What is a pronoun?
A pronoun is a word that takes the place of a noun, such as he, she, it, they, we, you or I. Pronouns help avoid repeating the same nouns.
Instead of saying Maria said Maria would bring Maria's book, we say Maria said she would bring her book. Personal pronouns refer to people or things, and they change form depending on their role: subject pronouns like I and they, object pronouns like me and them, and possessive pronouns like mine and theirs.
Other types include demonstrative pronouns like this and those, interrogative pronouns like who and what, relative pronouns like which and that, reflexive pronouns like myself and themselves, and indefinite pronouns like someone, nothing and everyone.
Singular they
English speakers have used they to refer to one person of unknown gender for centuries, as in Someone left their umbrella. Today, many people also use they as their personal pronoun. Major dictionaries and style guides accept singular they.
Did You Know?
English once had a separate informal pronoun for you, thou, which is still found in old texts like the King James Bible and Shakespeare's plays.