Pronoun/Antecedent Agreement Put the PRO in Pronoun

What is a pronoun?

A pronoun is the word that takes the place of a noun or another pronoun. Examples of Pronouns: MASCULINE: he, him, his, himself FEMININE: she, her, hers, herself NEUTRAL: it, its, itself PLURAL: they, them, their, theirs, themselves

What is an antecedent?

An antecedent is the word that the pronoun is referring to (usually earlier in the sentence). Example: Laura sold her bike to buy in-line skates. Antecedent Pronoun

Why can’t they just get along? We always want pronouns to agree with their antecedents in both NUMBER and GENDER.

WRONG EXAMPLES Everybody has their own way of studying. Anyone could forget their homework. Neither Jim nor Frank took their case to court. Everybody who is going to the movie needs to bring their money. Either Mom or Lucy will volunteer their time.

RIGHT EXAMPLES Joe took his car out of the shop. Bob and Terri ate their lunches. Either Katie or Bob is taking his or her car. Beth ate her ham.

ANTECEDENTS TO LOOK OUT FOR WARNING ANTECEDENTS TO LOOK OUT FOR

WARNING Antecedents = Singular Indefinite Pronouns Anybody Anyone Each Neither Everybody Everyone Nobody Either No one One Somebody Someone

Plural Indefinite Pronouns Both Few They (General form) Fewer Many Others Several

Singular or Plural None All Any More Most Some Such

What about Reflexive Pronouns? Reflexive pronouns are those that refer directly back to the subject of the sentence. We use reflexive pronouns for emphasis. Examples of REFLEXIVE Pronouns: Myself, ourselves, yourself, himself, herself, itself, themselves

Sentences Using Reflexive Pronouns John spilled grape juice all over himself. Mrs. Johnson tried to clean his white shirt by herself, but she needed something stronger.

John and Mr. Johnson offered to go to the grocery store by themselves to get Bleach. The store itself was stocked with hundreds of other cleaning supplies, but ironically the bleach was sold outside.

Groups With group antecedents, you must use judgment to determine if the pronoun should be singular or plural. The band did its best. (All working as one) The band cleaned their instruments. (All doing separate things)

Either/Or, Neither/Nor When dealing with choices, you must pick the antecedent closest to the pronoun. Why? Who knows! You just do! The girls or John must bring his or her book. John or the girls must bring their book.

Many a, Every When an antecedent begins with “Many a” or “Every,” treat it as singular. Many a cat and dog has found its owner. Every man, woman, and child must find his or her own way.

Titles Titles are always treated as singular. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn has much to offer in its pages. The Mermaids has a lot of cussing in it.

The Number of, A Number of Pay attention! “The number of” is always singular while “A number of” is always plural! The number of viruses increases itself daily. A number of men have their chests waxed.

Sentences for Practice In the world of Impressionist Painting, Mary Cassatt made their work known. Edgar Degas suggested Cassatt create a series of paintings for herself, and she accepted her suggestion. Each of the women in her paintings seemed to have their own identity.