Pronouns are words used to replace nouns in a sentence. There are three main types of pronouns in Amharic:

1. መደብ ተውላጠ ስም (Personal Pronouns): እኔ፣ እኔን፣ አንተ፣ ለአንተ፣ የአንች  ወዘተ
2. አመካች ተውላጠ ስም (Demonstrative Pronouns): ይህ፣ ያ፣ ይሄኛው
3. መጠይቅ ተውላጠ ስም (Interrogative Pronouns): ማን፣ ምን፣ የትኛው

Now, let’s first learn the መደብ ተውላጠ ስሞች.

1. መደብ ተውላጠ ስሞች (Personal Pronouns)

Let’s see below some sample words from personal pronouns:

ለእኛ፣ እኔ፣ እኔን፣ አንተ፣ ለአንተ፣ የአንች ፣ እነሱ ራሳቸው ወዘተ

Personal pronouns are also divided into four categories:

So, all subject pronouns are personal pronouns, but not all personal pronouns are subject pronouns because personal pronouns also include object, possessive, and reflexive forms.

Now let’s see types of personal pronouns:

1. ባለቤት ተውላጠ ስሞች (Subject Pronouns): እኔ፣ አንተ፣ አንች These are the action-takers.
2. ተሳቢ ተውላጠ ስሞች (Object Pronouns): እኔን፣ ለእኔ፣ አንተን፣ ለአንተ፣ አንች፣ etc. are the one receive the ctions
3. አገናዛቢ ተውላጠ ስም (Possessive Pronouns): የእኔ፣ ያንተ፣ የእኛ፣ Used to show ownership.
4. ድርብ/አፀፋ ተውላጠ ስም (Reflexive Pronouns): እኔ እራሴ፣ አንተ ራስህ፣ እሱ ራሱ Used to refer back to the subject.

1. Subject Pronouns (ባለቤት ተውላጠ ስሞች)

Subject pronouns are used to indicate who or what is performing the action in a sentence. Here are the subject pronouns in Amharic:

Key Notes on Subject Pronouns:

• The pronoun must agree with the gender (male/female) and number (singular/plural) of the subject.
• Formal pronouns (e.g., እርስዎ) are used to show respect, especially when addressing elders.
• All subject pronouns are personal pronouns, but not all personal pronouns are subject pronouns because personal pronouns also include object, possessive, and reflexive forms.

Take this quiz!

Homework Assignment

1. Write 5 sentences using subject pronouns (እኔ, እሱ, እሷ, እኛ, እነሱ).
2. Translate the following sentences into Amharic:
   • I am a doctor.
   • She is at home.
   • They are teachers.

Lesson Summary፡

In this lesson, we introduced the three main types of Amharic pronouns, with a focus on subject pronouns. Make sure you practiced identifying and using subject pronouns in sentences and completed exercises to reinforce your understanding. In the next lesson, we will explore object pronouns and their usage.