Spanish personal pronouns come in five distinct paradigms, each used for a different grammatical role: subject, direct object, indirect object, object of a preposition, and reflexive. The same English word "me" maps to four different Spanish pronouns depending on what role it plays in the sentence (yo, me, me, mí). This page gives you the master table — every form, every person, both singular and plural — with peninsular vosotros and its companion pronoun os highlighted in their own row so you can see at a glance the part of the system that distinguishes Spain from Latin America.
Use this as a reference page. Each individual column is unpacked in detail on its own dedicated page.
The five paradigms at a glance
| Person | Subject | Direct object | Indirect object | Prepositional | Reflexive |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st sg | yo | me | me | mí | me |
| 2nd sg informal | tú | te | te | ti | te |
| 3rd sg masc | él | lo | le | él | se |
| 3rd sg fem | ella | la | le | ella | se |
| 2nd sg formal | usted | lo / la | le | usted | se |
| 1st pl | nosotros / nosotras | nos | nos | nosotros / nosotras | nos |
| 2nd pl informal (Spain) | vosotros / vosotras | os | os | vosotros / vosotras | os |
| 3rd pl masc | ellos | los | les | ellos | se |
| 3rd pl fem | ellas | las | les | ellas | se |
| 2nd pl formal | ustedes | los / las | les | ustedes | se |
The bolded row is the peninsular hallmark: vosotros / vosotras / os. Latin American Spanish folds this row into the ustedes row and uses ustedes / los-las / les / se for both formal and informal plural address. In Spain, vosotros is the everyday plural and ustedes is reserved for formal or distant address.
Os llamo cuando llegue a casa.
I'll call you (plural) when I get home.
Vosotros os encargáis del postre, ¿vale?
You guys take care of the dessert, OK?
Subject pronouns
Subject pronouns identify who performs the action of the verb. Because Spanish verb endings already encode person and number, these pronouns are normally omitted — Spanish is a pro-drop language. You use the explicit subject pronoun for emphasis, contrast, or disambiguation.
| Singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| yo (I) | nosotros / nosotras (we) |
| tú (you, informal) | vosotros / vosotras (you all, informal — Spain) |
| él / ella (he, she) | ellos / ellas (they) |
| usted (you, formal) | ustedes (you all, formal) |
The feminine forms nosotras and vosotras are used when every member of the group is female. A mixed group defaults to the masculine. Usted and ustedes, despite meaning "you," take third-person verb endings — a grammatical quirk inherited from their origin as vuestra merced (your grace).
Ella es de Sevilla, pero él nació en Bilbao.
She's from Seville, but he was born in Bilbao.
¿Vosotras vais a la fiesta de Marta?
Are you (all, women) going to Marta's party?
Direct object pronouns
Direct object pronouns replace the noun that directly receives the action — the what or whom of the verb. I see Juan → I see him → Lo veo.
| Singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| me (me) | nos (us) |
| te (you, informal) | os (you all, informal — Spain) |
| lo / la (him, her, it) | los / las (them) |
In peninsular Spanish, leísmo de persona is officially accepted by the Real Academia Española: when the direct object is a masculine singular human, speakers in central and northern Spain routinely use le instead of lo (Le vi en el mercado = I saw him at the market). This is normal, prestigious usage in Madrid and surrounding regions, not an error.
Las llaves no las encuentro por ningún lado.
My keys — I can't find them anywhere.
A Pablo le vi ayer en el bar. (peninsular leísmo)
I saw Pablo yesterday at the bar.
Indirect object pronouns
Indirect object pronouns mark the person to whom or for whom the action happens — the recipient or beneficiary.
| Singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| me (to/for me) | nos (to/for us) |
| te (to/for you, informal) | os (to/for you all, informal — Spain) |
| le (to/for him, her, it, you-formal) | les (to/for them, you-formal-plural) |
A famous oddity: when an indirect object pronoun (le, les) is followed by a third-person direct object pronoun (lo, la, los, las), the le/les turns into se. Le lo dije is impossible — you must say Se lo dije.
A mis abuelos les mandamos una postal cada verano.
We send my grandparents a postcard every summer.
Se lo conté todo a Marta.
I told Marta everything.
Prepositional pronouns
After most prepositions (a, de, para, por, sin, en, sobre, entre, etc.), Spanish uses a special set of pronouns called tonic or prepositional pronouns. The first- and second-person singular forms are unique — mí and ti, both monosyllables, the first with a written accent to distinguish it from the possessive mi.
| Singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| mí (me) | nosotros / nosotras (us) |
| ti (you, informal) | vosotros / vosotras (you all, informal — Spain) |
| él / ella / usted | ellos / ellas / ustedes |
With the preposition con, mí and ti fuse into the irregular forms conmigo and contigo, and the reflexive third person uses consigo in the same way (Se llevó las llaves consigo — he took the keys with him). Three further prepositions — entre, según, excepto/salvo/menos/incluso/hasta — take subject-form pronouns instead: entre tú y yo (between you and me), según tú (according to you).
