Keywords: he, him, Chinese third person pronoun, tā, 他, how to say he in Chinese, 他 vs 她, Chinese pronouns, basic Mandarin words, HSK 1 vocabulary
Summary: “他” (tā) is the fundamental Chinese pronoun for “he” or “him,” used to refer to a male third person. As one of the most common characters in Mandarin, it's essential for beginners. While its written form is specific to males, it shares the exact same pronunciation, “tā,” with the pronouns for “she” (她) and “it” (它), making contextual understanding crucial in spoken Chinese.
Core Meaning
Pinyin (with tone marks): tā
Part of Speech: Pronoun
HSK Level: HSK 1
Concise Definition: The third-person singular pronoun for a male person; “he” or “him”.
In a Nutshell: “他” is your go-to word when talking about a boy or a man. Unlike English, which has different words for the subject (“he”) and object (“him”), Chinese uses “他” for both situations. If you are talking about a guy, and you don't want to keep repeating his name, you use “他”.
Character Breakdown
他 (tā): This character is a combination of two components (radicals):
亻 (rén): This is the “person” radical. Its presence on the left almost always indicates that the character has something to do with people.
也 (yě): This component primarily provides the phonetic sound for the character. It originally meant something else, but here its main job is to give the character its “yě”-like sound, which evolved into “tā”.
Together, the “person” radical (亻) and the phonetic component (也) create a character that means “another person,” which has become the standard pronoun for “he”.
Cultural Context and Significance
Historically, “他” was a gender-neutral pronoun, used to refer to any person, and sometimes even objects, when a third-person reference was needed. It was the default and only written form.
The creation of “她” (tā - she) and “它” (tā - it) is a relatively modern development from the early 20th century. This change was heavily influenced by contact with Western languages like English, which have distinct pronouns for he/she/it. To create “she,” the “woman” radical (女) was added to the phonetic component 也.
This linguistic evolution shows how languages adapt. The fact that all three pronouns retain the identical “tā” pronunciation is a direct legacy of the time when “他” was the universal pronoun for all third-person references. Understanding this helps explain why listening comprehension can be tricky for beginners.
Practical Usage in Modern China
Subject and Object: “他” is used seamlessly as both the subject (the one doing the action) and the object (the one receiving the action).
Subject: 他喜欢咖啡。 (Tā xǐhuan kāfēi.) - He likes coffee.
Object: 我认识他。 (Wǒ rènshi tā.) - I know him.
Formality: “他” is neutral and can be used in all situations, from casual conversation with friends to formal business meetings or academic writing. There is no separate formal version.
Generic Pronoun in Writing: In modern digital communication and informal writing, when the gender of a person is unknown or irrelevant, “他” is often used as the default generic pronoun. This is similar to the traditional use of “he” in older English. In some online communities, you might see “TA” used to be explicitly gender-neutral.
Example Sentences
Example 1:
他是我的哥哥。
Pinyin: Tā shì wǒ de gēge.
English: He is my older brother.
Analysis: A simple, declarative sentence where “他” is the subject. This is one of the first sentences a learner will master.
Example 2:
你看见他了吗？
Pinyin: Nǐ kànjiàn tā le ma?
English: Did you see him?
Analysis: Here, “他” is the object of the verb “看见” (kànjiàn - to see).
Example 3:
这本书是他的。
Pinyin: Zhè běn shū shì tā de.
English: This book is his.
Analysis: The particle “的” (de) after “他” creates the possessive form, just like adding “'s” in English.
Example 4:
他每天早上七点起床。
Pinyin: Tā měitiān zǎoshang qī diǎn qǐchuáng.
English: He gets up at 7 AM every morning.
Analysis: This example shows “他” used to describe a habitual action.
Example 5:
我想请他吃饭。
Pinyin: Wǒ xiǎng qǐng tā chīfàn.
English: I want to invite him to a meal.
Analysis: “他” is the object of the verb “请” (qǐng - to invite).
Example 6:
如果他来了，请告诉我。
Pinyin: Rúguǒ tā lái le, qǐng gàosù wǒ.
English: If he comes, please tell me.
Analysis: Demonstrates the use of “他” in a conditional “if…” clause.
Example 7:
小张很忙，他没有时间。
Pinyin: Xiǎo Zhāng hěn máng, tā méiyǒu shíjiān.
English: Xiao Zhang is very busy; he doesn't have time.
Analysis: This shows how “他” is used to refer back to a person who was just mentioned by name.
Example 8:
我比他高一点儿。
Pinyin: Wǒ bǐ tā gāo yīdiǎnr.
English: I am a little bit taller than him.
Analysis: Used in a comparative structure with “比” (bǐ - than).
Example 9:
他看起来有点累。
Pinyin: Tā kàn qǐlái yǒudiǎn lèi.
English: He looks a little tired.
Analysis: “看起来” (kàn qǐlái) means “looks” or “appears,” and is often used to describe someone's appearance or state.
Example 10:
你为什么不问他？
Pinyin: Nǐ wèishéme bù wèn tā?
English: Why don't you ask him?
Analysis: A common question format where “他” is the object of the verb “问” (wèn - to ask).
Nuances and Common Mistakes
Listening Confusion (The Tā/Tā/Tā Problem): The most significant challenge for beginners is that 他 (he), 她 (she), and 它 (it) are all pronounced tā. In spoken conversation, you must rely on context to know who or what is being discussed. If people are talking about your male friend Wei, and you hear “tā”, it means “he”. If they're talking about your female friend Mei, “tā” means “she”.
Writing Confusion (Mixing up the Radicals): When writing, learners often use the wrong character. Remember the radicals:
他 has the “person” radical (亻) → for a person (male).
她 has the “woman” radical (女) → for a female.
它 has the “roof” radical (宀) → for an object or animal.
False Friend: No “He” vs. “Him”: Do not try to create a separate object form. The word “他” works for both.
Incorrect: ~~我给了 him 一本书。~~ (Mixing English grammar)
Correct: 我给了他一本书。 (Wǒ gěile tā yī běn shū.)
Related Terms and Concepts
她 (tā): The feminine pronoun for “she” and “her”. Has the exact same pronunciation as 他.
它 (tā): The neuter pronoun for “it”. Also pronounced identically to 他.
他们 (tāmen): The plural form, “they/them,” used for a group of all males or a mixed-gender group.
她们 (tāmen): The plural form, “they/them,” used for a group of all females.
它们 (tāmen): The plural form, “they/them,” used for a group of animals or objects.