Reflexive Pronouns: Yourselves, Themselves, and Intensive Uses: correct answers
Jump to answers ↓What reflexive pronouns do
A reflexive pronoun points the action of a verb back at the subject: the person doing the action and the person receiving it are the same. With plural subjects, you'll use yourselves (for "you" addressing more than one person) and themselves (for "they" or any third-person plural noun).
The core rule is simple: use a reflexive pronoun when the subject and the object refer to the same people.
✅ The children dressed themselves without any help. ❌ The children dressed them without any help.
In the wrong version, "them" sounds like the children dressed some other people. "Themselves" makes it clear: they did it to their own bodies.
✅ You'll have to teach yourselves; there's no instructor this week. ❌ You'll have to teach you; there's no instructor this week.
Again, "yourselves" closes the loop: the group both teaches and learns.
When to use them: And when not to
Reflexive pronouns are required after verbs where the subject acts on itself: cut themselves, introduce yourselves, blame themselves, hurt yourselves. Drop the reflexive pronoun and the sentence either changes meaning or stops making sense.
They are not needed with verbs that are naturally self-directed in English. Unlike many other languages, English does not say they washed themselves or they sat themselves down in everyday speech: just they washed and they sat down. Adding a reflexive pronoun here sounds heavy or old-fashioned unless you want special emphasis.
✅ The guests helped themselves to the buffet. ✅ The players warmed up before the match. (no reflexive needed) ❌ The players warmed up themselves before the match. (sounds unnatural)
Intensive (emphatic) uses
Here's where learners get surprised: themselves and yourselves can also work as intensifiers, adding emphasis rather than reflecting the action. In this use, the pronoun usually sits right after the noun it stresses, or at the end of the clause, and you could remove it without breaking the grammar.
✅ The managers themselves admitted the policy was unfair.
This doesn't mean the managers did something to their own bodies. It means even the managers (the very people you wouldn't expect) admitted it. The pronoun intensifies.
✅ You can ask the neighbors, or you could fix the fence yourselves.
Here "yourselves" stresses that you would do it personally, with no outside help. It's still grammatically optional (you could fix the fence is a complete sentence) but the emphasis changes the message.
A quick test: if you can replace the pronoun with the word "personally" or "even," it's intensive, not reflexive.
Common mistakes to watch for
1. Mixing up "themselves" with the non-standard form "theirselves." You may hear theirselves in informal speech, but it is not accepted in standard written English.
✅ They organized the event themselves. ❌ They organized the event theirselves.
2. Using "yourselves" when speaking to one person. "Yourselves" is plural. For a single person, the correct form is yourself.
✅ (to one friend) Make yourself comfortable. ❌ (to one friend) Make yourselves comfortable.
3. Dropping the reflexive where meaning depends on it. Some verbs genuinely need the reflexive pronoun or the sentence changes meaning entirely. Compare:
✅ They found themselves lost in the old town. (they realized they were lost) ❌ They found lost in the old town. (incomplete: found what?)
4. Forcing a reflexive pronoun after prepositions when a regular pronoun is correct. After prepositions that don't loop back to the subject, use an ordinary pronoun:
✅ The teacher stood behind them. (the teacher ≠ them) ❌ The teacher stood behind themselves. (wrong: different people)
Keep the test in mind: same person doing and receiving → reflexive; different people → regular pronoun. That single check will prevent most errors with yourselves and themselves, whether you're using them reflexively or for emphasis.
Correct answers
Question 1
Choose the correct word to complete the wildlife documentary narration.
The two acrobatic squirrels built a tiny catapult to launch ____ directly into the "squirrel-proof" bird feeder.
The correct answer is themselves.
We use the reflexive pronoun themselves because the subject ("The two acrobatic squirrels") is performing the action upon that exact same group. "Theirselves" is not a grammatically correct word in standard English.
Question 2
Select the grammatically correct word to finish the homeowner's proud (but misplaced) boast.
"I didn't need to hire a professional plumber! I fixed the leaking sink ____," Arthur proclaimed, right before the pipe burst and flooded his kitchen.
The correct answer is myself.
In this sentence, myself acts as an intensive (or emphatic) pronoun. It isn't strictly necessary for the sentence to make sense, but it is used to emphasize that the subject ("I") performed the action entirely alone, without any outside help.
Question 3
The head chef proudly came to our table and declared that he had caught the lobster himself.
We use the emphatic reflexive pronoun himself here to stress that the chef did it personally, without anyone else's help. (Note: "hisself" is grammatically incorrect!)
Unfortunately, while trying to show off his culinary skills, he then proceeded to accidentally burn himself with the flambé torch.
We use the reflexive pronoun himself because the subject (he) and the object of the verb (burn) are the same person.
Question 4
Complete the cooking instructor's frantic warning.
"Alright, class! Since there are twenty of you and only one of me, you will have to divide the remaining ingredients among ____," Chef Gordon yelled over the sound of burning butter.
The correct answer is yourselves.
When the subject and object of a sentence are the same, we use a reflexive pronoun. Because the chef is addressing a group of twenty people, the plural form yourselves is required instead of the singular yourself.
Question 5
"Welcome, team! You will have to solve these puzzles all by yourselves, as I won't be giving any hints over the radio."
Because the host is addressing a "team" (multiple people), the plural reflexive pronoun yourselves is required. "By yourselves" means "alone" or "without help."
"Oh, and if anyone gets scared and wants to leave early, just know that the exit door will lock itself automatically."
