Question

Choose the most appropriate option to fill in the blanks with reflexive and emphatic pronouns-
Mr. Kaul had _____ made all the arrangements. Both the ambiance and the food were excellent. We thoroughly enjoyed ______.
a)Himself, ourselves
b)Ourselves, himself
c)Himself, themselves
d)Yourself, ourselves

Answer 1

Hint: The reflexive pronoun acts as a direct object when both the object and the subject of the verb are the same. Emphatic pronouns are used in place of a noun to show emphasis on something.

Complete step-by-step answer:

 Let’s understand more about Reflexive and Emphatic pronouns:
Reflexive Pronouns- They refer to those pronouns that end in ‘self’ or ‘selves’ and act as the direct or indirect object.
Example- You can help yourselves to cake and cookies.
Emphatic Pronouns- They are used to emphasize a given noun or pronoun in a sentence.
Example- The boss himself presented the speech.
Now, let’s look at the given options:
Himself, ourselves- ‘Himself’ is used for emphasizing Mr. Kaul and ‘Ourselves’ acts as the direct object in the sentence. Hence, it is the correct option.
Ourselves, himself- We cannot use ‘ourselves’ to emphasize Mr. Kaul and ‘himself’ cannot act as the direct object for a plural subject. Hence, it is an incorrect option.
Himself, themselves- ‘Himself’ is used for emphasizing Mr. Kaul but ‘themselves’ cannot act as the direct object for the subject ‘we’. Hence, it is an incorrect option.
Yourself, ourselves- We cannot use ‘yourself’ to emphasize Mr. Kaul but ‘ourselves’ acts as the direct object in the sentence. Hence, it is an incorrect option.
The correct answer is Option ‘a’.

Note: Both reflexive and emphatic pronouns include the words ‘self or selves’ but they differ in terms of their use.