Using Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement

What is pronoun-antecedent agreement?

Indefinite pronouns
Compound antecedents
Solving special agreement problems
Collective nouns
Plural forms
Titles
Relative pronouns
Expressions of amount
Review A
Review B

Pronoun Cases
Nominative (subject, predicate nominative)
I
we
you
you
he, she, it
they
who
Objective (direct object, indirect object,
object of a preposition)
me
us
you
you
him, her, it
them
whom

Possessive Pronouns
These pronouns are already possessive.
They do not need an apostrophe.
my, mine
your, yours
his, her, hers, its

our, ours
your, yours
their, theirs

That book is mine.

Their house is beautiful.
The dog broke its leg.
There=place
Its=it is
There is no such thing as mines unless
you are referring to a bomb.

What is pronoun-antecedent agreement?

You may have heard that it is rude
to point, but thats exactly what
pronouns do.
A pronoun points to a noun or
another pronoun called its
antecedent.
Antecedent

Antecedent
Pronoun

Pronoun

Nicole
wasglad
gladthat
thatshe
shehad
hadbrought
broughther
her
camera.
Nicole was
camera.

When a pronoun and its antecedent do not agree,

listeners and readers become lost.

What is pronoun-antecedent agreement?

Number

A pronoun should agree in both number and

gender with its antecedent.
A word that refers to one thing is singular.
A word that refers to more than one is plural.
Singular
Plural

lions
lion

noses
nose

they
she

What is pronoun-antecedent agreement?

Number

Use singular pronouns to refer to singular

antecedents.
Singular
antecedent

Singular
pronoun

Break one egg

egg and
and fry
fry it.
it.
it.
Singular Personal Pronouns
I

me

my, mine

you

you

your, yours

he, she, it

him, her, it

his, hers, its

What is pronoun-antecedent agreement?

Number

Use plural pronouns to refer to plural antecedents.

Plural
antecedent

Plural
pronoun

Cut two slices

slicesand
andtoast
toastthem.
them.
them.

Plural Personal Pronouns

we

us

our, ours

you

you

your, yours

they

them

their, theirs

What is pronoun-antecedent agreement?

Gender

Some singular pronouns indicate gender.

Masculine pronouns refer to males.
Feminine pronouns refer to females.
Neuter pronouns refer to places, things, ideas,
and animals.
Masculine

Feminine

Neuter

he

she

it

him

her

it

his

her, hers

its

himself

herself

itself

What is pronoun-antecedent agreement?

Person

Person indicates whether a pronoun refers to

the one(s) speaking

first person

I promised myself that I would clean my room.

the one(s) spoken to

second person

Do you have your library card with you?

the one(s) spoken about

third person

They built their new house themselves.

What is pronoun-antecedent agreement?

On Your Own
The following sentences contain errors in pronounantecedent agreement. Identify each error, and give the form
of the pronoun that agrees with its antecedent.
1. Two girls won a prize for her project.
2. Although we drove through the mountains, we could not
see it because of the fog.
3. If he calls this afternoon, tell he that Ill call back.
4. My cousins house has two fireplaces in them.
5. The children forgot to put on its jackets.
[End of Section]

Indefinite pronouns
Indefinite pronouns refer to a person or thing
whose exact identity is unknown.
Some indefinite pronouns are
singular.
Some are plural.
Some may be either singular
or plural depending on how
they are used.

Indefinite pronouns
The following indefinite pronouns are singular:
Singular Indefinite Pronouns
anybody

either

neither

one

anyone

everybody

nobody

somebody

anything

everyone

no one

someone

each

everything

nothing

something

Everybody
Each
One of
ofthe
the
on
women
birds
the boys
had
waved
completed
team
to has
her his
its
children.
nest.
racket.

Indefinite pronouns
Indefinite pronouns do not indicate gender. Often a
word in a phrase following the indefinite pronoun will
tell you the gender.
Each of the women runs her own business.
When you do not know the gender of the
antecedent, use both the masculine and feminine
pronouns connected by or.
No one remembered to bring his or her
permission slip.

Indefinite pronouns
The following indefinite pronouns are plural:
Plural Indefinite Pronouns
both

few

many

several

Few of the passengers waited by themselves.

Both of the babies closed their eyes.
If many are cracked, discard them.

Indefinite pronouns
The following indefinite pronouns may be singular
or plural, depending on how they are used:
Singular or Plural Indefinite Pronouns
all

more

none

any

most

some

I deleted some of the document. Is there a way to

recover it?
Singular

I deleted some of the documents. Is there a way

to recover them?
Plural

Compound antecedents
A compound antecedent is two or
more antecedents joined by and or or.
Use a plural pronoun to refer to two
or more antecedents joined by and.
Wind

and

Antecedent 1

Nina,
Antecedent 1

rain

unleashed their fury on the land.

