Scribd
Upload
53 views

Me or Myself?: Emphatic Pronoun Reflexive Pronoun

The document discusses the proper uses of the pronoun "myself". It can be used as either an emphatic pronoun or reflexive pronoun. As an emphatic pronoun, it is used for emphasis when the subject is performing the action. As a reflexive pronoun, it is used when the subject is performing an action to themselves. It should not be used instead of "me" just because it sounds more formal. The subject of the verb must be doing something to themselves for "myself" to be correctly used.

Uploaded by

butbut
Copyright
© Public Domain
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
53 views

Me or Myself?: Emphatic Pronoun Reflexive Pronoun

The document discusses the proper uses of the pronoun "myself". It can be used as either an emphatic pronoun or reflexive pronoun. As an emphatic pronoun, it is used for emphasis when the subject is performing the action. As a reflexive pronoun, it is used when the subject is performing an action to themselves. It should not be used instead of "me" just because it sounds more formal. The subject of the verb must be doing something to themselves for "myself" to be correctly used.

Uploaded by

butbut
Copyright
© Public Domain
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 3

(1) You can use the word myself when "you" are doing something to "you" (e.g.

, I hate
myself. I asked myself a question.)
(In this role, the word myself is called a reflexive pronoun.)

(2) You can use the word myself for emphasis (e.g., I did it myself.)
(In this role, the word myself is called an emphatic pronoun.)

These are the only times, you can use myself. Do not use myself because you think it sounds
more formal or polite (e.g., Please contact myself if you have any questions. )

Me or Myself?
The word myself is a pronoun. It can be either an emphatic pronoun or reflexive pronoun.
That is easier to understand than you might think. For example:

 I did it myself.

(When myself is used for emphasis, it is known as an emphatic pronoun.)

 I pricked myself with a pin.

(When myself is used to show "you" doing something to "yourself," it is known as a


reflexive pronoun.)
You cannot use myself for any other reason. You cannot use it because it sounds better than
me. You cannot use it when someone other than "you" is doing something to "you." For
example:

 He raised the issue with myself.

Here's the bottom line:

If you're going to use myself, the subject of the verb must be I.

Emphatic and Reflexive Pronouns


Myself, yourself, herself, himself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, and themselves are all
pronouns. They can be either emphatic pronouns or reflexive pronouns.

Emphatic Pronouns
When used for emphasis, they are called emphatic pronouns.

 She will do it herself.

(The waiter won't do it. Her husband won't do it. Her son won't do it. SHE will do it.)
 I heard the lie myself.
 The cat opened the door itself.

(Note: It's not always about people.)


You can test if it's an emphatic pronoun by removing it completely and seeing if you get the
same effect by emphasizing the thing you're trying to emphasize with your voice (shown
below in bold and italics).

 SHE will do it.


 I  heard the lie.
 THE CAT opened the door.

Reflexive Pronouns
In most sentences, somebody does something to someone else. For example:

 I like him.
 He spoke to her.
 She thumped him.
 The dog bit her.

(Note: It's not always about people.)


However, sometimes people do things to themselves, and this is when you can use myself,
yourself, herself, himself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, and themselves as reflexive
pronouns. For example:

 I like myself.
 He spoke to himself.
 She thumped herself.
 The dog bit itself.

Some real examples:

 I often quote myself. It adds spice to my conversation.


 I cannot bring myself to do it.

DON'T USE MYSELF TO BE POLITE

The most common mistake is using a reflexive pronoun when the subject of the verb is not
doing something to itself. For example:

 I did it to myself.
 He did it to myself.
 He did it to himself.
Most often, writers make this mistake because they want to avoid using I and me, either
because they don't know whether to use I or me or they think myself sounds more formal. For
example:

 He insulted the doctor and I. (wrong)


 He insulted the doctor and me. (correct, but sounds wrong to some)
 He insulted the doctor and myself. (wrong, but sounds better to some)

You can only use myself like this:

 I insulted the doctor and myself.

Some more examples:

 Please pass any comments to the director or myself.


 Please pass any comments to the director or me.

Perhaps now you can see why so many people opt for the myself version. The correct version
above feels too uncomfortable for many. This takes the edge off it:

 Please pass any comments to me or the director.

You might also like