Este regalo es para ti.
This present is for you.
¿Vienes conmigo al cine?
Are you coming to the cinema with me?
Entre tú y yo, no me cae bien.
Between you and me, I don't like him.
Reflexive pronouns
Reflexive pronouns appear when the subject and the object of the verb refer to the same entity — I wash myself, they enjoy themselves. They are also used for reciprocal actions (they hug each other), inherently pronominal verbs (quejarse = to complain), and many idiomatic constructions.
| Singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| me (myself) | nos (ourselves) |
| te (yourself, informal) | os (yourselves, informal — Spain) |
| se (himself / herself / itself / yourself-formal) | se (themselves / yourselves-formal) |
The third-person reflexive se covers an enormous amount of grammatical territory in Spanish — passive se, impersonal se, accidental se, dative se — well beyond simple reflexivity. Each of these has its own dedicated page.
Me ducho antes de desayunar.
I shower before having breakfast.
¿A qué hora os levantáis los fines de semana?
What time do you (guys) get up on weekends?
The peninsular os column
The single most consistent peninsular feature in the pronoun system is the second-person plural informal: where Latin America uses ustedes and its associated third-person pronouns for any plural "you," Spain splits the address into two registers and uses vosotros / vosotras (subject and prepositional) with os in every object slot — direct, indirect, and reflexive.
Chicos, os he traído churros para desayunar.
Guys, I brought you churros for breakfast.
¿Vosotros os acordáis del verano en Cádiz?
Do you guys remember the summer in Cádiz?
If you are learning Spanish for Spain, the os form must become as automatic as nos. It is not optional or formal — it is the everyday choice for talking to two or more friends, family members, classmates, or anyone else you address as tú individually.
Common Mistakes
❌ Yo veo lo.
Incorrect — placing the direct object pronoun after a conjugated verb (English word order).
✅ Lo veo.
I see him.
❌ Le lo dije a Marta.
Incorrect — *le* + *lo* is impossible; *le* turns into *se*.
✅ Se lo dije a Marta.
I told it to Marta.
❌ Este café es para yo.
Incorrect — subject pronouns can't follow prepositions; you need *mí*.
✅ Este café es para mí.
This coffee is for me.
❌ ¿Vosotros vais con mí?
Incorrect — *con* + *mí* fuses into *conmigo*.
✅ ¿Vosotros venís conmigo?
Are you (guys) coming with me?
❌ Chicos, les llamo mañana.
Incorrect for Spain — *vosotros* takes *os*, not *les*.
✅ Chicos, os llamo mañana.
Guys, I'll call you tomorrow.
Key Takeaways
- Spanish has five distinct paradigms of personal pronouns, not one.
- The same English word ("me") can correspond to yo, me, me, or mí depending on grammatical role.
- The peninsular vosotros / os row is what makes Spain's pronoun system different from Latin America's.
- Le
- lo/la/los/las is impossible; le always becomes se in that combination.
- After most prepositions, use the prepositional set (mí, ti, ...), but con fuses into conmigo / contigo.
- Peninsular leísmo de persona allows le for a masculine human direct object — this is standard, RAE-accepted usage in Spain.
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Start learning Spanish→Related Topics
- Pronombres personales sujeto: visión generalA1 — The full set of Spanish subject pronouns (yo, tú, él, ella, usted, nosotros, vosotros, ellos, ellas, ustedes) — what each one means, when to use it, and the peninsular split between vosotros (informal plural) and ustedes (formal plural).
- Vosotros vs ustedes: el sistema españolA1 — In peninsular Spanish, vosotros is the everyday informal plural "you" — alive and used constantly — while ustedes is reserved for genuine formality. Learn when each is required, what verb endings each takes, and why the Latin American merger does not apply in Spain.
- Pronombres de complemento directo: me, te, lo, la, nos, os, los, lasA1 — The direct object pronouns of peninsular Spanish, including the *vosotros* companion *os* and the RAE-accepted *leísmo de persona* for masculine human direct objects.
- Pronombres de complemento indirecto: me, te, le, nos, os, lesA1 — The indirect object pronouns mark the recipient or beneficiary of an action (me, te, le, nos, os, les) — and Spanish uses them in many situations where English doesn't, including the famous gustar-type pattern.
- Pronombres reflexivos: me, te, se, nos, os, seA2 — The reflexive pronouns me, te, se, nos, os, se look simple, but they're doing five very different jobs in Spanish: true reflexive, reciprocal, inherent reflexive, passive se, and impersonal se. Learn the full system before you tackle individual reflexive verbs.
- Pronombres preposicionales: mí, ti, él, ella, síA2 — After most prepositions Spanish uses a special set of pronouns — mí, ti, sí — that look different from both subject and object pronouns, with three quirky prepositions (entre, según, incluso) breaking the pattern by taking subject pronouns instead.