "between" always takes personal object pronouns. Write "between you and me," not "between you and myself."
Emphatic reflexive pronouns sit next to the noun they emphasise: Place the reflexive pronoun right after the word it emphasises. "The headmaster himself made the announcement." You can also place it at the end for a slightly different effect: "The headmaster made the announcement himself."
Use "themselves" (not "theirselves"): There is no such word as "theirselves" or "theirself" in standard English. The correct form is always themselves.
Match reflexive pronouns carefully in compound subjects: When the subject includes "and", decide whether the reflexive pronoun should be singular or plural. "Mei Ling and Ravi enjoyed themselves at the Science Centre." (Two people = themselves.) Compare: "Mei Ling enjoyed herself at the Science Centre." (One person = herself.)

Common Mistakes

Wrong	Right	Why
Wei Lin and myself baked a cake.	Wei Lin and I baked a cake.	"Myself" cannot be a sentence subject. Use "I".
Please give it to myself.	Please give it to me.	The giver and receiver are different people, so use "me".
This is between you and myself.	This is between you and me.	"Between" takes personal object pronouns, not reflexive ones.
They enjoyed theirselves at the zoo.	They enjoyed themselves at the zoo.	"Theirselves" is not a real word. Use "themselves".
Siti and Ahmad prepared the food by ourself.	Siti and Ahmad prepared the food by themselves.	Siti and Ahmad are "they", so use "themselves".
The cat licked itselves clean.	The cat licked itself clean.	Singular "it" takes "itself", not "itselves".

Clue Words

Words and phrases that often signal a reflexive pronoun is needed

by, hurt, cut, wash, dress, enjoy, introduce, teach, blame, pride, help, prepare, remind, express, find, keep to, look at, take care of, be proud of

Patterns that signal a personal pronoun instead

between ___ and, let ___ know (where the people are different), give ___ (where giver and receiver differ), tell ___, show ___

Emphatic clue -- these words hint at emphasis

personally, on one's own, without anyone's help, in person, actually, even

Tip: Try replacing the reflexive pronoun with a personal pronoun (him, her, me, us, them). If the meaning changes -- and you need it to refer back to the subject -- then the reflexive pronoun is correct. If it sounds the same or better with the personal pronoun, you probably do not need the reflexive form.

Practice Tips

The "same person" test: Underline the subject and the pronoun in question. Do they refer to the same person? If yes, use a reflexive pronoun. If they refer to different people, use a personal pronoun (me, him, her, us, them).
The "remove it" test for emphasis: If you think a reflexive pronoun is used for emphasis, try removing it from the sentence. If the sentence still makes sense and is grammatically correct, the reflexive pronoun is emphatic. If removing it breaks the sentence, it is serving a reflexive (object) function.
The "subject swap" test: If you are tempted to write "myself" as a subject, swap it with "I" or "me" and see which sounds correct. "Myself went to the shop" becomes "I went to the shop" -- clearly "I" is correct.
Compound subject check: In sentences with "and", mentally remove the other person. "Ahmad and myself did the project" becomes "Myself did the project" -- obviously wrong. It should be "Ahmad and I did the project."

Quick Reference

Question to Ask	If Yes	If No
Are the subject and object the same person?	Use reflexive (myself, himself, etc.)	Use personal (me, him, etc.)
Is the pronoun the subject of the sentence?	Use personal subject (I, he, she, we, they)	Could be reflexive or personal object
Does it come after "between"?	Use personal object (me, him, her, us, them)	Check same-person rule
Can you remove it and the sentence still works?	It is emphatic (optional but adds emphasis)	It is reflexive (required)
Is the subject compound ("X and I")?	Match reflexive to the full compound (ourselves, themselves)	Match to the individual subject

Reflexive Pronouns (P5) (Primary 5)