Agreement, case, and reference

What is a pronoun? A pronoun can replace a noun or another pronoun. We use pronouns to make our sentences less cumbersome and less repetitive.

Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement An antecedent is the word the pronoun replaces. Pronouns must agree with their antecedents in person, number, and gender. The most common pronoun errors occur when pronouns and antecedents do not agree in number. If you have a singular antecedent, you need a singular pronoun. If you have a plural antecedent, you need a plural pronoun. Make sure that you accurately identify your antecedent.

Two antecedents joined by and are plural and take a plural pronoun. My brother-in-law and I cannot resolve our argument. The instructor and his assistants have offered their help. Note: when the antecedents are not joined by and but by as well as or in addition to, the pronoun must agree with the main antecedent: The instructor, as well as his assistants, has offered his help.

If an antecedent is modified by each or every, it is singular. Each of the designated storm shelters in the region has its own emergency kit. Every student who receives financial aid must complete his or her own form.

Indefinite pronouns ending in -body, -one, or -thing are singular and take a singular pronoun. These words are tricky because they imply more than one (for example, everyone), but the actual meaning is one at a time (for example, every single one). NO: Everyone finished their test before the time limit was up. YES: Everyone finished his or her test before the time limit was up. NO: If anyone wants me, give them my phone number. YES: If anyone wants me, give him or her my phone number.

The SAMMAN pronouns (some, any, more, most, all, none) can be singular or plural. To decide if a SAMMAN pronoun is singular or plural, look at the word it refers to. When the pronoun refers to something that can be counted, use a plural pronoun to refer to it. When the pronoun refers to something that cannot be counted, use a singular pronoun. Most of the sugar had spilled, so I wiped it off the counter with a damp cloth. (sugar cannot be counted) All of the sacks of grain had fallen from the back of the truck, and they were scattered all over the road. (sacks can be counted)

When the antecedents are connected by or or nor, the pronoun agrees with the antecedent nearer it. Tenants or owners must present their grievances. When one subject is plural and the other singular, place the plural subject second to avoid awkwardness: Awkward: Neither the tenants nor the owner has completed her complaint. Better: Neither the owner nor the tenants have completed their complaint.

Collective nouns (team, class, crowd, audience, committee, jury) usually take a singular pronoun unless the members of the group are acting as individuals: The audience showed its enthusiasm by cheering loudly. After a long day of deliberation, the jury left for their homes.

Do not shift "person" ("point of view") of a pronoun in the middle of a sentence. First person: I, we, me, us, my/mine, our/ours Second person: you, your, yours Third person: he, she, it they, him, her, it, them, his, her, hers, its, their, theirs Wrong: Students should make sure to register early to make sure you get the best classes. Revised: Students should make sure to register early to make sure they get the best classes.

Pronoun Case Pronoun case refers to what type of pronoun to use: subjective, objective, or possessive. A pronoun's case indicates its function in a sentence. Subjective case pronouns indicate the actor in the sentence: She threw the ball to Jimmy. Objective case pronouns indicate the receiver of an action: Jimmy threw the ball to her.

Subjective Case Pronouns: I, you, he, she, it, we, they, who, whoever Subjective case pronouns can be followed by a verb. A. They are used as the subject of a verb: He and I are attending the meeting on Wednesday.

B. In a comparison, they are used as the subject of an implied verb: After we found out our grades on the exam, Paul was much happier than I (was). Sherry is not as athletic as he (is).

C. They are used after any form of the verb "to be" (am, is, are, was, were, being, to be) It was he who arrived early to the party. When the caller asked for Candice, she answered, "This is she."

Objective case pronouns: me, you, him, her, it, us, them, whom, whomever Objective case pronouns are A. Used as the object of prepositions: Mark gave the money to me. B. Used as the objects of verbs: Mark gave me the money.

Using who or whom Use who for a subject and whom for an object. Subjective case: Who wrote the letter? Objective case: To whom was the letter addressed?

Possessive case pronouns: my/mine, your/yours, his, her/hers, its, our/ours, their/theirs, whose Possessive case pronouns A. Do not contain an apostrophe B. Show ownership. Use a possessive case pronoun before a gerund. The coach disapproved of their lifting weights.

Pronoun Reference Pronouns must clearly refer to their antecedents. If an antecedent is missing or ambiguous, the meaning of your sentence will be unclear.

Make sure each pronoun refers clearly to one antecedent: Joan told Amy she wanted to have the baby shower at her house. (Her could refer to either Joan or Amy.)

Check for vague uses of they, it, and you: On the news, they said the weather would be cold tomorrow. (Whom does they refer to?) Revised: On the news, the meteorologist said the weather would be cold tomorrow. In the book, it says that a rash indicates this disease. Revised: The book says that a rash indicates this disease.

Make sure pronouns do not refer to adjectives or possessives: He became so depressed that it made him unable to get out of bed. (It seems to refer to depressed (an adjective), which suggests the noun depression, but that noun isn't in the sentence.) Revised: His depression made him unable to get out of bed

Make sure the pronouns who, whom, this, which, and that refer to clear, specific nouns: Mark wasn't selected for the top scholastic award, and this made him angry. (What does this refer to?) Revised: Mark wasn't selected for the top scholastic award, and this disappointment made him angry. Or: Mark was angry because he wasn't selected for the top scholastic award.