Avoiding Shifts
Writers should keep the elements in a sentence consistent, avoiding any unnecessary
changes in tense, voice, mood, person, number, and discourse. Such unnecessary
changes, or "shifts," may make reading difficult and obscure the sentence's meaning
for the reader.
Avoid shifts in
1. verb tense
Except for special cases where the intended meaning requires a change in tense, maintain the same
tense within a sentence.
Error: shift in verb tense
The sentence above begins in the past tense but shifts, without reason, to the present tense.
Error repaired
Edit the following sentences for illogical shifts in tense. If a sentence is correct, write C in the blank.
Example 1: She was surprised when she receives the news.
Example 2: Last year, she was a captain on the force. Now, she is a chief of police. C (correct)
1. When Beverly Harvard became the chief of the Atlanta police force, she is the first AfricanAmerican ever to hold that title in a major U.S. city. _____
2. She started on the police force when she was twenty-two, at a time when mostly white men work
as Atlanta police officers. _____
3. Now, more than half the department is African-American, and women made up about a quarter of
the force. _____
4. Harvard first thought about joining the force because her husband and a male friend said they do
not believe women are capable of doing police work _____
5. Her husband even agrees to pay her $100 if she is accepted on the force. _____
6. She accepted the challenge, and today she looks back on her first years of training with
amazement at how little she knew then. _____
7. In fact, when she entered the police academy, she did not really plan to be a police officer; she just
wants to prove her husband wrong. _____
8. One thing that helped her to advance was her administrative ability; another is her talent for
effective management. _____
9. When her promotion was announced, some veteran officers criticize her appointment as police
chief, but most younger officers praised the choice. _____
10. Eventually, most members of the force came to appreciate her accessibility and are happy about
her willingness to listen to new ideas and approaches. _____
2. voice
The voice of a verb may be either active or passive in a sentence. When a sentence contains two or
more verbs, both verbs should maintain the same voice.
Error - shift in voice
The sentence above begins in active voice but shifts without reason to passive voice.
Error repaired
Example - emphasis on subject requires shift in voice
Here, the use of passive allows the sentence to focus on the subject.
3. mood
Shifts in mood often occur with directions, where the mood shifts from indicative to imperative or from
imperative to indicative.
Error - shift in mood
Error repaired
4. person
English has three "persons" or points of view:

first person - the speaker
I, me, my, mine, we, us, our, ours

second person - the person spoken to
you, your, yours

third person - the person or thing spoken about
he, him, his, she, her, hers, it, its, they, them, their
Unless the meaning of a sentence clearly requires a change, keep person consistent within a
sentence.
Shifts in person usually occur with changes from the third to the second person point of view.
Error - shift in person
Error repaired
If the meaning of a sentence clearly
requires a change, then you may
change person as needed.
Example requiring a change in person
Since both I and the others are doing
something in the above sentence, the shift in
person is justified.
The following sentences contain illogical shifts between the second person and the third person. Edit each
sentence so that it uses third-person pronouns consistently. If necessary, be sure to change the verb to make it
agree with the new subject.
Example: Before a person finds a job in the fashion industry, you have to have some experience.
1. Young people who want a career in the fashion industry do not always realize how hard you will
have to work.
2. They think that working in the world of fashion will be glamorous and that you will quickly make a
fortune.
3. In reality, no matter how talented you are, a recent college graduate entering the industry is paid
only about $22,000 a year.
4. The manufacturers and retailers who employ new graduates expect you to work for three years or
more at this salary before you are promoted.
5. A young designer may receive a big raise if you are very talented, but this is unusual.
6. New employees have to pay their dues, and you soon realize that most of your duties are tedious.
7. Employees may be excited to land a job as an assistant designer but then you find that you color in
designs that have already been drawn.
8. Other beginners in fashion houses discover that you spend most of your time sewing or typing up
orders.
9. If a person is serious about working in the fashion industry, you have to be realistic.
5. number
Use singular pronouns to refer to singular antecedents; use plural pronouns to refer to plural
antecedents.
Error - shift in number
Error repaired
Edit the following sentences for illogical shifts from singular to plural. You can either change the singular
element to the plural or change the plural element to the singular. Be sure to change the verb so it agrees with
the new subject. If the sentence is correct, write C in the blank.
Example:
Each attorney first makes their opening speech. _____
A good juror takes their time in making a decision. _____
1. According to recent studies, a juror may have their mind made up before the trial even begins.____
2. As attorneys offer their opening arguments, a juror may immediately decide whether they think the
defendant is innocent or guilty. _____
3. This unfounded conclusion often depends on which attorney makes their initial description of the
case the most dramatic. _____
4. During the trial, that juror will pay attention only to evidence that corresponds to the decision they
have already made. _____
5. A juror with poor decision-making skills is also not likely to listen to challenges to their opinions
when the jury comes together to deliberate. _____
6. No matter how wrong they are, such a juror argues their positions strongly and urges the strictest
sentencing or the highest damage payments. _____
7. These jurors believe their responsibility is to argue for their version of the truth rather than to weigh
all the evidence and alternative possibilities. _____
8. Such a juror will even make up their own evidence to support their case. _____