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### Literary Subject Pronouns for People

In modern, everyday Italian, you use *lui* (he) and *lei* (she) as subject pronouns. However, when reading classic literature, epic poetry, or highly formal texts, you will encounter the traditional literary pronouns: **egli** (he) and **ella** (she).

These specific forms are used exclusively to refer to people.

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### Pronouns for Objects and Concepts

While *egli* and *ella* are reserved for people, inanimate objects, abstract concepts, and animals traditionally take **esso** (masculine "it") and **essa** (feminine "it"). 

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### The Literary "They"

Instead of the modern *loro* (they), formal and literary texts use **essi** for masculine or mixed groups, and **esse** for entirely feminine groups. 

Unlike the singular forms, *essi* and *esse* are versatile: they can refer to people, animals, or things.

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### Summary Table

Here is a quick reference guide comparing modern spoken pronouns with their literary counterparts:

| Modern | Literary | Usage |
|---|---|---|
| lui | egli | he (people) |
| lei | ella | she (people) |
| lui | esso | it (masculine things/animals) |
| lei | essa | it (feminine things/animals) |
| loro | essi | they (masculine/mixed) |
| loro | esse | they (feminine) |

Literary subject pronouns (egli, ella, essi)

adjective

adjective/adverb

adverb

conjunction

determiner

interjection

noun

numeral

preposition

pronoun

proper noun

sentence

verb

Subject pronouns and the verb to be (io sono)

Singular definite articles (il, la)

Singular demonstratives (questo, questa)

Basic verbal negation (non)

Yes/No questions

Coordinating conjunctions (e, ma, o)

Regular plurals and definite articles (-i, -e, i, le)

Plural verb to be (noi siamo, voi siete)

Plural demonstratives (questi, queste)

Nouns ending in -e

Special singular articles (lo, l')

The plural article (gli)

Special indefinite articles (uno, un')

Demonstrative adjectives (quello, quella)

Adjective endings (-o, -a, -i, -e)

Expressing quantity (molto, poco, tanto)

The verb to have (ho, hai, ha...)

There is / there are (c'è, ci sono)

The preposition of (di)

Singular possessives (il mio, la mia)

Numbers 1 to 10 (uno, due, tre...)

Numbers 11 to 20 (undici, dodici...)

Numbers 21 to 100 (trenta, quaranta...)

Idiomatic avere (avere fame, avere anni)

Plural possessive adjectives (i miei, le mie)

Possessives with family members (mio padre)

Formal address (dare del Lei)

Present tense of -are verbs (-o, -i, -a)

Question words (chi, cosa, dove)

Present tense of -ere verbs (-o, -i, -e)

Question words (quando, come, perché)

Question word agreement (quanto, quanta, quanti, quante)

Regular -ire verbs

Verbs with -isc- (capisco, capisci, capisce)

Pronouns after prepositions (me, te, lui)

The verb fare (faccio, fai, fa)

The verb andare (vado, vai, va)

The verb stare (sto, stai, sta)

The verb venire (vengo, vieni, viene)

The verb uscire (esco, esci, esce)

Location and destination (a, in)

Origin and movement (da)

Articulated prepositions with a (al, alla)

Articulated prepositions with in (nel, nella)

Articulated prepositions with di and da (del, dal)

Simple prepositions (con, per, su, tra)

Articulated prepositions with su (sul, sulla)

Months of the year

Telling time (sono le...)

Dates (il + number)

Ordinal numbers 1st to 10th (primo, secondo, terzo...)

The verb to want (volere)

The verb can (potere)

The verb must (dovere)

The verb to know (sapere)

Reflexive verbs (mi lavo, ti lavi)

Indirect object pronouns (gli, le, ci...)

Expressing preferences (mi piace)

Plural preferences (mi piacciono)

Comparatives (più... di, meno... di)

The passato prossimo with avere (ho parlato)

Irregular past participles (fatto, letto, preso)

The passato prossimo with essere (sono andato)

Reflexive verbs in the past (mi sono svegliato)

Time adverbs with the past tense (già, mai, ancora)

Third-person direct object pronouns (lo, la, li, le)

First and second-person direct object pronouns (mi, ti, ci, vi)

The four seasons

Prepositions of place (vicino a, davanti a)

Conversational words (beh, allora, davvero)

Indefinite adjectives for some (qualche, alcuni)

Indefinite adjectives for every and all (ogni, tutti)

Indefinite pronouns (qualcosa, qualcuno)

Noun suffixes (-ino, -one)

Adverbs of manner (-mente)

Comparisons of equality (così... come)

The relative superlative (il più)

The absolute superlative (-issimo)

Irregular comparatives (migliore, peggiore)

Present progressive (stare + -ando, -endo)

Imminent actions (stare per)

The locative pronoun (ci)

The partitive pronoun (ne)

Pronoun placement with modal verbs

Impersonal subjects (si)

Prepositions of time (da, per, tra, fra)

Past participle agreement with pronouns

Question	Answer
he (literary)	egli
I wanted to know if he is the author.	Volevo sapere se egli è l'autore.
immortal	immortale
He is an immortal hero.	Egli è un eroe immortale.
she (literary)	ella
maiden / young girl	la fanciulla
She is the maiden of the poem.	Ella è la fanciulla del poema.
We must save her before she leaves.	Dobbiamo salvarla prima che ella parta.
it / he (literary)	esso
rhyme	la rima
The book is ancient; it contains a perfect rhyme.	Il libro è antico; esso contiene una rima perfetta.
I wanted to read it until tonight, because it is wonderful.	Volevo leggerlo fino a stanotte, perché esso è stupendo.
it / she (literary)	essa
exile	l'esilio
The legend is famous; it narrates of a long exile.	La leggenda è famosa; essa narra di un lungo esilio.
It is a story of courage, from the beginning until the end.	Essa è una storia di coraggio, dall'inizio fino alla fine.
they (masculine, literary)	essi
They lived many years in exile.	Essi hanno vissuto molti anni in esilio.
They became immortal because of these rhymes.	Essi sono diventati immortali per queste rime.
they (feminine, literary)	esse
The maidens sing; they are happy.	Le fanciulle cantano; esse sono felici.
I wanted to ask if they write poems.	Volevo chiedere se esse scrivono poesie.