What are some example sentences with reflexive pronouns?

Each form matches its subject: I saw myself in the shed window, Laila taught herself to light the smoker, and they blamed themselves for the lost queen. The same eight words also add emphasis (Tomas built the stand himself) or follow a preposition (Priya wrote a note to herself). The compact table on this page lists all eight with one example each.

When do I use myself, yourself, and themselves?

Use them when the object is the same person as the subject, or for emphasis: I stung myself (object), I wired the frames myself (emphasis). Yourself is for one you, yourselves is for two or more, and themselves is for they; there is no theirselves in standard English.

What is the difference between themselves and each other?

Themselves points back at the same group (They blamed themselves), while each other points across (They blamed each other). The first means the group took the blame as a unit; the second means A blamed B and B blamed A. If you can put one another in the gap, you want each other.

Do I always need a reflexive after wash, shave, or hurry?

No: English often drops it (She shaved; We hurried). Add a reflexive when you want the object to be visible (He cut himself) or the independence to be visible (The child dressed herself). Feel, relax, and concentrate do not take a reflexive at all: I feel tired, not I feel myself tired.

What does by myself mean?

It means alone, or without help: I walked up to the hives by myself, and Tomas wired the frames by himself. The twin phrase is on my own; by my own is not used. By myself is not the object of the verb, which is how you know it is the 'alone' reading rather than a true object.

English grammar · Beginner

Reflexive Pronouns Examples: Eight Forms, Grouped by Use

Written by Eleanor Whitfield, Lead English Curriculum Editor · Reviewed September 2026

Reflexive pronouns are myself, yourself, himself, herself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, and themselves. You use them when the object is the same person or thing as the subject (Laila taught herself to light the smoker), and you also use them for emphasis (Tomas built the stand himself). This page is examples-first: sentences for each of the eight forms, grouped by the job the pronoun is doing, with a compact form table. The full reference lives on the reflexive-pronoun page.

Oskar stung himself on a hive frame and then made himself a mug of tea in the shed.

himself as the object of stung, then as the object of made

What it is

Use -self or -selves when the doer and the receiver of the verb are one person. In Oskar stung himself, the bee-keeper and the person stung are the same man; Oskar stung him would be a different man. Match the form to the subject: I → myself, you (one) → yourself, he → himself, she → herself, it → itself, we → ourselves, you (more than one) → yourselves, they → themselves. The same eight words also sit beside a noun for emphasis: Priya herself opened the hive. Read the sentences below for the pattern; keep the table for the forms.

Laila taught herself to light the smoker. (object = subject) Laila lit the smoker herself. (emphasis: she did it, nobody else)

How to spot it

If the object of the verb or preposition is the same person as the subject, you need -self or -selves. If you can take the pronoun out and the sentence still makes sense, it is the emphatic use. If two people act on one another, you need each other, not themselves.

Ewan cut himself on the hive tool. (object = subject: himself)
The queen established herself in the new brood box. (itself would be wrong: the queen is she)
We assembled the stand ourselves. (emphatic: we did it without help)
Help yourselves to the veils on the peg. (plural you takes yourselves)

English uses reflexives less than many other languages. Enjoy, hurry, and shave often take no pronoun at all (She shaved, We hurried). A reflexive is required only when the object slot is filled by the same person, or when you want the emphatic reading.

Reflexive Pronouns Examples Quick Reference

The eight forms, compact

Subject	Reflexive	Example
I	myself	I stung myself on a frame.
you (one person)	yourself	Did you cut yourself on the hive tool?
he	himself	Oskar made himself some tea.
she	herself	Laila taught herself to light the smoker.
it	itself	The swarm settled itself under the eaves.
we	ourselves	We built the stand ourselves.
you (two or more)	yourselves	Help yourselves to the veils.
they	themselves	They blamed themselves for the lost queen.

Common Reflexive Pronouns Examples Examples in English

Twenty-four sentences, six in each group, so you can see each of the eight forms at work:

Same Person as Object

I saw myself in the shed window above the smoker.: speaker and object are the same person
Did you cut yourself on the hive tool, Bridie?: yourself matches singular you
Oskar stung himself on an open frame.: himself matches he
Laila taught herself to light the smoker from a cold start.: herself matches she
The swarm settled itself under the eaves of the shed.: itself matches it, the swarm
The two keepers blamed themselves for missing the queen cells.: themselves matches they

The object is not a second person. Replace the reflexive with him or them and the meaning splits into two people.

