Language Network Pronouns Pronouns What is a Pronoun

Language Network Pronouns

Pronouns What is a Pronoun? Here’s the Idea Why It Matters Practice and Apply

Here’s the Idea Pronoun A pronoun is a word that is used in place of a noun or another pronoun.

Here’s the Idea A pronoun can refer to a person, place, thing, or idea.

Here’s the Idea The word that a pronoun refers to is called its antecedent. REFERS TO Ramon visited Death Valley, and he was impressed.

Here’s the Idea Pronouns such as we, I, he, them and it are called personal pronouns. Personal pronouns have a variety of forms to indicate different persons, numbers, and cases.

Here’s the Idea There are first-person, second-person, and third-personal pronouns, each having both singular and plural forms.

Here’s the Idea Singular I went out. Plural We left early. FIRST PERSON You left too. You are leaving. SECOND PERSON He came by bus. THIRD PERSON SECOND PERSON They came by car. THIRD PERSON

Here’s the Idea Each personal pronoun forms three cases: subject, object, and possessive.

Here’s the Idea Choose the pronoun form depending on the pronoun’s function in the sentence. He read about Death Valley. SUBJECT Julie asked him about the rocks. OBJECT Ramon bought his book. POSSESSIVE

Why It Matters Pronouns help you talk about people concisely when you’re telling a story.

Practice and Apply Write the personal pronoun in the sentence below. 1. Death Valley is famous for its strange moving boulders.

Practice and Apply Write the personal pronoun in the sentence below. 2. The rocks slide and leave long tracks behind them.

Practice and Apply Write the personal pronoun in the sentence below. 3. Do you know why this happens?

Pronouns Pronoun Agreement Here’s the Idea Why It Matters Practice and Apply

Here’s the Idea Antecedent The antecedent is the noun or pronoun that a pronoun replaces or refers to.

Here’s the Idea Use a singular pronoun to refer to a singular antecedent. One story has its setting in Egypt.

Here’s the Idea Use a plural pronoun to refer to a plural antecedent. The characters have their motives for murder.

Here’s the Idea The pronoun must agree in person with the antecedent. Louis likes his mysteries to have surprise endings.

Here’s the Idea The gender of the pronoun must be the same as the gender of its antecedent.

Here’s the Idea Personal pronouns have three gender forms: • masculine he, his, him • feminine she, hers • neuter it, its

Here’s the Idea Agatha Christie sets many of her stories in England. The hero has to use all his wits to solve the crime.

Why It Matters In your writing, you will sometimes refer to several people or groups of people. Correct pronoun-antecedent agreement will help your readers keep track of who is who in your writing.

Practice and Apply Write the pronouns and their antecedents in these sentences. 4. Agatha Christie loved real-life mysteries of the past. She helped to investigate them in the Middle East.

Practice and Apply Write the pronouns and their antecedents in this sentence. 5. Agatha Christie and her husband went on many archaeological trips and found them exciting.

Practice and Apply Write the pronouns and their antecedents in this sentence. 6. A mystery writer may use exotic places and backgrounds for his or her stories.

Practice and Apply Write the pronouns and their antecedents in this sentence. 7. Christie started Murder in Mesopotamia in the desert, but she finished it in England.