Antecedent 2

Sandra, and
Antecedent 2

Maya taught themselves.

Antecedent 3

Compound antecedents
Use a singular pronoun to refer to two or more
singular antecedents joined by or or nor.
Craig

or

Singular

Neither

Kate
Singular

Keith

will bring his camera.

Singular

nor Ann said that she would help.

Singular

Indefinite pronouns and

compound antecedents
On Your Own
Most of the following sentences contain pronouns that do not
agree with their antecedents. If a pronoun does not agree
with its antecedent, provide the correct pronoun. If a
sentence is already correct, write C.
1. One of the boys brought their basketball.
2. Hilda and Lupe presented her reports.
3. Either the puppy or the kitten lost their collar.
4. Everyone should wash their own dishes after lunch.
5. All the students worked hard to improve themselves.
[End of Section]

Solving special agreement problems

Collective nouns

A collective noun may be either singular or plural,

depending on how the noun is used.
Use a singular pronoun when the noun refers to
the group as a unit.
The tour group surprised its guide by
presenting her with a lovely thank-you gift.
Use a plural pronoun when the noun refers to
parts of the group or to individual members.
The guide surprised the tour group by presenting
them with souvenirs.

Solving special agreement problems

Plural forms

Some nouns that are plural in form take singular

pronouns.
Plural Forms That Take Singular Verbs
civics

gymnastics

molasses

economics

linguistics

mumps

electronics

mathematics

news

genetics

measles

physics

Theres
I am taking
no more
physics
molasses
now, in
and
the
I find
jar. Did
it challenging.
you use it?

Solving special agreement problems

Plural forms

Some nouns that refer to single items take plural

verbs.
binoculars

pants

shears

eyeglasses

pliers

slacks

Olympics

scissors

trousers

Whenyou
the use
Olympics
were on
television,
did
After
my scissors,
please
put them
you watch
back
wherethem?
you found them.

Solving special agreement problems

Titles

Even when plural in form, these types of nouns

take singular pronouns.
Titles of a creative workbooks, songs,
movies, or paintings
Once I started watching Finders, I never missed an
episode of it.

Names of countries, cities, or organizations

I dont know the population of Grand Rapids, but it is
the second-largest city in Michigan.
The Veterans of Foreign Wars held its parade last
Saturday.

Solving special agreement problems

Relative pronouns

The gender and number of the relative pronoun

that, which, or who is determined by the word to
which the relative pronoun refersits antecedent.
Enrique, who lives with his aunt and uncle, was
born in Puerto Rico.
1. The relative pronoun who refers to Enrique.
2. Enrique is a singular, masculine noun.
3. The relative pronoun who takes a singular,
masculine pronoun, his.

Solving special agreement problems

Expressions of amount

An expression of amount (a measurement,

percentage, or fraction) may be singular or plural,
depending on how it is used.
Use a singular pronoun when the
amount is thought of as a unit.
The part costs fifty dollars, and I
dont have it.

Use a plural pronoun when the

amount is thought of as separate
items.
He had dropped two dollars, so I
picked them up for him.

Solving special agreement problems

Expressions of amount

A fraction or a percentage is
singular when it refers to a singular word.
One quarter of the pizza is left.
Do you want to take it home?

plural when it refers to a plural

word.
One quarter of the slices are left. Do you want to
take them home?

Solving special agreement problems

On Your Own
Most of the following sentences contain pronouns that do not agree
with their antecedents. If a pronoun does not agree with its
antecedent, provide the correct pronoun. If a sentence is already
correct, write C.
1. Did the Cub Scouts wear its hats during the ceremony?
2. The room, which had no decorations on their walls, looked very
bare.
3. The team needs to make a decision about their mascot.
4. Measure two thirds of a cup of flour, and add it one spoonful at a
time.
5. Locate the Netherlands on the map, and write the name of their
capital city.
[End of Section]

Review A
Complete each sentence by providing pronouns that agree
with their antecedents.
1. I enjoyed the movie, but ________ was too long.
2. Some of the members did not cast ________ votes yet.
3. Everyone in the class brought _________ notebook.
4. The woman, who was walking ________ dogs in the park,
asked to use my cell phone.
5. Either Brian or Charles will read _______ report first.

Review B
The following sentences contain errors in pronounantecedent agreement. Identify each error, and give the
form of the pronoun that agrees with its antecedent.
1. If any of the oranges are left, please put it away.
2. The League of Women Voters will sponsor their annual
debate for the candidates next week.
3. Mike bent the pliers and wasnt able to straighten it.
4. One third of the field doesnt have any crops planted in
them.
5. Does anyone still need their locker combination?
[End of Section]

The End