Grammar 8 PronounAntecedent Agreement Pronouns Grammar Element Definition

Grammar #8 Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement

Pronouns Grammar Element Definition Example Pronoun A word used in place of a noun or another pronoun. She is beautiful. Antecedent The word for which a pronoun stands. There is a unicorn outside the window! She is beautiful. Personal Pronouns can change forms: Singular (possessive) Plural (possessive) First Person I, me (my, mine) we, us (our, ours) Second Person you (your, yours) Third Person he, him, she, her, it (his, hers, its) they, them (their, theirs)

Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement The pronoun must agree with (or match) the antecedent in number (singular vs plural) and gender (male or female or neutral).

Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement (number) A singular antecedent requires a singular pronoun; a plural antecedent needs a plural pronoun. Ex. The boy scratched his armpit. Ex. The boys scratched their armpits.

Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement (gender) The following sentence, for example, shows gender bias. Ex. A student must hand in his assignment before the end of this month. Here the noun student can refer to both boys and girls and hence there is no justification for using pronoun his. One solution is to pluralize. Ex. Students must hand in their assignments before the end of this month. Or you can say: Ex. A student must hand in his or her (or their) assignment before the end of the month.

Grammar #9 Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement

Indefinite Pronouns An indefinite pronoun is a pronoun that refers to an unspecified or unidentified person or thing. Put another way, an indefinite pronoun doesn't have an antecedent. Singular Indefinite Pronouns each, either, neither anybody, anyone, anything everybody, everyone, everything nobody, no one, nothing somebody, someone, something

Indefinite Pronouns: Examples Somebody has left their umbrella behind. The party is going to be great! Everyone will be there. Each of the members has one vote.

Indefinite Pronouns That Can Be Singular or Plural all, any, none, more, most, some • Some of this footwear smells because Tina wears it to the barn. (singular because “footwear” is singular) • Some of these shoes smell because Tina wears them to the barn. (plural because “shoes” is plural)

Reflexive Pronouns Subject Reflexive Singular I You He She It myself yourself himself herself itself Plural We You They ourselves yourselves themselves

Reflexive Pronouns Reflexive pronouns always act as objects (part of the predicate) not subjects, and they require an interaction between the subject and an object. Because she was not hungry when the cake was served, Ellen saved herself a piece. * In the independent clause, "Ellen" is the subject and "herself" is a reflexive pronoun acting as the indirect object. This sentence is grammatically correct. John and myself are going to the movie. * In this sentence, "John" and "myself" are the subjects. Reflexive pronouns cannot be subjects. This sentence is grammatically incorrect.