Pronouns & Pronominal Suffixes
Independent pronouns table, then the suffixes that turn “house” into “my house / your house”.
Biblical Hebrew pronouns are small but powerful. This article gives the full independent pronoun table, then shows how tiny suffixes can turn "my house," "your house," and "his house" into one-word expressions.
Independent personal pronouns
These stand alone as the subject of a sentence.
| Person | Hebrew | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st sg. | אֲנִי | ʾānî | I |
| 2nd m. sg. | אַתָּה | ʾattāh | you (m.) |
| 2nd f. sg. | אַתְּ | ʾatt | you (f.) |
| 3rd m. sg. | הוּא | hûʾ | he / it |
| 3rd f. sg. | הִיא | hîʾ | she / it |
| 1st pl. | אֲנַחְנוּ | ʾanakhnû | we |
| 2nd m. pl. | אַתֶּם | ʾattem | you (m. / mixed) |
| 2nd f. pl. | אַתֵּן | ʾatten | you (f.) |
| 3rd m. pl. | הֵם | hēm | they (m. / mixed) |
| 3rd f. pl. | הֵן | hēn | they (f.) |
💡 Note: In pointed biblical text, 3rd person plural is sometimes הֵמָּה (hēmmāh) and הֵנָּה (hēnnāh), but הֵם / הֵן are far more common.
Pronominal suffixes on nouns
A suffix attached to a noun means "my / your / his / her / our / their":
| Person | Suffix | בַּיִת + suffix | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| I / me | ־ִי (-î) | בֵּיתִי (bêthî) | my house |
| you (m. sg.) | ־ְךָ (-khā) | בֵּיתְךָ (bêthĕkhā) | your (m.) house |
| you (f. sg.) | ־ֵךְ (-ēkh) | בֵּיתֵךְ (bêthēkh) | your (f.) house |
| him | ־וֹ (-ô) | בֵּיתוֹ (bêthô) | his house |
| her | ־ָהּ (-āh) | בֵּיתָהּ (bêthāh) | her house |
| us | ־ֵנוּ (-ênû) | בֵּיתֵנוּ (bêthênû) | our house |
| you (m. pl.) | ־ְכֶם (-khem) | בֵּיתְכֶם (bêthĕkhem) | your (m.) house |
| you (f. pl.) | ־ְכֶן (-khen) | בֵּיתְכֶן (bêthĕkhen) | your (f.) house |
| them (m.) | ־ָם (-ām) | בֵּיתָם (bêthām) | their (m.) house |
| them (f.) | ־ָן (-ān) | בֵּיתָן (bêthān) | their (f.) house |
Pronominal suffixes on prepositions
The same suffixes attach to prepositions:
| Preposition | + me | + you (m.) | + him | + us |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| בְּ (in) | בִּי (bî) | בְּךָ (bĕkhā) | בּוֹ (bô) | בָּנוּ (bānû) |
| לְ (to) | לִי (lî) | לְךָ (lĕkhā) | לוֹ (lô) | לָנוּ (lānû) |
| מִן (from) | מִמֶּנִּי (mimmennî) | מִמְּךָ (mimmĕkhā) | מִמֶּנּוּ (mimmennû) | מִמֶּנּוּ (mimmennû) |
How suffixes change the noun
The noun often shortens or changes vowel before a suffix:
| Absolute noun | + his suffix | Result |
|---|---|---|
| סוּס (sus, horse) | + וֹ | סוּסוֹ (sûsô) |
| מֶלֶךְ (melekh, king) | + וֹ | מַלְכּוֹ (malkô) |
| דָּבָר (dāvār, word) | + וֹ | דְּבָרוֹ (dĕvārô) |
| יָד (yād, hand) | + וֹ | יָדוֹ (yādô) |
💡 Memory trick: Many short nouns revert to an older, shorter base before a suffix: מֶלֶךְ + וֹ → מַלְכּוֹ.
Suffixes on plural nouns
Plural nouns usually take slightly different suffixes:
| Plural noun | + his suffix | Result | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| סוּסִים (susîm, horses) | + וֹ | סוּסָיו (susāw) | his horses |
| בָּנִים (bānîm, sons) | + וֹ | בָּנָיו (bānāw) | his sons |
| בָּנוֹת (bānôth, daughters) | + וֹ | בְּנֹתָיו (bənothāw) | his daughters |
✅ Key takeaways
- Independent pronouns stand alone as subjects.
- Pronominal suffixes attach to nouns and prepositions to mean my/your/his/etc.
- The most common suffixes are ־ִי (my), ־ְךָ (your m.), ־וֹ (his), ־ָהּ (her), ־ֵנוּ (our), ־ָם (their m.).
- Nouns often shorten or change vowels before suffixes.
- Plural nouns use a longer suffix form: ־ָיו (-āw) for "his."
✏️ Practice
- What is the independent pronoun for "we"?
- Add the suffix "his" to מֶלֶךְ.
- What does בֵּיתִי mean?
- Give the meaning of לוֹ.
- How do plural nouns usually form the suffix for "his"?
Answers
- אֲנַחְנוּ (ʾanakhnû).
- מַלְכּוֹ (malkô).
- "My house."
- "To him / for him."
- With ־ָיו (-āw): סוּסָיו (susāw) = his horses.