Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement. A pronoun is the part of speech that substitutes for nouns or noun phrases and designates persons or things asked for: It

Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement

A pronoun is the part of speech that substitutes for nouns or noun phrases and designates persons or things asked for: It can take the place of a subject word (subject

pronoun) I, you, he, she, it, we, they

It can take the place of an object word (object pronoun)

me, you, him, her, it, us, them) It can take the place of a possessive word (possessive

pronoun) my, mine, your, yours, his, hers, its, our, ours, their, theirs)

Pronouns

Pronouns Pro noun – for a noun

NOUN For the Noun (Pronoun) Kathy she . . . her Morgan he . . . him Toni and Nancy they . . . them Either Jane or Jennifer she . . . her Gaza University it . . . its The staff they . . . them Each student he or she … his or her Everyone he or she … his or her Paper it . . . its Papers it . . . its

Know the difference between these singular and plural

pronouns.S i n g u l a r

He, she, it Him, her, it His, hers, its Himself, herself,

itself

P l u r a l They Them Their, theirs Themselves

A pronoun must agree with its antecedent.

The antecedent is the noun [or other pronoun] being replaced or that the pronoun refers to.

Sami purchased an airline ticket, and now he can’t find it. “Sami” is the antecedent for “he.” “airline ticket” is the antecedent for “it.”

Every pronoun must agree with its antecedent in number, gender, and person.

The Rules: Number Number refers to whether a pronoun or noun is singular

or plural. Sami purchased an airline ticket, and now he can’t find

it. Sami is singular; the pronoun he is also singular. Airline ticket is singular; the pronoun it is also

singular. Airline passengers must show their photo-

identification cards to the ticket agent. Airline passengers is plural; the pronoun their is

also plural.

GenderGender refers to whether a pronoun or noun is masculine,

feminine, or neuter. Each passenger is responsible for getting his or her

passport. Each passenger is a singular genderless antecedent,

so the singular pronoun his or her is preferred usage.

The university has changed its recommendations for the new parking lot facility. University is a singular neuter antecedent, so the

singular neuter pronoun its is used.

Will the judges please reveal their scores? Judges is a plural antecedent (both masculine and feminine), so

the plural pronoun their is used. Jane wants to increase her job opportunities by completing her

college education. Jane is a singular feminine antecedent, so the singular

feminine pronoun her is used. Our staff members completed their software training today.

Our staff members is a plural neuter antecedent, so the plural pronoun their is used.

Justin presented proper identification before he was permitted to board the plane. Justin is a singular masculine antecedent, so the singular

masculine pronoun he is used.

Gender

Person Person refers to the point of view from which a sentence

is written: first person (the person writing, I, WE), second person (the person written to, YOU), and third person (the person written about, HE, SHE, IT, THEY)

Incorrect: When a person turns thirty, your perspective on life changes in many ways. (The first half of the sentence is written in third person, while the second half is in second person.)

Correct: When a person turns thirty, his or her perspective on life changes in many ways. (The entire sentence is written in third person.)

Incorrect: I hate to proofread my paper because proofreading is such a boring thing for you to do.

You’ll generally run into problems in two cases:

When the antecedent is an indefinite pronoun

and When the antecedent is a singular noun that

could refer to a man or a woman.

These Indefinite Pronouns are always singular

Another Anybody Anyone Anything

Each Either Everybody Everyone

Everything Neither Much Little

Nobody Nothing No one Nothing

One Other Somebody Something

Someone

Indefinite Pronouns

Someone left his or her lights on. Anyone knows the story of the town? Nobody wants his or her name slandered. Each of the participants wants to be on the team. Neither of the men looks as if he wanted the job.

Both Few Many

Others Several

These Indefinite Pronouns are always Plural

The few who completed their assignments left early.

The police asked both witnesses if they saw the accident.

Several students expressed their interest in attending the course.

These pronouns can be singular or plural, depending on context

All• All of the gas

is gone.• All of the

children are gone.

Any • Any of the jewelry

is yours for the taking.

• Any of my cousins are right for the part.

More• More of the plot is

revealed in act three.

• More of our plans are going towards getting him here.

Most• Most of the cake

was gone when I got home.

• But most of the cookies were still there.

None• None of material

was covered in the test review.

• None of the students were happy about that.

Some• Some of the fault was

the teacher’s for being disorganized.

• Some of the students were so angry they complained to her boss.

Using either … or, neither … nor, and not only … but also.

Of the two antecedents in the sentence, the pronoun must agree with the closer one.

Either Mary or the students will bring their notebooks to the class.

Either the children or Mary will bring her notebooks to the class. Neither the woman nor the men will do their exam on Friday. Neither the men nor the woman will do her exam on Friday. Not only my parents but also my brother fixed his car after the

storm. Not only my brother but also my parents fixed their car after the

storm.

Collective nouns are singular or plural, depending on context

Collective nouns are groups of people: team, jury, class, committee, army, family, etc.

If all members are acting in unison, treat the collective noun as singular and use a singular pronoun.

If, however, all members are acting individually, treat the noun as plural and use a plural pronoun.

The team celebrated its victory.

The team changed into their street clothes and went home happy.

Collective nouns are singular or plural, depending on context

The class is meeting in its scheduled room today. The class must turn in their assignments tomorrow. The union can do only as much as its members allow. The couple are separating on their fifth wedding

anniversary. This is the army, and it is a fine organization.

1. Not only my brothers but also mom loves to drench _________ omelets in ketchup.

A. theirB. herC. his and herD. its

Activity: Choose the correct Answer in the following:

2. Each of those worried students is wondering how to answer effectively on ________ pronoun agreement quiz.

A. theirB. herC. his or herD. them


3. The girls and their professor sweated in the hot classroom. Each one of them wondered why ________ had decided to go to summer school.

A. theyB. herC. his or herD. she


4. Robert and Sue concentrated on the essay topic. ________ discussed different ideas on how to begin writing.

A.HeB. She C. They D.He or she


5. Either of these thick books by respected authors will have the answer to your research question in _______ many pages.

A.hisB.his or herC.itsD.their


6. Sam is starving, and his friends have just ordered their meals. Despite Sam’s hunger, neither of them will pay for ______ share in the meal.

A. theirB. himC. hisD. its


7. Carl refuses to return to the weight room because ______ staff always pokes fun of his skinny arms and legs.

A. theirB. hisC. herD. its


8. The students should memorize a Shakespeare poem for Mr. Adam because the extra credit points will help them improve _________ grades at the end of the semester.

A. they B. his or herC. their D. them


9. A person should be allowed to make up ___________ mind.

A. his or herB. herC. their D. its


10. At the zoo, every lion, tiger, bear, snake, and crocodile roared ________ approval when the mean child slipped and cracked his head on the sidewalk.

A. theirB. its C. his or herD. his


11. Either Sabrina or her friends will ask the professor for a permission to use _________ dictionaries in the exam.

A. herB. theirC. his or herD. them


Documents

Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement. A pronoun is the part of speech that substitutes for nouns or noun phrases and designates persons or things asked for: It