Italian Pronouns (I Pronomi)

Pronouns are words that replace nouns so you don’t have to repeat them. “Marco eats the apple” becomes “He eats it”. In Italian, pronouns are a bit more complex than in English, especially because of their position in the sentence.

1. Subject Pronouns (Pronomi Soggetto)

These replace the person doing the action.

Person	Italian	English
1st Sing	Io	I
2nd Sing	Tu	You (informal)
3rd Sing	Lui / Lei	He / She
3rd Sing	Lei (capital L)	You (formal)
1st Plur	Noi	We
2nd Plur	Voi	You all
3rd Plur	Loro	They

Note: In Italian, subject pronouns are usually omitted because the verb ending tells you who the subject is!

• Mangio una mela (I eat an apple) - No need for “Io”.

2. Direct Object Pronouns (Pronomi Diretti)

These answer the question “Who?” or “What?”.

• Mangio la mela. -> Mangio cosa? -> La mela.
• Replacement: * La mangio.* (I eat it)

Person	Pronoun	Example	Meaning
me	mi	Mi vedi?	Do you see me?
you	ti	Ti amo.	I love you.
him / it (masc)	lo	Lo conosco.	I know him/it.
her / it (fem)	la	La vedo.	I see her/it.
You (formal)	La	La ringrazio.	I thank you (sir/madam).
us	ci	Ci senti?	Can you hear us?
you all	vi	Vi aspetto.	I wait for you all.
them (masc)	li	Li mangio.	I eat them.
them (fem)	le	Le compro.	I buy them.

Position: Usually usually go BEFORE the conjugated verb!

• Non lo so. (I don’t know it.)

3. Indirect Object Pronouns (Pronomi Indiretti)

These answer the question “To whom?” or “For whom?”.

• Parlo a Marco. -> Parlo a chi? -> A Marco.
• Replacement: * Gli parlo.* (I speak to him)

Person	Pronoun	Meaning (To…)	Example
to me	mi	to me	Mi piace. (It is pleasing to me)
to you	ti	to you	Ti telefono. (I call [to] you)
to him	gli	to him	Gli scrivo. (I write to him)
to her	le	to her	Le dico. (I say to her)
to You (formal)	Le	to you	Le rispondo. (I answer [to] you)
to us	ci	to us	Ci danno. (They give [to] us)
to you all	vi	to you all	Vi porto. (I bring [to] you all)
to them	gli (or loro)	to them	Gli mando. (I send [to] them)

Key Diff with Direct Pronouns: 3rd person singular and plural use gli/le instead of lo/la/li/le.

4. Reflexive Pronouns (Pronomi Riflessivi)

Used with reflexive verbs where the action reflects back on the subject.

Person	Pronoun	Example
io	mi	Mi lavo. (I wash myself)
tu	ti	Ti svegli. (You wake up)
lui/lei	si	Si veste. (He dresses himself)
noi	ci	Ci alziamo. (We get up)
voi	vi	Vi sedete. (You sit down)
loro	si	Si divertono. (They enjoy themselves)

Direct vs. Indirect: The Grid

It can be confusing! Here’s a quick comparison of the tricky ones (3rd person):

	Direct (Who/What?)	Indirect (To whom?)
Him	Lo (Lo vedo)	Gli (Gli parlo)
Her	La (La vedo)	Le (Le parlo)
Them (m)	Li (Li vedo)	Gli (Gli parlo)
Them (f)	Le (Le vedo)	Gli (Gli parlo)

Common Mistakes to Avoid

❌ Putting the pronoun after the verb

• Wrong: Vedo lo.
• Right: * Lo vedo.*
• Exception: With infinitives! (Voglio vederlo = I want to see him)

❌ Confusing Lo/La with Gli/Le

• Wrong: * Lo telefono.* (Telephone TO him)
• Right: * Gli telefono.*
• Tip: Ask “Is it ‘Telephone him’ or ‘Telephone TO him’?” In Italian, usually telefonare a…

❌ Using “Loro” before the verb

• Loro is unique. As a direct subject it’s omitted. As an indirect object, traditionally loro goes AFTER (Parlo loro), but in modern spoken Italian, everyone uses gli before (* Gli parlo*).

Practice Exercises

Fill in the correct pronoun!

Direct Pronouns (lo, la, li, le):

1. Mangi la mela? Sì, _______ mangio.
2. Conosci Marco? Sì, _______ conosco.
3. Compri i libri? Sì, _______ compro.
4. Vedi le ragazze? Sì, _______ vedo.

Indirect Pronouns (gli, le): 5. Parli a Maria? Sì, _______ parlo. 6. Scrivi a Paolo? Sì, _______ scrivo. 7. Telefoni ai tuoi genitori? Sì, _______ telefono. (Use gli)

Reflexive: 8. (Io) _______ sveglio alle 8. 9. (Lui) _______ lava le mani. 10. (Noi) _______ divertiamo molto.

Answers

1. la (feminine singular)
2. lo (masculine singular)
3. li (masculine plural)
4. le (feminine plural)
5. le (to her)
6. gli (to him)
7. gli (to them)
8. mi
9. si
10. ci

Great job! Pronouns are tricky, but they make you sound much more fluent! 🗣️