Personal pronouns

Jinzhefng taixbengsuu (人稱代名詞; personal pronouns; ref. to Chinese pronouns and 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		恁† lirn you
	你† lie you		n/a n/a n/a
Third person	伊 y (s)he, him, her				𪜶† yn they, them

Goar

goar (我 I; me)

• see also: zuxgvor

Goarn

goarn (阮^† we (exclusive)), gurn

• 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 (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.

Lie

lie (汝 (singular) you)

Lirn

lirn (恁^† (plural) you / (possessive) your)

Thaekhofng peng'iuo, lirn hør!

Friends from outer space, hello!

Lirn-taw ti tøfui?

Where is your home/house?

SK

• Possessives