Happy Sunday Japanophiles! Herewith the 54th issue of the Hai Japan Newsletter — your Weekly Dose of Japan!

Today, we’re simply going through some grammar:

Third-Person Pronouns

• The Basics

• 彼 (かれ) and 彼女 (かのじょ)

• こいつ, そいつ and あいつ

• Beyond The Basics

  • Plural Forms of Third-Person Pronouns

  • Third-Person Pronouns and Particles

  • Third-Person Pronouns Can Be Omitted (Especially 彼 and 彼女)

  • Japanese Third-Person Pronouns Are Not Necessary To Avoid Redundancy

The Basics

Third-person pronouns are words like "he," "she," and "they." They refer to someone who is neither "I" nor "you."

彼 (かれ) はベーコンが好き。
Kare wa bēkon ga suki.
He likes bacon.

彼 (かれ) and 彼女 (かのじょ)

彼 (かれ) – kare is a third-person pronoun used for males, like "he" in English.
彼女 (かのじょ) – kanojo is the female version, like "she" in English.

あっちにいるのが、マミさん。彼女はベーコン売り場の担当ね。
Acchi ni iru no ga, Mami-san. Kanojo wa bēkon uriba no tantō ne.
That over there is Mami-san. She is in charge of the bacon section.

However, 彼 and 彼女 can also mean "boyfriend" and "girlfriend." In casual conversation, 彼氏 (かれし – kareshi) is more commonly used for "boyfriend."

ケンイチと、ケンイチの彼と、私の彼女でダブルデートに行こうと思ってるよ。
Ken'ichi to, Ken'ichi no kare to, watashi no kanojo de daburudēto ni ikou to omotteru yo.
I'm thinking about going on a double date with Kenichi, his boyfriend, and my girlfriend.

Japanese often omit third-person pronouns in speech. Instead, it's more common to use a person’s name, role, or title.

こいつ, そいつ and あいつ

Some Japanese third-person pronouns are actually demonstratives, like "this person" or "that person."

• こいつ (koitsu) – "this guy/person"

• そいつ (soitsu) – "that guy/person"

• あいつ (aitsu) – "that guy/person over there"

These words are very casual and can sound either affectionate or rude, depending on the tone and context.

そいつが来なければ、面接うまく行ったのに！
Soitsu ga konakereba, mensetsu umaku itta noni!
If that guy hadn't come, my interview would've gone well!

For polite speech, use こちら (kochira), そちら (sochira), or あちら (achira) instead.

Beyond The Basics

Plural Forms of Third-Person Pronouns

Japanese pronouns do not change for plural forms like English "they." Instead, suffixes like 〜達 (たち – tachi), 〜等 (ら – ra), 〜方 (がた – gata), and 〜供 (ども – domo) are added.

✅ = Commonly used, △ = Rarely used, ✖️ = Not used

Third-Person Pronouns and Particles

Japanese pronouns remain unchanged regardless of their grammatical role. Instead, particles define their function in a sentence.

Example:

彼の猫はとても可愛い。
Kare no neko wa totemo kawaii.
His cat is very cute.

Third-Person Pronouns Can Be Omitted

Japanese often omits pronouns if the meaning is clear from context.

キャメロンもう帰っちゃった？（彼に）聞きたいことがあったんだよね。
Kyameron mou kaetchatta? (Kare ni) kikitai koto ga atta n da yo ne.
Has Cameron already left? I had something I wanted to ask (him).

Since "Cameron" is already mentioned, 彼に (kare ni) can be omitted.

Japanese Third-Person Pronouns Are Not Necessary To Avoid Redundancy

In English, pronouns help avoid repeating names. In Japanese, repeating names is not considered redundant.

キャメロンもう帰っちゃった？ キャメロンに聞きたいことがあったんだよね。
Kyameron mou kaetchatta? Kyameron ni kikitai koto ga atta n da yo ne.
Has Cameron already left? I had something I wanted to ask him about.

Unlike in English, repeating キャメロン (Kyameron) sounds natural in Japanese conversation.

That’s all folks!

Let me know if you enjoyed this simple grammar run-through :)

Have a great Sunday!