PRONOUN – ANTECEDENT AGREEMENT

Yup, I’m one of those high-powered adults that tends to look dumb when I write memos to my employees…because I never learned pronoun-

antecedent agreement…

Memo:If an employee needs to take time off, they need to fill out a request form!

What’s a Pronoun?

Pronouns take the place of nouns to avoid repetition and to clarify meaning: Without pronouns:

Naomi’s father worried that the children at the party were too loud, so Naomi’s father told the children that the party would have to end if the children didn’t calm down.

With pronouns: Naomi’s father worried that the children at the

party were too loud, so he told them that it would have to end if they didn’t calm down.

What’s an antecedent?

An antecedent is the word that a pronoun replaces…this word appears before the pronoun in the sentence.

Each classroom has its own chalkboard.

antecedent

pronoun

Are you the antecedent? Or am I the antecedent?

Pronoun Agreement

Just as subjects and verbs must agree, pronouns should agree with the words the refer to (antecedents). If the antecedent is singular, the pronoun should be

singular.

Each classroom has its own chalkboard.

If the antecedent is plural, the pronoun should be plural.

Both classrooms have their own chalkboards.

Ignore Prepositional Phrases

The same rules that we use to maintain subject-verb agreement apply to pronoun agreement. Ignore any prepositional phrases that come between the word and the pronoun that takes its place.

The box of chocolates has lost its label.

Boxes of chocolates often lost their labels.

A player with the best concentration usually beats his/her opponent.

Players with the best concentration usually beat their opponents.

And…

When a pronoun refers to more than one word joined by and, the pronoun is plural:

The teacher and the tutors eat their lunches at noon.

The salt and pepper were in their usual spots on the table.

Or…

When a pronoun refers to more than one word joined by or, then the word closest to the pronoun determines its form:

Either the teacher or the tutors eat their lunches in the classroom.

Either the tutors or the teacher eats her lunch in the classroom.

Gender Bias…

Today many people try to avoid gender bias by writing sentences like the following – but therefore, people turn them into sentences that are not grammatically correct:

If anyone wants help with the assignment, they can visit me in my office.

It just takes a little thought to revise each sentence so that it avoids gender bias and is also grammatically correct:

Anyone who wants to help with the assignment can visit me in my office.

Practice…Choose the pronoun that agrees with its antecedent.

Also, decide whether the pronoun & antecedent are singular (S) or plural (P).

1. The graduation ceremony was not without (it/its) problems.

2. Each of the dogs knows (its/their) trainer’s commands.

3. Many of the older students had not rehearsed (his or her/their) speeches.

4. All of the prescription drugs have (its/their) own side effects.

5. Either the property owner or the tenants will win (her or his/their) case.

6. We like to hear our canary sing (its/their) beautiful song.

7. Everybody on the men’s basketball team is doing well in (his/their) classes.

8. Everyone in the class sold (his or her/there) books back to the bookstore.

9. All of the participants at the convention left (her or his/their) business cards on a tray in the lounge.

10. Either the workers or the boss gets (his or her/their) way after a dispute.

Check your Answers…

1. The graduation ceremony was not without (it/its) problems.

2. Each of the dogs knows (its/their) trainer’s commands.

3. Many of the older students had not rehearsed (his or her/their) speeches.

4. All of the prescription drugs have (its/their) own side effects.

5. Either the property owner or the tenants will win (her or his/their) case.

6. We like to hear our canary sing (its/their) beautiful song.

7. Everybody on the men’s basketball team is doing well in (his/their) classes.

8. Everyone in the class sold (his or her/there) books back to the bookstore.

9. All of the participants at the convention left (her or his/their) business cards on a tray in the lounge.

10. Either the workers or the boss gets (his or her/their) way after a dispute.

Types of Pronouns

Personal: me, you, he, she, it, we, us, their… Possessive: mine, yours, hers, his, theirs…

Shows possession Reflexive: myself, yourself, himself, herself…

Refers back to the subject of the sentence. Relative: who, whom, whose, which, what

Introduces a clause that describes a noun

Types of Pronouns (cont.)

Interrogative: who, whom, whose, which, what Used to begin a question

Demonstrative: this, that, these, those Indicates a noun/subject that usually

follows the pronoun Indefinite: all, another, any, everyone,

some… Refers to a general person or thing

Reciprocal: each other, one another