Grammar Point:
Mandarin Chinese has a relatively small number of pronouns, and unlike many European languages, there is no need to worry about subject-verb agreement.
It
| 牠它 it (for animal) | 牠的它的 its (for animal) | 牠它 it (for animal) |
| 祂祂 it (for God) | 祂的祂的 its (for God) | 祂祂 it (for God) |
| 它們它们 they | 它們的它们的 their | 它們它们 them |
我家有貓有狗，牠們都是我的好朋友我家有猫有狗，它们都是我的好朋友
I have both cats and dogs at home, and they are all my good friends.
祂是神祂是神
He is God. (Note: In Chinese, the pronoun “祂 tā” is used to refer to God instead of the “he” or “she”.)
We
The main difference between 我们 wǒmen and 咱 zán is the level of formality and the sense of inclusiveness.
我们 wǒmen is a pronoun that means “we” or “us” in Mandarin Chinese. It is a more formal and polite way to refer to a group of people that includes both the speaker and the listener, as well as other people.
咱 zán is a colloquial and less formal pronoun that also means “we” or “us” in Chinese. However, it has a more inclusive and informal tone, and it is often used to refer to a group of people that includes the speaker and the listener, but not necessarily others.
| 咱咱 we | 咱的咱的 our | 咱咱 us |
咱一起走吧！咱一起走吧！
Let’s go together!
那東西是咱的吧？那东西是咱的吧？
That thing is ours, right?
Reflexive Pronouns
The reflexive pronoun in Chinese is also very easy – just add
| 我我 I | 我自己我自己 myself |
| 你你 you | 你自己你自己 yourself |
| 他他 he | 他自己他自己 himself |
| 她她 her | 她自己她自己 herself |
| 它它 it | 它自己它自己 itself |
| 我們我们 we | 我們自己我们自己 ourselves |
| 你們你们 you (plural) | 你們自己你们自己 yourselves |
| 他們他们 they | 他們自己他们自己 themselves |
我自己的工作我自己做我自己的工作我自己做
I’ll do my own work by myself.
他們自己在家做飯他们自己在家做饭
They cook at home by themselves.
你自己說的話還記得嗎？你自己说的话还记得吗？
Do you remember what you said yourself.
Others
Everyone: 大家大家
Other people: 別人别人
大家一起唱歌吧！大家一起唱歌吧！
Let’s sing together!
別人想什麼不重要别人想什么不重要
What others think is not important.
你喜歡，別人不一定也喜歡你喜欢，别人不一定也喜欢
You like it, but others may not necessarily like it.
- Pronouns in Chinese 1 (HSK 1)
