Russian pronouns

Pronouns are words that substitute for nouns. There are summaries and full declensions of the different types of pronouns used in Russian.

Personal pronouns

Singular personal pronouns

Plural personal pronouns

Possessive pronouns

Мой

Твой

Наш

Ваш

Свой

Его, её, их

Demonstrative pronouns

Этот

Тот

Determinative pronouns

Russian uses the following determinative pronouns. Except for сам and весь, they all decline like normal adjectives.

Сам

Весь

Interrogative words and relative pronouns

Russian uses the following interrogative pronouns and adverbs to form questions.

• что = what
• кто = who
• какой = which, what kind of
• сколько = how much, how many
• который = which
• чей = whose
• где = where
• куда = where to
• откуда = where from
• как = how

Что and кто

Какой

Сколько

Который

Чей

Indefinite pronouns

Indefinite pronouns refer to unknown, undetermined, or unspecified things. In Russian, indefinite pronouns fall into three groups:

Pronouns ending in -нибудь and -либо

These pronouns refer to hypothetical things and people – their existence if uncertain and the speaker has no definite object in mind.

Pronouns ending in -нибудь refer to either something unspecified or one of something unspecified. They are often used in questions and with the future tense, subjunctive, and imperative.

• нибудь pronouns: кто-нибудь, что-нибудь, какой-нибудь, чей-нибудь, сколько-нибудь

Pronouns ending in -либо have a very close meaning to those ending in -нибудь. However, -либо an even more general meaning, referring not to just one, but any number of unspecified things.

• либо pronouns: кто-либо, что-либо, какой-либо, чей-либо

Examples

• Кто-нибудь дома? = Is anybody home?
• Хочется жить где-нибудь, где всегда тепло. = I want to live somewhere where it’s always warm.
• Кто-либо смотрел этот фильм? = Has anybody seen this film?
• Есть ли какие-либо новости? = Is there any news?

Pronouns ending in -то and starting with кое-

These pronouns refer to things that exist, but not named. When using -то, the speaker and listener probably are not able to name that thing. When using кое-, the speaker probably can name that thing, but chooses not to share the name with the listener.

• -то pronouns : кто-то, что-то, какой-то, чей-то, сколько-то
• кое- pronouns: кое-кто, кое-что, кое-какой, кое-чей

Examples

• Кто-то идёт. = Somebody is coming. (I know there is somebody, I just don’t know who it is).
• Вам звонила какая-то женщина. = Some lady rang you.
• Мне что-то в глаз попало. = I’ve got something in my eye. (I know there is something, just don’t know what.)
• Мне надо вам кое-что сказать. = I have to tell you something.

The pronouns: некто, нечто, некоторый, несколько, некий

The prefix не- means that something is unknown or unspecified.

• Тебе звонил некто по имени Владимир. = Someone by the name of Vladimir called you.
• Некоторые детали мне непонятны. = Some details are not clear to me.

Negative pronouns

Negative pronouns in Russian come in two groups, beginning with the prefix ни- and не-.

Negative pronouns with prefix ни-: никто, ничто, никакой, ничей

These pronouns refer to unidentified things that do not exist or are not present.

• никто = nobody
• ничто = nothing
• никакой = not any kind of
• ничей  = no one’s

Using these negative pronouns in a sentence requires a double negative by adding the particle, “не.”

For example:

• Никто не знает. = Nobody knows.
• Никто ничего не знает. = No one knows anything.
• Я никакой не специалист. = I'm not any kind of expert.
• Здесь никого нет. = There is nobody here.

Negative pronouns with prefix не-: некого, нечего

These pronouns are used in impersonal constructions with an infinitive verb. Russian sentences containing the некого and нечего do not require double negation.

• Мне нечего делать. = I have nothing to do.
• Мне некого винить, кроме себя самого. = I have only myself to blame.

Reflexive pronouns

Reflexive pronouns refer back to previously mentioned nouns and pronouns. Here we'll look at how the reflexive pronouns себя, свой, сам, and друг друга decline.

Examples:

• Я считаю себя капитаном собственного корабля. = I think of myself as the captain of my own ship.
• Он следит за своим здоровьем. = He is watching over his health.
• Ладно. Попробую сам придумать имя. = Okay, I'll try to think of a name myself.
• Мы отдыхаем друг от друга сейчас. = We're taking a break from each other right now.

Себя

Свой

Сам

Друг друга