Subject Pronouns
A subject pronoun simply replaces the name of a person or thing to avoid repetition. The English subject pronouns are: I, you, he, she, it, we, and they. We use these words so that we don't keep repeating over and over a person's name when we are speaking about ourselves or other people.
Compare the following two short paragraphs, for example. The first paragraph does not use subject pronouns; the second paragraph does:
Without Subject Pronouns
My best friend John has a sister named Claudia. Claudia is going into college next year and John thinks that Michael (myself) should ask Claudia out on a date. John thinks Michael (myself) have a lot in common and that Michael (myself) should give her a call. But Claudia is too popular and beautiful for me; Michael (myself) am certain that Claudia wouldn't be interested.
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With Subject Pronouns
My best friend John has a sister named Claudia. She is going into college next year and he thinks that I should take Claudia out on a date. He thinks that I have a lot in common with her and that I should give her a call. But she is too popular and beautiful for me; I'm certain that she wouldn't be interested.
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How odd would it sound if we didn't use subject pronouns when we communicate? How incredible odd would it sound if we always spoke about ourselves using our names? We use subject pronouns all of the time; so they are nothing to fear when learning to use them in Spanish. However, there are just a couple of things to be aware of when using the Spanish Subject Pronouns. Let's have a look at them.
Subject Pronouns
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Looking at the above chart, the first thing you might notice is the many ways of saying "you" in Spanish. The above chart mentions three different words to say "you" in Spanish; though, really, there are actually five words if you include vosotros and vosotras (which we will talk about shortly). For now, let's focus on the three "you" words in this chart (tú, usted, and ustedes) as they are used universally in the Spanish-speaking world.
Just like in English, there is a formal and informal way of addressing people in Spanish. In English, we may ask our friends "Hey, what's up?"; a very informal greeting that most of us would never consider using to address a boss, a judge, or any other person that we ordinarily wouldn't speak informally to. Instead, to these people, we would probably use a more formal greeting, such as "Good morning. How are you?" Keep this example in mind as we talk about formality and informality.
Just like in English, there is a formal and informal way of addressing people in Spanish. In English, we may ask our friends "Hey, what's up?"; a very informal greeting that most of us would never consider using to address a boss, a judge, or any other person that we ordinarily wouldn't speak informally to. Instead, to these people, we would probably use a more formal greeting, such as "Good morning. How are you?" Keep this example in mind as we talk about formality and informality.
The first "you" word is tú. Tú is used when speaking to someone informally. Some examples of people that we most likely would speak informally to include our friends, cousins, children, and anyone else that you are on a first-name basis with. You would NEVER use the pronoun tú when speaking to anyone that you would address as "Mr." or "Mrs." For these people, it would be essential to address them using the second "you" word, which is the more formal of the two "you" words, usted (abbreviated as Ud.).
Let's look at the difference in the example below:
informal: ¿Cómo estás tú? - How are you? (speaking to a friend)
formal: ¿Cómo está usted? - How are you? (speaking to someone of higher status)
The third "you" word is ustedes (abbreviated as Uds.). This is the word to use when speaking to two or more people. Notice that it's simply the word usted with an "es" added that the end to make usted plural.
Example: ¿Cómo están ustedes? - How are you all doing?
Now, here's where it can get a little confusing; pay close attention.
Ustedes is used in every Spanish-speaking country to address groups of people (2 or more) both formally and informally EXCEPT for Spain. That means, in Mexico and Columbia, you would use ustedes when speaking to both a group of bosses and/or a group of school children. The word covers it all. In Spain, however, ustedes is used only when speaking to groups of people (2 or more) formally only. Therefore, it is not a word that would be used if you were speaking to a group (2 or more) of family members, friends, or children. Instead, in Spain, you would need to use the words vosotros (if speaking to a group of males) and vosotras (if speaking to a group of females) in informal situations.
Example: ¿Cómo están ustedes? - How are you? (formal situation)
¿Cómo estáis vosotros? - How are you? (informal situation - speaking to a group of males)
¿Cómo estáis vosotras? - How are you? (information situation - speaking to a group of females)
Note: If the group consists of a mixture of males and females and you are in Spain, use vosotros.
Let's look at the difference in the example below:
informal: ¿Cómo estás tú? - How are you? (speaking to a friend)
formal: ¿Cómo está usted? - How are you? (speaking to someone of higher status)
The third "you" word is ustedes (abbreviated as Uds.). This is the word to use when speaking to two or more people. Notice that it's simply the word usted with an "es" added that the end to make usted plural.
Example: ¿Cómo están ustedes? - How are you all doing?
Now, here's where it can get a little confusing; pay close attention.
Ustedes is used in every Spanish-speaking country to address groups of people (2 or more) both formally and informally EXCEPT for Spain. That means, in Mexico and Columbia, you would use ustedes when speaking to both a group of bosses and/or a group of school children. The word covers it all. In Spain, however, ustedes is used only when speaking to groups of people (2 or more) formally only. Therefore, it is not a word that would be used if you were speaking to a group (2 or more) of family members, friends, or children. Instead, in Spain, you would need to use the words vosotros (if speaking to a group of males) and vosotras (if speaking to a group of females) in informal situations.
Example: ¿Cómo están ustedes? - How are you? (formal situation)
¿Cómo estáis vosotros? - How are you? (informal situation - speaking to a group of males)
¿Cómo estáis vosotras? - How are you? (information situation - speaking to a group of females)
Note: If the group consists of a mixture of males and females and you are in Spain, use vosotros.