Russian Personal and Possessive Pronouns: A Beginner's Guide
Pronouns are the most-used words in any language — I, you, he, she, my, your, mine show up in nearly every sentence. Russian pronouns are mostly small, familiar-sounding words, but they have one feature English doesn't: they change form depending on grammatical case. Get the basics down at A1, build the case forms through A2, and pronouns become reflexive long before you've worked out all of Russian's other endings.
- The seven personal pronouns: я, ты, он, она, мы, вы, они
- Why Russian has two words for "you" (ты vs вы)
- All possessive pronouns: мой, твой, наш, ваш, его, её, их
- How pronouns change in cases (with the most common forms)
- Short reflexive pronoun: себя
Personal Pronouns: The Seven
Russian has seven personal pronouns in the nominative case (subject form):
- я (ya) — I
- ты (ty) — you (singular informal)
- он (on) — he / it (masculine)
- она́ (a-NAH) — she / it (feminine)
- оно́ (a-NOH) — it (neuter)
- мы (my) — we
- вы (vy) — you (plural, or formal singular)
- они́ (a-NEE) — they
Я учу́ ру́сский. — I'm learning Russian. Ты говори́шь по-англи́йски? — Do you speak English? Они́ живу́т в Москве́. — They live in Moscow.
Russian verb endings show the subject (читаю = "I read," читаешь = "you read"), so technically you can drop pronouns. But unlike Spanish where dropping them is the default, in Russian you usually keep them — dropping is reserved for tight, expressive speech or set phrases (Бу́дет! — "It'll be!").
Ты vs Вы: The Most Important Distinction
Russian has two words for "you" — and choosing between them is a CEFR A1 social skill that natives notice immediately.
Ты — informal "you"
Used with:
- Friends, peers, classmates
- Family members (most of them)
- Children
- Anyone who's offered you ты themselves
Вы — formal "you"
Used with:
- Strangers
- Older people
- Teachers, bosses, professionals
- Anyone in a service role (waiters, cashiers, etc.)
- Always when addressing more than one person, regardless of intimacy
Вы говори́те по-ру́сски? — Do you (formal/plural) speak Russian? Ты пойдёшь со мной? — Will you (informal) come with me?
In writing, Вы is sometimes capitalised when addressing a single person formally in letters and emails — a sign of respect. Lowercase вы is used when it's plural.
We have a full guide to formal and informal Russian if you want to dig deeper into when each is appropriate.
Beginners often default to ты with everyone because it sounds easier. But using ты with a stranger or older person can feel rude — even hostile — to a Russian. When in doubt, use вы. You can always switch to ты later when invited.
Personal Pronouns in Cases
Russian has six grammatical cases, and pronouns take different forms in each. Here are the most-used forms — start with accusative, genitive, and dative as they cover most everyday situations.
Accusative (direct object): "me, you, him, her, us, them"
- меня́ — me — Он лю́бит меня́. (He loves me.)
- тебя́ — you (informal) — Я ви́жу тебя́. (I see you.)
- его́ — him / it — Я зна́ю его́. (I know him.)
- её — her / it — Мы лю́бим её. (We love her.)
- нас — us — Они́ ждут нас. (They're waiting for us.)
- вас — you (formal/plural) — Я ви́жу вас. (I see you.)
- их — them — Я зна́ю их. (I know them.)
Genitive (possession, "of"): "of me, of you, of him..."
The genitive forms are identical to the accusative for personal pronouns. So меня́ means both "me" and "of me," depending on context.
- У меня́ есть кни́га. — I have a book. (literally: "By me is a book")
- У него́ нет вре́мени. — He doesn't have time.
Russian doesn't use the verb "to have" the way English does. To say "I have," you use у + genitive of pronoun + есть — literally "by me is." It's an A1 essential structure that uses the genitive form of the pronoun.
Dative (indirect object, "to me, to you..."):
- мне — to me — Дай мне кни́гу. (Give me the book.)
- тебе́ — to you (informal) — Я скажу́ тебе́ пра́вду. (I'll tell you the truth.)
- ему́ — to him / to it — Я звоню́ ему́. (I'm calling him.)
- ей — to her / to it — Я пишу́ ей. (I'm writing to her.)
- нам — to us — Помоги́те нам. (Help us.)
- вам — to you (formal/plural) — Я расска́зываю вам. (I'm telling you.)
- им — to them — Я ве́рю им. (I trust them.)
The dative is also used in many essential A1 phrases about feelings and age:
- Мне нра́вится му́зыка. — I like music. (literally: "To me music is pleasing")
- Мне три́дцать лет. — I'm thirty years old. (literally: "To me thirty years")
- Мне хо́лодно. — I'm cold. (literally: "To me cold")
Instrumental ("by, with"):
- мно́й / мно́ю — by/with me
- тобо́й — by/with you (informal)
- им — by/with him / it
- ей / е́ю — by/with her
- на́ми — by/with us
- ва́ми — by/with you (formal/plural)
- и́ми — by/with them
Prepositional ("about, on, in"):
The prepositional case is used only with prepositions (о, в, на, при). Notice the н- prefix that appears on third-person pronouns when they're after a preposition:
- обо мне́ — about me
- о тебе́ — about you (informal)
- о нём — about him (notice: not о ём)
- о ней — about her
- о нас — about us
- о вас — about you (formal/plural)
- о них — about them
Я ча́сто ду́маю о нём. — I often think about him.
