Need the rule behind this exercise? Read Pronouns. For the bigger picture, explore Russian grammar.
Advanced Pronouns in Context
Practise себя and свой, indefinite and negative pronouns, and the register and context of Russian pronoun suffixes.
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Browse Pronouns practiceQuestion 1
Она взяла с собой ___ паспорт.
English context
Choose the reflexive possessive for “She took her own passport with her.”
Options
- свой
- её
- себя
- своя
Accepted answers and explanation
Accepted answers
- свой
Correct feedback
Correct. «Свой» refers back to the subject «она»: her own passport.
Grammar rule
«Свой» is the reflexive possessive used when the possessor is the sentence subject.
Question 2
Он купил ___ новую книгу.
English context
Choose the reflexive pronoun for “He bought himself a new book.”
Options
- себе
- себя
- свой
- ему
Accepted answers and explanation
Accepted answers
- себе
Correct feedback
Correct. «Купить кому?» takes dative «себе» for the subject himself.
Grammar rule
The reflexive pronoun «себя» has dative form «себе» for an indirect object.
Question 3
Я часто думаю о ___.
English context
Choose the prepositional reflexive form for “I often think about myself.”
Options
- себе
- себя
- собой
- свой
Accepted answers and explanation
Accepted answers
- себе
Correct feedback
Correct. «О» takes prepositional «себе».
Grammar rule
«Себя» has the prepositional form «себе» after «о».
Question 4
Кто-то оставил ___ в коридоре.
English context
Choose the correct form for “Someone left something in the corridor.”
Options
- что-то
- кто-то
- что-нибудь
- ничто
Accepted answers and explanation
Accepted answers
- что-то
Correct feedback
Correct. «Что-то» means some unspecified thing; «кто-то» refers to a person.
Grammar rule
«Что-то» means “something”; «кто-то» means “someone.”
Question 5
Если кто-нибудь позвонит, передайте ___ мой номер.
English context
Assume the caller is male. Choose the dative form for “If anyone calls, give him my number.”
Options
- ему
- его
- им
- ним
Accepted answers and explanation
Accepted answers
- ему
Correct feedback
Correct. The recipient is dative «ему»; «кто-нибудь» can refer to one person here.
Grammar rule
«Кто-нибудь» means any one person in this context; a singular referent takes dative «ему».
Question 6
В комнате никого не было, и я ___ не услышал.
English context
Choose the correct word for “There was nobody in the room, and I heard nothing (no sound).”
Options
- ничего
- никого
- ничто
- кто-нибудь
Accepted answers and explanation
Accepted answers
- ничего
Correct feedback
Correct. With the negated verb «не услышал», «ничего» is the genitive form used for “nothing (no sound)”.
Grammar rule
«Ничего» is the genitive form of «ничто» and is used here with negated «не услышал» to mean “nothing.”
Question 7
Мне нужно поговорить с кем-то из отдела.
English context
Choose the pronoun meaning “someone from the department” in a neutral statement.
Options
- кем-то
- кем-нибудь
- никем
- кто-то
Accepted answers and explanation
Accepted answers
- кем-то
Correct feedback
Correct. «С» requires instrumental, and «кто-то» becomes «кем-то» for a specific unknown person.
Grammar rule
After «с», «кто-то» declines to «кем-то»; -то commonly signals a specific unidentified person.
Question 8
Возьмите любой документ — ___ подойдёт.
English context
Choose the indefinite pronoun for “Take any document; whichever one will do.”
Options
- какой-либо
- какой-то
- какой-нибудь
- никакой
Accepted answers and explanation
Accepted answers
- какой-либо
Correct feedback
Correct. «Какой-либо» is formal/written and means any one without specifying which.
Grammar rule
«-либо» forms indefinite pronouns meaning “any,” especially in formal or written contexts.
Question 9
Какое выражение означает «некоторые люди, которых говорящий имеет в виду»?
English context
Choose the Russian pronoun phrase meaning “some people known to the speaker.”
Options
- кое-кто
- кто-нибудь
- никто
- все
Accepted answers and explanation
Accepted answers
- кое-кто
Correct feedback
Верно. «Кое-кто» означает некоторых людей, которых говорящий имеет в виду.
Grammar rule
The prefix «кое-» marks an indefinite referent known to the speaker but not named.
Question 10
___ видел мои ключи?
English context
Choose the form natural in this everyday question: “Has anyone seen my keys?”
Options
- Кто-нибудь
- Кто-то
- Кое-кто
- Никто
Accepted answers and explanation
Accepted answers
- Кто-нибудь
Correct feedback
Correct. «Кто-нибудь» is natural when asking whether any person has done something.
Grammar rule
In questions and conditions, «кто-нибудь» means “anyone”; «кто-то» usually implies a particular unknown person.