Line英会話クラス

Lesson Plan February 7, 2025

Topic: Reflexive Pronouns

Reflexive pronouns are often used when the object is the same as the subject. For example, in the sentence ‘She saw herself in the mirror’, “she” and “herself” refer to the same person.

Section A: Pronouns

Subject pronoun - Reflexive pronoun

• I - myself

• You - yourself (singular)

• He - himself

• She - herself

• It - itself

• We - ourselves

• You - yourselves (plural)

• They - themselves

Section B: Uses

• As an object

  • Did you enjoy yourself at the party?

  • He accidentally hit himself with a golf club.

• After prepositions

  • Look at that strange man talking to himself.

  • Did you build your website by yourself?

• To emphasize the subject of a sentence

  • I made this dish myself.

  • We will get there ourselves.

• To emphasize a thing or person (especially someone famous)

  • I had lunch with the president himself!

  • The singer herself was at the party.

Section C: Important Points

• Unlike many other languages, we do not use a reflexive pronoun after verbs which describe things people usually do for themselves, such as wash, shave, dress

  • George shaves every morning.

• We only use reflexives with these verbs for emphasis

  • Sam is old enough to dress himself now, don’t help him.

  • Even though George broke his arm, he insists on shaving himself in the morning.

• We use personal pronouns, not reflexives, after prepositions of place

  • Who is that behind yourself you?

Lesson Notes

Words & Phrases

• I might go grab a lap blanket to keep the chill off my legs.

• She said the fish is fresh and the cut is generous.

Appropriate Language

• I might grab a lap blanket to keep my legs warm.(Shorter and smoother)

• I think I’ll get a lap blanket so my legs don’t get cold. (More casual)

• I’ll grab a blanket for my lap to stay warm.” (Even simpler)

• She said the fish is fresh and the portion is big.” (More natural, “portion” sounds better)

• “She said the fish tastes fresh and the serving is generous.” (Smoother and clearer)

• “She said the fish is really fresh, and they give a generous portion.” (More casual)

Reflexive Pronouns

• The cat cleaned itself and then it cleaned the kittens.

• The cat cleaned herself and then she cleaned her kittens.

• Your bedroom didn't clean itself. Your mother cleaned it for you!

• “I fixed the door myself while my family watched me” means you did it alone, without anyone helping you. It emphasizes that you did the action on your own.

• “I fixed the door by myself, there was no one around to help me” also means you did it alone, but it emphasizes the idea of being alone while doing the task, rather than just doing it without help.