Personal pronouns

Personal pronouns (jinzhefng taixbengsuu; 人稱代名詞; ref. to Chinese pronouns and zh:臺灣閩南語常用代名詞)

Personal pronouns

Person	Singular				Plural
First person	我 goar 🔊 I, me				Exclusive		Inclusive
					阮 goarn 🔊/gurn 🔊 we, us		咱 larn 🔊 we, us
Second person	Informal		Formal		您/恁 lirn 🔊 you
	你/妳 lie 🔊 you		n/a n/a n/a
Third person	伊 y 🔊 (s)he, him, her				 yn 🔊 they, them

Goar

Goar 🔊 (goa2; 我; I/me)

• gvor/zuxgvor

Goarn

goarn 🔊/gurn 🔊 (goan2/gun2; thøeaji: 阮; we (exclusive))

Usage Notes

• usually means "we" (not including listener). Can also mean you (singular) in a polite manner. For example, "How are we doing today?" to really mean "How are you doing today?"
• "Lie aix khix tøfui?" (normal)
• A girl asks her boyfriend, "Goarn aix khix tøfui?" (polite). Equivalent to "Lie aix..." but it's more inclusive.
• goarn-taw, goarn-amar
• Gurn is more common in the north
• Goarn is used in the south (Tvafkao and Tailaam)
  • However, in Tailaam, goarn is used for males; gurn is used for females

Larn

Larn 🔊 (lan2; thøeaji: 咱; we (inclusive))

• The inclusive "larn" may be used to express politeness or solidarity, as in the example of a speaker asking a stranger "Where do we live?", but meaning "Where do you live?".
  • Speaker asks stranger, "Larn toax ti tøfui?"
  • Speaker means, "Lie toax ti tøfui?" in a polite manner.

Lirn

Lirn 🔊 (lin2; 恁^†; (plural) you/(possessive) your)

Thaekhofng pengiuo, lirn hør!

Friends from outer space, hello!

Lirn-taw ti tøfui? 🔊

Where is your home/house?