Yo, Tú, Él
Use the right pronoun, drop it when locals do, and speak without hesitating.
The set: yo (I), tú (informal you), él / ella (he / she), usted (formal you), nosotros / nosotras (we) and ellos / ellas (they). Here's what textbooks undersell: Spanish usually drops the pronoun, because the verb ending already says who's acting — hablo español sounds natural where yo hablo español every time sounds like a learner. Keep it in only for emphasis or contrast: yo trabajo, él descansa. And usted is your formal "you" for strangers, elders and professional settings — it takes the same verb form as él/ella: ¿cómo está usted?
Below: the phrases that put each pronoun to work, how tú, vos and usted really divide up Latin America, the habits that give English speakers away — and a way to rehearse it all out loud in a real exchange, no fill-in-the-blanks.
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Regional Spanish
Textbooks teach one word. Locals use several — pick your region's and stay consistent.
| English | Mexico | Argentina |
|---|---|---|
| you (talking to a friend) | tú | vos |
| you are (to a friend) | tú eres | vos sos |
| what's up? / what do you say? | ¿qué onda? | ¿vos qué decís? |
Watch out
The part no drill site can do
Carla
Your grammar teacher for this pack
There's no fill-in-the-blank here. In the Yo, Tú, Él lessons you talk, and Carla makes the pronouns earn their place: greet her as a friend — ¿cómo estás? — then greet her again as if she were your doctor or an elder: ¿cómo está usted?, and feel the register switch. She sets up a contrast and you keep the pronouns in on purpose: yo trabajo, él descansa. Then a group you belong to — nosotras somos compañeras de trabajo — out loud, until dropping yo stops feeling like something is missing.
Blank mid-sentence and nothing bad happens — she waits. That's the practice, without unnecessary judgement.
Finish the 4 lessons and Yo, Tú, Él is yours — earned, not given.
First 10 lessons free · 10-minute spoken lessons · your AI coaching team remembers you
Quick answers
Tú with friends and peers; usted with strangers, elders and in professional settings. But it shifts by country: in Bogotá usted is common even between friends, in Costa Rica it's the default even with your partner, and in Argentina friends never use either — it's vos.
Because the verb ending already carries the subject — hablo can only mean I speak. Adding the pronoun signals emphasis: ¿y tú cómo estás? (and how are you?), or Colombia's indignant yo no fui — I didn't do it.
In Argentina, Uruguay and much of Central America, vos replaces tú, with its own verb forms: vos sos instead of tú eres. In Mexico tú is the standard and vos sounds theatrical — use whichever your target country uses.
Gender. Nosotras and ellas are for all-female groups — nosotras somos amigas, ellas bailan bien. Mixed or all-male groups take nosotros / ellos, even if it's one man among many women.
Yes — ustedes, everywhere. Vosotros belongs to Spain; all of Latin America uses ustedes for any group of people you're addressing, formal or not, and it takes the same verb form as ellos.
