Intensive Pronouns
Learn how words like myself and herself can add emphasis to a noun or pronoun already mentioned, without acting as the object of the sentence.
Adding emphasis, not an object
An intensive pronoun draws attention to a noun already named.
An intensive pronoun emphasises a noun or pronoun that has already been mentioned in the sentence. It highlights that the person or thing did something directly, personally, or without help.
In the sentence The manager herself approved the request., the word herself emphasises the manager. It stresses that the manager, and not someone else, approved the request.
Intensive pronouns use exactly the same words as reflexive pronouns, but they serve a different purpose in the sentence.
Before you begin
Intensive pronouns share their forms with reflexive pronouns.
Reviewing reflexive pronouns first can make the distinction between the two much easier to see, since the words themselves are identical.
The central idea
An intensive pronoun can be removed without breaking the sentence.
Compare a reflexive pronoun, which is the object, with an intensive pronoun, which only adds emphasis.
01
Reflexive
Acts as the object. Removing it changes the meaning or breaks the sentence.
She blamed herself.
02
Intensive
Adds emphasis. Removing it still leaves a complete sentence.
She herself completed the report.
The useful question is: Does the sentence still make complete sense without this word?
She blamed. → incomplete; herself is required
She completed the report. → still complete; herself only added emphasis
If removing the word leaves a full, grammatically complete sentence, the word is functioning as an intensive pronoun.
The intensive pronoun forms
Intensive pronouns use the same forms as reflexive pronouns.
Singular intensive pronouns
myself
yourself
himself
herself
itself
I myself was surprised by the results.
Plural intensive pronouns
ourselves
yourselves
themselves
The children themselves organised the entire event.
Where intensive pronouns appear
An intensive pronoun usually sits right after the noun it emphasises, or at the end of the clause.
Directly after the noun or pronoun
The director himself welcomed the new employees.
Placed right after the director, himself emphasises that the director personally did the welcoming.
At the end of the clause
I fixed the leak myself.
Placed at the end, myself still emphasises the subject, stressing that no one else was involved.
What intensive pronouns emphasise
Intensive pronouns usually stress “personally” or “without help.”
Emphasising that someone acted personally
The CEO herself answered the phone.
This stresses that the CEO, rather than an assistant, took the call.
Emphasising that no one else helped
We repainted the fence ourselves.
This stresses that no one was hired to do the work.
A useful decision guide
Ask whether the word is essential to the sentence’s basic meaning.
01
Is the word the object of the verb?
It is a reflexive pronoun.
02
Could the word be removed and the sentence still make full sense?
It is functioning as an intensive pronoun.
03
Does the word sit right after a noun, or at the end of the clause?
These are the two most common positions for an intensive pronoun.
04
Is one person or more than one being emphasised?
Choose the singular or plural form to match.
Common mistakes
Do not confuse emphasis with a required object.
Treating an intensive pronoun as the object.
Unclear: I saw myself the mistake in the report.
Clearer: I myself saw the mistake in the report.
Placing the intensive pronoun awkwardly can make a sentence read as though it needs a reflexive pronoun instead.
Using an incorrect pronoun form.
Not: He hisself finished the project.
Correct: He himself finished the project.
Hisself is not a standard English form.
Mismatching singular and plural forms.
Not: The team themself won the award.
Correct: The team themselves won the award.
A plural subject needs the plural intensive pronoun form.
Check your understanding
Intensive pronoun or reflexive pronoun?
Choose the correct description for the highlighted pronoun.
The president himself signed the letter.
✅ Exactly! Removing himself still leaves a complete sentence.
❎ Not quite. Check whether the sentence still makes sense without this word.
Try removing the word and see if the sentence is still complete.
He introduced himself to the new employees.
✅ Exactly! Himself is the object of introduced, so removing it would leave the sentence incomplete.
❎ Not quite. Try removing the word and see whether the sentence still makes sense.
We built the shed ourselves.
✅ Exactly! We built the shed is already a complete sentence without ourselves.
❎ Not quite. Check whether the shed is already the object of the sentence.
The cat groomed itself after eating.
✅ Exactly! Itself is the object of groomed, so it cannot be removed.
❎ Not quite. Try removing the word and see whether the sentence still makes sense.
Choose the best explanation
Select the sentence that explains the intensive pronoun correctly.
Why is herself an intensive pronoun in “The director herself approved it”?
✅ Exactly! It is already the object, so herself is only adding emphasis.
❎ Not quite. Check what the object of approved already is.
Why is “He himself finished the project” correct rather than “He hisself finished the project”?
✅ Exactly! Himself is the standard form; hisself is not used in standard English.
❎ Not quite. Think about the correct standard form that matches he.
Which sentence uses an intensive pronoun?
✅ Exactly! I painted the room is already complete, so myself only adds emphasis.
❎ Not quite. Check which sentence is already grammatically complete without the pronoun.
Try it another way
Complete the sentence with the correct intensive pronoun.
Type the pronoun that fits each sentence.
✅ Exactly! Myself emphasises that no one helped.
❎ Not quite. Use the intensive pronoun that matches I.
✅ Exactly! Themselves emphasises that the students organised it without outside help.
❎ Not quite. Use the plural intensive pronoun that matches the students.
✅ Exactly! Herself emphasises that the professor personally graded the exams.
❎ Not quite. Use the singular intensive pronoun that matches the professor.
Edit the sentence
Rewrite each sentence with the correct intensive pronoun.
He hisself finished the project. (correct the pronoun)
✅ Exactly! Himself is the standard intensive pronoun form.
❎ Not quite. Replace hisself with the standard English form.
The team themself won the award. (correct the pronoun)
✅ Exactly! A plural subject needs the plural intensive pronoun form.
❎ Not quite. Change the pronoun to its plural form.
I saw myself the mistake in the report. (move the pronoun to a clearer position)
✅ Exactly! Placing myself right after I makes the emphasis clear.
❎ Not quite. Move the pronoun so it sits directly after the subject or at the end of the sentence.
Quick review
Emphasis, not an object, is the role of an intensive pronoun.
Intensive pronouns — myself, yourself, himself, herself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, themselves — add emphasis to a noun or pronoun already mentioned.
Unlike reflexive pronouns, intensive pronouns are not the object of the sentence and can be removed without breaking its basic meaning.
Intensive pronouns usually appear directly after the noun they emphasise, or at the end of the clause.
They commonly stress that someone acted personally, or that no one else was involved.
The singular and plural forms are identical to reflexive pronouns, so the surrounding sentence decides which role is being used.
Remember
Ask whether the sentence still works without the word.
If removing the pronoun leaves a complete, grammatically sound sentence, it was only adding emphasis. If removing it breaks the sentence, it was acting as the object all along.