After a Preposition

I kept a spare lighter in the pocket next to myself on the bench.: next to myself: same person as I
Talk to yourself as you count the frames; it slows you down.: to yourself: singular you
He poured a mug of tea for himself after the inspection.: for himself after for
Priya wrote a note to herself on the hive lid.: to herself: a reminder for the same person
The colony clustered on itself in the cold snap.: on itself: the colony is it
We saved a jar of last year's honey for ourselves.: for ourselves after for

After by, for, to, and on, the reflexive still has to match the subject. After with, each other is often the right choice when two people are involved.

Emphasis: I Did It, Nobody Else

I wired the new frames myself.: myself is extra: I did the wiring
You can lift that brood box yourself if you bend your knees.: yourself: no help needed
Tomas built the stand himself from spare pallets.: himself emphasises Tomas, not an object
Priya herself opened the hive after the storm.: herself next to the noun Priya
We assembled the roof ourselves before dusk.: ourselves: the group, no extra hands
The keepers themselves fetched the missing queen from the nuc.: themselves next to the keepers

Emphatic reflexives can be removed: Tomas built the stand still makes sense. True objects cannot: Oskar stung is unfinished.

Fixed and Everyday Uses

Help yourself to a veil from the peg.: help yourself: take one, singular you
Help yourselves to the leftover honey cake.: help yourselves: plural you
Make yourself at home in the shed; the kettle is on.: make yourself at home
The hive door closes itself in a gust if you leave the hook off.: closes itself: automatic action
We enjoyed ourselves at the association open day.: enjoyed ourselves: a set verb-plus-reflexive
Don't blame yourself for the lost swarm; the weather turned.: blame yourself: a common spoken pattern

Help yourself, enjoy yourself, and make yourself at home are stored as phrases. Enjoy can also drop the pronoun (We enjoyed the open day).

How to Read the Examples

Three checks cover every sentence on this page: match the form, decide object vs. emphasis, and do not use a reflexive for each other.

Match Person and Number

The reflexive has to agree with the subject. I takes myself, he takes himself, she takes herself, it takes itself, we takes ourselves, they takes themselves. You splits: one person yourself, two or more yourselves. Himself, not hisself; themselves, not theirselves; ourselves, not ourself (unless a very marked royal or editorial we).

Laila taught herself. The keepers blamed themselves. Help yourselves to the veils.

herself with she, themselves with they, yourselves with plural you

The ending follows the subject, not the object you have in mind.

Object Use vs. Emphatic Use

If the verb needs an object and that object is the same person as the subject, the reflexive is required: Oskar stung himself. If the sentence is complete without the pronoun, the reflexive is emphatic: Tomas built the stand himself. Emphatic forms can sit at the end or next to the noun they stress (Priya herself opened the hive).

Oskar stung himself. Tomas built the stand himself.

first himself is the object; second himself is extra emphasis

Can you drop it? Then it is emphasis.

Each Other Is Not Themselves

When two people act on one another, English uses each other (or one another), not a reflexive. Laila and Tomas helped each other with the roof. Laila and Tomas helped themselves would mean each person helped that same person, not the other. The reciprocal-pronouns page is the contrast partner for this split.

The two keepers helped each other with the roof. They helped themselves to cake.

each other = one another; themselves = each on the same person, or the cake phrase

Two people, two directions: each other.

Not Every Verb Wants a Reflexive

Wash, shave, dress, and hurry often stand without one in English: She shaved. We hurried. A reflexive appears when you want to underline the object (He cut himself) or the independence (The child dressed herself). Feel, relax, and concentrate never take a reflexive (*I feel myself tired is wrong; I feel tired is right).

She shaved before the inspection. He cut himself on the hive tool.

shave often has no object; cut needs himself because the object is required

If the verb is complete, skip the reflexive.

Common Mistakes with Reflexive Pronouns Examples

Incorrect: Oskar stung him on an open frame. (Oskar is the person stung)

Correct: Oskar stung himself on an open frame.

Him points at a different man. When the subject and the object are the same person, English requires himself, herself, myself, and the rest. The object pronoun is the wrong tool.

