Pronoun Agreement
FIRST PERSON
SECOND
THIRD
SINGULAR
PLURAL
I, me, my, mine
We us our
You
You
He she it his her its one They their
Each either neither every Both few many several
--one, --body, --thing
**all, any, more, most, none, some (depend on usage)
Pronoun Agreement Rule:
A pronoun must agree in person (1st, 2nd, 3rd) and number
(singular, plural) with its antecedent (the word it stands
for or refers to)
Wrong: How can one tell if you have a virus? (wrong! One=third person; you=second)
Correction:
Wrong: Most of us know how to be tactful, but sometimes you don’t know how to break
bad news without hurting someone’s feelings (wrong! Us=first person; you=second
person)
Correction:
Wrong: A person can achieve anything they set their minds to.
(wrong! Person=singular; they and their=plural)
Correction:
Wrong: The man of the house knows what’s in their family’s best interest.
Correction:
Wrong: Each of the naughty students dropped their pencil at the same time to annoy the
teacher. (wrong! each=singular; their=plural)
Correction:
Wrong: Everyone must bring their pencil tomorrow.
Correction:
Wrong: Neither of the boys will give up their Saturday to help Grandmom.
Correction:
SPECIAL RULES WITH EXAMPLES
AND: creates a plural antecedent
 Tim and Mark will do their best.
OR and BUT ALSO: the pronoun should agree with the CLOSEST antecedent
 Tim or Mark will do his best
 The coach or the players will share their thoughts
 The players or the coach will share his thoughts
 Not only the players but also the coach will share his thoughts.
INTERRUPTING PHRASES are not a part of the antecedent (look for surrounding
commas)
 Greg, like all students, cherishes his free time away from school.
COLLECTIVE NOUNS: singular when referring to group as a unit; plural when
referring to group’s individual members
 The team won its meet.
 The team brought their equipment onto the bus.
EXPRESSIONS OF AMOUNT: singular or plural depending on usage
 Ten minutes isn’t long; it will go by quickly (ten minues thought of as one unit)
 During the competition ten minutes were wasted; we spent them arguing.
 Five dollars isn’t much money; I’ll spend it in no time.
 Five dollars were counterfeit; weren’t they?
 One third of the profit is yours. Would you like it now?
 One third of the birds have left. Where did they go?
Other considerations:
 I rarely watch the news because I find it depressing.
 The United States should support its leaders.
 Put the scissors in their drawer.
 Put the pair of scissors in its drawer.