"The exit door" is an inanimate object (singular), so we use the pronoun itself.
Question 6
Complete the customer service complaint about a rebellious smart home device. Choose the correct word for each gap.
The new robot vacuum somehow managed to trap itself in the bathroom by closing the door.
My husband and I found ourselves apologizing to the family cat for the machine's aggressive behavior.
"If you want the floors clean," I angrily told the robot, "you'll have to do it yourself!"
The new robot vacuum somehow managed to trap itself in the bathroom by closing the door.
"Itself" is used because the subject is an inanimate object (the vacuum).
My husband and I found ourselves apologizing to the family cat for the machine's aggressive behavior.
"Ourselves" matches the plural first-person subject "My husband and I" (we).
"If you want the floors clean," I angrily told the robot, "you'll have to do it yourself!"
"Yourself" is used here because the speaker is directly addressing a singular entity ("you," the robot).
Question 7
"I can't believe the instructions say we should build this massive wardrobe ourselves."
The subject is "we," so the correct plural reflexive pronoun is ourselves. "Ourself" is not a standard word!
"Even the professional movers looked like they were going to hurt themselves carrying it up the stairs."
The subject is "they" (the movers), so the correct plural reflexive pronoun is themselves. "Theirselves" is a common mistake, but it is grammatically incorrect.
Question 8
Help the food critic complete their review of Chef Leo's disastrous new restaurant. Choose the correct pronoun to finish each sentence.
Chef Leo accidentally burned himself while trying to flambé a dessert at our table.
The waitstaff were so embarrassed by the shouting that they hid themselves in the kitchen pantry.
Eventually, I had to pour the expensive wine myself because no one else was around to serve us!
Chef Leo accidentally burned himself while trying to flambé a dessert at our table.
"Himself" matches the singular male subject "Chef Leo."
The waitstaff were so embarrassed by the shouting that they hid themselves in the kitchen pantry.
"Themselves" reflects the plural subject "they" (referring to the waitstaff).
Eventually, I had to pour the expensive wine myself because no one else was around to serve us!
"Myself" emphasizes that the speaker ("I") performed the action without any help.
Question 9
The correct answers are: The suspect locked himself inside the bank vault by accident. The mayor herself provided an ironclad alibi for the prime suspect. The criminal mastermind planned the entire operation by himself.
...locked himself... correctly uses a reflexive pronoun because the subject ("The suspect") and the object are the same.
The mayor herself... correctly uses an intensive pronoun to emphasize that it was the mayor, surprisingly, who provided the alibi.
...by himself. correctly uses the phrase meaning "alone."
Incorrect options:
"The fleeing thief took the stolen diamonds with himself" is incorrect. For prepositions indicating spatial relationships (like with, beside, behind), we use personal object pronouns, not reflexive ones. It should be with him.
"...hid ourself..." is incorrect. "Witnesses" is plural third-person, so the correct reflexive pronoun is themselves. Furthermore, "ourself" is not a standard word; the first-person plural is "ourselves."
Question 10
The correct answers are: "Crew, you must prepare yourselves for hyper-sleep," the captain announced. The ship's artificial intelligence finally taught itself how to tell knock-knock jokes. The engineers prided themselves on fixing the warp drive with nothing but duct tape.
...prepare yourselves... is correct. Because "Crew" refers to multiple people, the plural form "yourselves" is used instead of the singular "yourself."
...taught itself... is correct. The singular, non-human subject ("artificial intelligence") matches with "itself."
...prided themselves... is correct. The plural subject ("engineers") matches with "themselves."
Incorrect options:
"...disguised theirselves..." is incorrect. "Theirselves" is not a real word; the correct plural reflexive pronoun is themselves.
"...protect ourself..." is incorrect. "We" is plural, so the reflexive pronoun must also be plural: ourselves.
Question 11
The correct answers are: I accidentally burned myself on the hot oven rack. The head chef himself told me my soufflé was a masterpiece! I managed to clean the entire kitchen disaster zone by myself.
I accidentally burned myself... is correct because the subject ("I") and the object receiving the action are the same person.
The head chef himself... is correct. Here, "himself" is used as an intensive pronoun to add emphasis.
...by myself. is correct. The phrase "by" + reflexive pronoun means "alone" or "without help."
Incorrect options:
"Please send your recipe feedback to the kitchen manager or myself" is incorrect. You should use the object pronoun me here. (Tip: Take out "the kitchen manager" and see how "send feedback to myself" sounds!)
"My sous-chef and myself will be preparing..." is incorrect. You need the subject pronoun I as part of the compound subject ("My sous-chef and I").
Question 12
Finish the park ranger's amusing log entry about some overly confident tourists. Match each blank with the appropriate word.
The tourists insisted on building the massive eight-person tent by themselves, refusing any of my offers to help.
Sarah, the group leader, proudly declared she had chopped all the firewood herself.
"Did you guys pack the snacks yourselves, or did you forget those too?" I asked them with a smile.
The tourists insisted on building the massive eight-person tent by themselves, refusing any of my offers to help.
"By themselves" is a common phrase meaning "alone" or "without help," reflecting the plural subject "tourists" (they).
Sarah, the group leader, proudly declared she had chopped all the firewood herself.
"Herself" is used as an intensive pronoun to emphasize that Sarah (she) did the chopping personally.
"Did you guys pack the snacks yourselves, or did you forget those too?" I asked them with a smile.
"Yourselves" is the plural reflexive pronoun matching the plural subject "you guys."