Incorrect: The two keepers helped themselves with the roof.

Correct: The two keepers helped each other with the roof.

Helped themselves would mean each person helped that same person, or the group helped the group as a unit in a different sense. Two people acting across to one another take each other.

Incorrect: Laila taught herself to light the smoker by her own.

Correct: Laila taught herself to light the smoker by herself. / Laila taught herself to light the smoker on her own.

The stored phrases are by herself and on her own. By her own is not English. You also do not need both taught herself and by herself unless you want both meanings at once (she was the learner, and she had no teacher).

Incorrect: Help yourselfs to the leftover honey cake.

Correct: Help yourselves to the leftover honey cake.

The plural of yourself is yourselves, with -ves, like shelves. Yourselfs and theirselves and hisself are all non-standard. Match you (plural) to yourselves.

By Myself and Fixed Expressions

A short extra set that appears constantly in examples and in speech.

By myself, by yourself...

By plus a reflexive means 'alone' or 'without help'. It is not the object of the verb; it is an adverbial.

Tomas wired the frames by himself.: without help
I walked up to the hives by myself before dawn.: alone
Can the two of you lift that box by yourselves?: plural: without extra people

By my own is not the phrase. On my own is a twin of by myself: I walked up on my own.

Help yourself, enjoy yourself, make yourself at home

These are stored as wholes. Help yourself to X means take some. Enjoy yourself means have a good time. Make yourself at home means relax here.

Help yourself to a veil from the peg.: singular invitation to take one
We enjoyed ourselves at the association open day.: had a good time
Make yourselves at home in the shed.: plural you, the same stored phrase

Enjoy the open day (no reflexive) is also correct. Enjoy ourselves adds the idea of our experience as a whole.

Verbs that often take a reflexive

Cut, hurt, sting, teach, blame, introduce, and pride typically need the reflexive when the object is the same person.

She introduced herself to the visiting inspector.: introduce needs an object: herself
He prides himself on a tidy apiary.: pride oneself on: a fixed pair
Don't hurt yourself on the old frames.: hurt plus reflexive as object

Introduce him would be a different man. Introduce with no object is incomplete in this meaning.

Quick Check: Reflexive Pronouns Examples

Add the missing reflexive, or choose reflexive vs. each other.

1. Laila taught ___ to light the smoker. (she)

Answer: herself

object = subject, feminine

2. Did you cut ___ on the hive tool, Bridie? (one person)

Answer: yourself

singular you

3. Help ___ to the veils on the peg. (two visitors)

Answer: yourselves

plural you, -ves

4. The two keepers helped ___ with the roof. (one another)

Answer: each other

reciprocal, not themselves

5. Tomas built the stand ___. (emphasis, no extra hands)

Answer: himself

emphatic reflexive

6. The swarm settled ___ under the eaves. (it)

Answer: itself

itself matches it

Reflexive Pronouns Examples FAQs

What are some example sentences with reflexive pronouns?: Each form matches its subject: I saw myself in the shed window, Laila taught herself to light the smoker, and they blamed themselves for the lost queen. The same eight words also add emphasis (Tomas built the stand himself) or follow a preposition (Priya wrote a note to herself). The compact table on this page lists all eight with one example each.
When do I use myself, yourself, and themselves?: Use them when the object is the same person as the subject, or for emphasis: I stung myself (object), I wired the frames myself (emphasis). Yourself is for one you, yourselves is for two or more, and themselves is for they; there is no theirselves in standard English.
What is the difference between themselves and each other?: Themselves points back at the same group (They blamed themselves), while each other points across (They blamed each other). The first means the group took the blame as a unit; the second means A blamed B and B blamed A. If you can put one another in the gap, you want each other.
Do I always need a reflexive after wash, shave, or hurry?: No: English often drops it (She shaved; We hurried). Add a reflexive when you want the object to be visible (He cut himself) or the independence to be visible (The child dressed herself). Feel, relax, and concentrate do not take a reflexive at all: I feel tired, not I feel myself tired.
What does by myself mean?: It means alone, or without help: I walked up to the hives by myself, and Tomas wired the frames by himself. The twin phrase is on my own; by my own is not used. By myself is not the object of the verb, which is how you know it is the 'alone' reading rather than a true object.