Third-person pronouns (он, она, оно, они) add an н- when they come after a preposition. It happens in genitive/accusative/dative/instrumental too: у него́, к нему́, с ним, о нём — but only after the preposition. Without a preposition, it's его, ему, им. This is a small rule that, once learned, applies everywhere.
Possessive Pronouns: My, Your, His, Her, Our, Their
Russian possessive pronouns have agreement just like adjectives — they change with the gender, number, and case of the noun they describe. We'll keep it to the nominative for now.
My (мой)
- мой (masculine) — мой брат (my brother)
- моя́ (feminine) — моя́ сестра́ (my sister)
- моё (neuter) — моё письмо́ (my letter)
- мои́ (plural) — мои́ друзья́ (my friends)
Your, informal (твой)
- твой (masc), твоя́ (fem), твоё (neut), твои́ (pl)
- твой друг, твоя́ кни́га, твоё имя́, твои́ роди́тели
Our (наш)
- наш (masc), на́ша (fem), на́ше (neut), на́ши (pl)
- наш дом, на́ша шко́ла, на́ше реше́ние, на́ши пла́ны
Your, formal/plural (ваш)
- ваш (masc), ва́ша (fem), ва́ше (neut), ва́ши (pl)
- ваш заказ, ва́ша рабо́та, ва́ше мне́ние, ва́ши де́ти
His (его́), Her (её), Their (их) — These don't change!
A wonderful gift in Russian grammar: его́, её, их do not agree with the noun. They stay the same regardless of gender, number, or case:
- его́ дом, его́ кни́га, его́ письмо́, его́ роди́тели — his house, his book, his letter, his parents
- её брат, её сестра́, её решение, её друзья́ — her brother, her sister, her decision, her friends
- их собака, их маши́на, их де́ти — their dog, their car, their children
Его́, её, их are unchanging across all six cases. While мой, твой, наш, ваш require you to learn dozens of forms, his, her, their are constant. Use this asymmetry to your advantage — third-person possessives are zero-effort.
Reflexive Pronoun: Себя́
Russian has one more pronoun worth knowing early: себя́ — "oneself / myself / yourself / etc.," used when the subject and object of a verb are the same person.
- Я ви́жу себя́ в зе́ркале. — I see myself in the mirror.
- Он гото́вит себе́ за́втрак. — He's making himself breakfast.
- Возьми́ это с собо́й! — Take it with you!
Себя́ has no nominative form — it's never the subject of a sentence — but it works in all the other cases. It's the same word regardless of who the subject is (я, ты, он, мы, вы — all use себя).
This is also where you'll meet the reflexive verb ending -ся — but that's a topic for our Russian verb prefixes guide and your future grammar studies.
Frequently Asked Questions
When should I switch from вы to ты?
When the other person invites you to. The phrase is Дава́й на ты — "Let's switch to ты." Until then, default to вы with anyone older, professional, or unfamiliar. Among Russian friends of similar age, switching to ты often happens within minutes; with colleagues, it might take weeks or never.
Why is он used for inanimate objects too?
Because Russian assigns grammatical gender to every noun. Стол (table) is masculine, so it's он (it/he). Кни́га (book) is feminine, so it's она́ (it/she). English speakers find this unnatural at first, but it's exactly the same logic as French (le livre = il, la table = elle).
Do I need to learn all the case forms at A1?
No. Start with nominative for subjects (я, ты, он...), accusative for direct objects (меня́, тебя́, его́...), and dative for "to me / I like / I'm 30" (мне, тебе́, ему́...). The full table is a B1 skill — by then it'll be reflexive from exposure.
What's the difference between его́ (him/it) and его́ (his)?
They're the same word — Russian uses его́ both as a personal pronoun (genitive/accusative of он) and as the unchanging possessive ("his"). Context tells you which: Я зна́ю его́ (I know him — accusative) vs. Это его́ кни́га (This is his book — possessive).
How does Russian compare to English on pronouns?
Easier: Russian has only one word for "his" (его́), one for "her" (её), and they don't change. Harder: Russian distinguishes ты/вы, has six cases for personal pronouns, and adds the н- prefix after prepositions. Net effect: pronouns are doable at A1, but the case forms take a few months to internalise. Our broader is Russian hard for English speakers guide puts this in context.
The Bottom Line
Master the seven nominative pronouns and the ты/вы distinction in your first week. Add the most-used case forms (меня́, мне, у меня́, мне нра́вится) in your first month. Possessives come fast because его́, её, их don't change at all. By A2, Russian pronouns will feel completely natural — just by talking, not by drilling tables.
The fastest way to master pronouns is to use them — say ты, мне, у меня́, моя́ сестра́ in real conversation, not on flashcards. Book a free trial lesson and start speaking Russian with a native teacher.