Pronoun Changes
Learn how personal, possessive and reflexive pronouns shift to match the new point of view in reported speech, and when a pronoun does not need to change at all.
Shifting perspective
A pronoun needs to keep pointing to the right person.
Pronoun changes in reported speech shift personal, possessive and reflexive pronouns so that they still refer to the correct person, once the sentence is spoken from a new point of view.
In “I lost my keys,” he said., I and my both refer to him. In He said he had lost his keys., he and his take over that same job, since the sentence is no longer being spoken in his own voice.
This lesson covers personal, possessive and reflexive pronouns, along with the special case of you, which depends heavily on context.
Before you begin
This is one of ten topics on reported speech.
This lesson focuses on pronoun changes specifically. Reported speech as a whole includes nine other topics, each covered in its own lesson.
If you would like an overview of reported speech in general, begin with the Reported Speech page.
The central idea
The pronoun changes, but the person it refers to does not.
Compare the direct statement with its reported version.
01
Direct
“I lost my keys,” he said.
02
Reported
He said he had lost his keys.
The useful question is: who is I actually referring to?
I and my referred to him in the original sentence. He and his refer to the same person, but from the new point of view of whoever is retelling it.
Personal pronouns shift
Subject and object pronouns both change to match the new point of view.
I → he or she
“I am ready.” → He said he was ready.
We → they
“We are leaving.” → They said they were leaving.
Object pronouns shift in the same way
“Call me later.” → He asked her to call him later.
Possessive pronouns and adjectives shift
Ownership words follow the same shift as personal pronouns.
My → his or her
“This is my bag.” → She said it was her bag.
Our → their
“This is our house.” → They said it was their house.
Reflexive pronouns shift
Words ending in -self or -selves shift along with the subject.
“I did it myself.” → He said he had done it himself.
The reflexive pronoun follows the same subject it refers back to, so it shifts whenever that subject does.
When you depends on context
You can shift into several different pronouns, depending on who is being addressed.
Speaking to the listener directly
“You look tired,” she said to me. → She said I looked tired.
Speaking to a group that includes the reporter
“You should all leave,” she said to us. → She said we should all leave.
Speaking about someone else entirely
“You should call Sam,” she said to him. → She told Sam he should call.
Since you has no fixed identity on its own, the correct shift always depends on who was actually being spoken to.
Pronouns that don’t need to change
If the speaker and the reporter are the same person, some pronouns can stay.
“I am tired,” I said earlier. → I said I was tired.
When someone reports their own earlier words, I can stay I, since the person being referred to has not changed at all.
A useful decision guide
Ask who each pronoun actually refers to.
01
Who is the original speaker?
Their pronouns need to reflect their identity from the new point of view.
02
Who is being addressed as you?
This decides whether you becomes I, we, or someone else’s name or pronoun.
03
Is a possessive or reflexive pronoun present?
These shift along with the personal pronoun they are tied to.
04
Is the person reporting their own earlier words?
If so, some pronouns may stay exactly as they were.
Common mistakes
A pronoun should always point to the correct person after it shifts.
The pronoun is not left unchanged when the perspective shifts.
Not: He said I was tired. (when someone else is retelling his words)
Correct: He said he was tired.
Possessive words shift along with the personal pronoun.
Not: She said it was my bag. (when someone else is retelling her words)
Correct: She said it was her bag.
You is not assumed to mean the same thing every time.
Since you can refer to different people depending on the situation, always check who was actually being addressed before choosing its replacement.
Check your understanding
Which pronoun correctly completes each reported sentence?
Choose the correct answer for each sentence.
“This is my phone,” Tom said. → Tom said it was __________ phone.
✅ Exactly! “My” shifts to “his” to reflect Tom’s identity from this new point of view.
❎ Not quite. Who is retelling this, and who does the phone belong to?
Whose phone is it?
“You should leave now,” she told us. → She said __________ should leave then.
✅ Exactly! Since “us” was being addressed, “you” becomes “we”.
❎ Not quite. Who was originally being spoken to?
Was “us” the group being addressed?
“I fixed it myself,” he said. → He said he had fixed it __________.
✅ Exactly! The reflexive pronoun shifts along with the subject, “he”.
❎ Not quite. The subject of this reported sentence is “he”, not “I”.
What subject does this reflexive pronoun need to match?
Choose the best explanation
Select the sentence that explains the mistake correctly.
Why is “He said I was tired.” wrong, if someone else is retelling his words?
✅ Exactly! “I” only makes sense from the original speaker’s own point of view.
❎ Not quite. Think about who “I” would refer to if left unchanged here.
Why can’t “you” always be shifted the same way in reported speech?
✅ Exactly! Unlike other pronouns, “you” has no single fixed identity, so context always matters.
❎ Not quite. Consider how many different people “you” could refer to.
Quick review
A pronoun keeps referring to the same person, even as its form changes.
Personal pronouns, such as I and we, shift to match the new point of view.
Possessive and reflexive pronouns shift along with the personal pronoun they are tied to.
You depends heavily on context, and can shift into I, we, or another person’s name or pronoun.
When someone reports their own earlier words, some pronouns, such as I, may not need to change at all.
Remember
Ask who each pronoun is actually pointing to.
A pronoun’s job is to refer to a specific person. As long as it keeps doing that job accurately from the new point of view, it has shifted correctly.