Last modified on January 29, 2011, at 17:34

Person (grammar)

In grammar, person is a distinction, typically marked in verbs and pronouns, that identifies the speaker, the person spoken to, or someone or something else. Typically, there are three persons:

  • First person, representing the speaker (I) or a group of persons including the speaker (we);
  • Second person, representing the person or persons spoken to (you); and
  • Third person, representing others (he, she, it, they).

Some languages exhibit finer distinctions. For example, the first person plural may be split into inclusive (we, including you) and exclusive (we, but not you).