English Language Arts
Grade 7
15 min
Is the pronoun reflexive or intensive?
Is the pronoun reflexive or intensive?
What you'll learn
- Identify reflexive and intensive pronouns in sentences with 80% accuracy.
- Explain the difference between reflexive and intensive pronouns, providing examples of each in their own sentences.
- Apply knowledge of reflexive and intensive pronouns to correctly complete 10 fill-in-the-blank sentences with appropriate pronouns.
- Analyze sentences to determine if a pronoun is used reflexively or intensively, justifying the reasoning behind the choice in at least 3 out of 4 examples.
Tutorial Preview
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Introduction & Learning Objectives
Learning Objectives
Define reflexive and intensive pronouns.
Identify pronouns ending in -self or -selves in sentences.
Distinguish between reflexive and intensive pronouns based on their function in a sentence.
Explain the role of an antecedent in relation to reflexive and intensive pronouns.
Correctly use reflexive and intensive pronouns in their own writing.
Apply the 'removability test' to determine a pronoun's type.
Have you ever heard someone say, 'I taught myself to play guitar!' or 'The president himself visited our school!'? 🤔 What's the deal with those 'self' words?
In this lesson, we'll explore two special types of pronouns: reflexive and intensive. You'll learn how to tell them apart and understand why...
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Key Concepts & Vocabulary
TermDefinitionExample
PronounA word that takes the place of a noun (e.g., he, she, it, they, you).Sarah read a book. -> She read a book.
AntecedentThe noun or pronoun that a pronoun refers back to.When Maria finished her homework, she felt relieved. (Maria is the antecedent for she).
Reflexive PronounA pronoun ending in -self or -selves that refers back to the subject of the sentence and acts as a direct object, indirect object, or object of a preposition. It is essential to the sentence's meaning.The cat licked itself clean.
Intensive PronounA pronoun ending in -self or -selves that refers back to the subject or another noun to add emphasis. It is not essential to the sentence's meaning and can be removed without changing the core message.The author himself signed my book.
S...
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Key Rules & Conventions
The 'Self/Selves' Form Rule
Both reflexive and intensive pronouns always end in -self (for singular: myself, yourself, himself, herself, itself) or -selves (for plural: ourselves, yourselves, themselves).
This rule helps you quickly identify potential reflexive or intensive pronouns. Remember, there are no such words as 'hisself' or 'theirselves'.
The 'Essential Test' Rule
If you can remove the pronoun ending in -self or -selves from the sentence and the sentence still makes complete grammatical sense, it is an intensive pronoun. If removing it makes the sentence grammatically incorrect or changes its core meaning, it is a reflexive pronoun.
This is the most important test to distinguish between the two types. Reflexive pronouns are ne...
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Challenging
Which of the following sentences uses an intensive pronoun to create the strongest sense of personal accomplishment?
A.The team congratulated themselves on the victory.
B.Even though it was difficult, the mayor herself brokered the final agreement.
C.He found himself lost in the woods.
D.We ourselves are not sure what happened.
Challenging
Consider the sentence: 'The system automatically updates itself.' How could you rewrite this sentence to change 'itself' from a reflexive pronoun to an intensive one while keeping the core meaning?
A.The system updates by itself.
B.The system itself updates automatically.
C.The system is updated by itself.
D.The system gives itself an update.
Challenging
In the sentence 'The general told the captain to deliver the message himself,' the pronoun 'himself' could be ambiguous. How does classifying 'himself' as intensive or reflexive clarify the meaning?
A.If reflexive, it means the general told the captain about himself; if intensive, it means the captain should deliver the message.
B.If reflexive, it means the captain should deliver the message to the general; if intensive, it means the general delivered it.
C.If reflexive, its antecedent would be 'general'; if intensive, its antecedent would be 'captain'.
D.It is always intensive in this structure, so there is no ambiguity.
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What grade level is "Is the pronoun reflexive or intensive?"?
Is the pronoun reflexive or intensive? is a Grade 7 English Language Arts lesson on ExcelOS.
What will I learn in Is the pronoun reflexive or intensive??
You'll be able to: Identify reflexive and intensive pronouns in sentences with 80% accuracy; Explain the difference between reflexive and intensive pronouns, providing examples of each in their own sentences; Apply knowledge of reflexive and….
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How many practice questions are included with Is the pronoun reflexive or intensive??
This lesson includes 25 practice questions across multiple difficulty levels, each with instant feedback and explanations.