Pronoun/
Antecedent
Agreement
Definitions
 Pronoun
= word that refers to another
noun (he, she, it, they, my, your, etc.)
 Antecedent
refers.
= noun to which the pronoun
Sally (Ant.) drank her (Pro.) milk slowly.
Rule 1
A
pronoun should agree in number,
gender, and person with its antecedent.
Agreement in Number
•
•
Singular: Sammy Davis Jr. made his
movie debut in 1931.
Plural: The hikers took their canteens
with them.
Agreement in Gender
•
•
Gender Pronouns: he, him, his,
himself, she, her, hers, herself
Neither Masculine nor
Feminine: it, its, and itself
Agreement in Person
 First:
I need a transcript of my grades.
 Second: Have you fastened your seat
belt?
 Third: He said they made their own
costumes.

Third person can be singular or plural
 Singular
= he/him/his, she/her/hers
 Plural = they/their
Rule 2
 Using
indefinite pronouns as part of the
antecedent may require a single or plural
pronoun, or sometimes could use either,
depending on meaning.
 Indefinite pronouns in antecedent =
single, plural, or both
Singular
Anybody,,,
each, either,
everybody,
neither,
nobody,
somebody
Both
all, any, more,
most, none,
some
Plural
both, few,
many, and
several
Chart of Indefinite Pronouns
***Gender
neutral
pronouns
***If the subject
is countable,
use a plural
pronoun.
If the subject is
uncountable,
use a singular
pronoun.
Examples using indefinite
pronouns

Singular example:

Each of the boys brought his own mitt.



Plural example


If the antecedent may be either gender, use both.
EX: Any interested person may send his or her resume.
Both of the debaters persuasively presented their
arguments.
Both example


Some of the students did their homework.
All of the sugar fell out of its bag.
Rule 3
 Use
a plural pronoun to refer to two or
more antecedents joined by “and”.

If Joann and Ben call, tell them that I will not
be home until this evening.
 Antecedents
joined by “and” may name
only one person, place, thing, or idea

The corned beef and cabbage was
delicious; I ate two servings of it.
Rule 4
 Use
a singular pronoun to refer to two or
more singular antecedents joined by or or
nor.

Neither Cindy nor Carla thinks she is ready
to audition.
Practice
 Exercise
13 page 538 1-10: Write the
pronoun that completes the sentence
Problems with
Pronoun/
Antecedent
Agreement
Rule #5

A collective noun can be either singular or
plural, depending on how it is used

Singular: refers to the group as a unit


The committee comprised three juniors and two
seniors; its chairperson was Angelo. [Angelo was
chairperson of the committee as unit]
Plural: refers to the individual members or part of
the group

The committee discussed their varied schedules.
[The members of the committee had different
schedules.]
Rule #6
Some antecedents require singular pronouns,
even though they look plural
Civics
Measles
Molasses
Economics
Mumps
Electronics
News
Genetics
Physics
Gymnastics
Summons
Mathematics
 I’m looking forward to studying physics next
year; it is my favorite subject.

Rule #6 Cont.
 Some
nouns take plural pronouns even
when they refer to single items
Binoculars
Pants
Shears
Eyeglasses
Pliers
Shorts
Olympics
Slacks
Scissors


Whenever the Olympics are held, they
attract athletes from all over the world.
I have misplaced my eyeglasses. Have you
seen them?
Rule #7
 An
expression of an amount (a
measurement, a percentage, or a
fraction) may be singular or plural,
depending on how it is used.


Five thousand bricks is a heavy load; it
almost ruined the truck’s suspension. [The
bricks are thought of a unit (one load)]
Two thirds of the apples are rotten; they
should be thrown out. [The fraction refers to
the plural noun apples]
Practice
 Pg.
539 Exercise H: EVEN NUMBERS ONLY
 You do NOT have to write the whole
sentence
 EVERY sentence has an error.
Pronoun Case
and Reference
Definition
 Case:
the form that a noun or a pronoun
takes to show its relationship to other
words in a sentence



Nominative/Subjective (subject of
sentence)
Objective (object of sentence)
Possessive (showing possession)
Examples
 The
general explained the strategy
[nominative subject].
 The strategy was explained by the
general [objective object].
 The general’s explanation was both clear
and concise [possessive].
 Copy
chart on pg. 548 of your textbook
into your notes
Rule 1
 Nominative
Case is used when the
pronoun is the subject of the verb.

We ordered the concert tickets [We is the
subject of the verb ordered].
 Tip:
find the verb first, to decide what
pronoun is in the nominative case.
Rule 2

A personal pronoun used as a predicate
nominative usually completes the meaning of
a form of the verb “be”: am, is, are, was,
were, be, been, or being



The chairperson of the prom committee is she.
The one who made the comment was I.
Tip: find the “be” verb first, then the pronoun
that follows.
Rule 3
A
direct and indirect object should be in
the objective case.


My pen pal from Manila visited me last
summer.
The coach awarded her a varsity letter.
 Tip:
remember that the object of a
sentence answers the question “who?” as
well as “to whom?” or “for whom?”
Rule 4
 Possessive
pronouns can be used in the
same ways as nominative and objective.


Your car and mine need to be washed
[nominative].
Mrs. Fong takes hers for a walk twice a day
[objective].
Rule 5
A
pronoun ending in –self or –selves
should not be used in place of a personal
pronoun


Did Rosa make lunch for herself and
yourself [incorrect]?
Did Rosa make lunch for herself and you
[correct]?
 Tip:
Remove the other –self or –selves
pronoun, and see what makes sense,
Rule 6
 Who


vs. whom
“Who” is always a subject and is followed
by a verb.
“Whom” is an object
Examples
 Who
wants some key lime pie?
 Nortel hired whom?
 She works for whom?
 Notice
that “whom” may come after a
verb or a preposition.
Tricks for deciding
 If
you could substitute “he/she” and the
sentence makes sense, use who.
 If you could substitute “him/her” and the
sentence makes sense, use whom.



He wants some key lime pie?  Who wants
some key lime pie?
Nortel hired her?  Nortel hired whom?
She works for him? She works for whom?
Practice
Label the pronoun as nominative, objective,
or possessive.
 I passed the class.
 The teacher gave us homework.
 The book is theirs.
 You and I should go to the movie.
Practice
Fill in the blank with the correct pronoun OR
who/whom.
 With ______ did you go to tolo?
(who/whom)
 ______ told you that rumor? (who/whom)
 Is this Ms. Eaton? Yes, this is ______.
(she/her)
Practice
Fix the error in the following sentences
 Did you and her fight?
 You and me should go to the movie.
 Me and him snorkeled.
 Us skiers love cocoa.
 Her and Ryan are engaged.