Reciprocal pronoun

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The reciprocal pronouns in English are one another and each other. Together with the reflexive pronounsmyself, yourself, ourselves, yourselves, and others — they are classified as anaphors.

Reciprocity is the broader concept, of which reflexivity is a special case. Reciprocity has A relating to B and B relating in exactly the same way to A. Reflexivity is the concept of A reciprocating with itself.

  • Reciprocal: A↔B = A→B and A←B = A→B and B→A
  • Reflexive: A↔A = A→A and A←A = A→A and A→A = simply A→A

Examples:

  • Reciprocal: They all said "Hello" to one another.
  • Reflexive: All alone, he had no friends but himself.

The classical Greek reciprocal pronoun was allēlōn (ἀλλἠλων).

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