Pronouns
Exercise 1, p.135
Correct the errors in pronoun usage.
1. My friends and I ordered Indian food at the restaurant. I wasn’t
very hungry, but I ate most of them.
2. When we were in school, my sister and me used to play tennis
after school every day.
3. If you want to pass you’re exams, you had better study very hard
for it.
4. A hippopotamus spends most of it’s time in the water of rivers
and lakes.
5. After work, Mr. Gray asked to speak to Mona and I about the
company’s new policies. He explained it to us and asked for ours
opinions.
6. My friends asked to borrow my car because their’s was in the
garage for repairs.
Answers
1. My friends and I ordered Indian food at the restaurant. I wasn’t
very hungry, but I ate most of it.
2. When we were in school, my sister and I used to play tennis
after school every day.
3. If you want to pass your exams, you had better study very
hard for them .
4. A hippopotamus spends most of its time in the water of rivers
and lakes.
5. After work, Mr. Gray asked to speak to Mona and me about
the company’s new policies. He explained them to us and
asked for our opinions.
6. My friends asked to borrow my car because theirs was in the
garage for repairs.
Personal Pronouns
Singular
Plural
Subject
Pronoun
I
you
she, he, it
we
you
they
Object
Pronoun
me
you
her, him, it
us
you
them
Possessive
Pronoun
mine
yours
hers, his, its
ours
yours
theirs
Possessive
Adjective
my (name)
your (name)
her, his, its (name)
our (name)
your (name)
their (name)
(a ) I read a book. It was good.
(b ) I read some books. They were good.
A pronoun is used in place of a noun.The noun it
refers to is called the “antecedent.”
In (a): The pronoun it refers to the antecedent
noun book.
A singular pronoun is used to refer to a singular
noun, as in (a). A plural pronoun is used to refer to a
plural noun, as in (b).
I like tea. Do you like tea too?
Sometimes the antecedent noun is
understood, not explicitly (clearly)
stated.
I refers to the speaker, and you refers
to the person the speaker is talking
to.
S
Jihad has a car. He drives to work.
Subject pronouns are used as subjects of sentences.
O/ V
Jihad works in my office. I know him well.
O/P
I talk to him every day.
Object pronouns are used as the objects of verbs,
OR as the objects of prepositions.
That book is hers.
Yours is over there.
possessive pronouns are not followed immediately by
a noun; they stand alone.
incorrect :That book is her’s .
Your's is over there.
Possessive pronouns do not take apostrophes.
Her book is here.
Your book is over there.
possessive adjectives are followed immediately
by a noun; they do not stand alone.
A bird uses its wings to fly.
incorrect : A bird uses it’s wings to fly.
compare : Its has no apostrophe when it is used as a possessive.
It’s cold today.
The Harbour Inn is my favorite old hotel. It’s been in business
since 1933.
It’s has an apostrophe when it is used as a contraction of it is.
OR it has when has is part of the present perfect tense.
NOTE : It’s vs. its is a common source of error for native
speakers of English.
Exercise 3, p. 137.
Identify the personal pronouns and their antecedents.
2. Most monkeys don’t like water, but they can swim well
when they have to.
3. The teacher graded the students’ papers last night. She
returned them during class today.
4. Nancy took an apple with her to work. She ate it at
lunchtime.
5. A dog makes a good pet if it is properly trained.
6.Yuri’s cat is named Maybelle Alice. She* is very independent.
She never obeys Yuri. His dogs, on the other hand, obey him
gladly. They like to please him.
Answers
pronouns
2. they…they
3. she
them
4. her…She
it
antecedent
monkeys
teacher
papers
Nancy
apple
5. it
6. She…She
His (poss.
adj)…him
They
him
dog
cat
Yuri
dogs
Yuri
Exercise 4, p. 137.
Choose the words in italics that are grammatically correct,
note : A number of native English speakers commonly use subject pronouns after
and , even when the grammatically correct choice is an object pronoun.
1. My parents always read bedtime stories to my sister and I / me.
2. Just between you and I / me, I think Ms. Lucas is going to lose her job.
3. There’s Kevin. Let’s go talk to him. I need to tell you and he / him
something.
4. Mrs. Minski needs to know the truth. I’m going to tell Mr. Chang
and she / her the truth, and you can’t stop me.
5. Alex introduced Sally and I / me to his cousin from Mexico City.
Answers
1. My parents always read bedtime stories to my sister and
I / me.
2. Just between you and I / me, I think Ms. Lucas is going to
lose her job.
3. There’s Kevin. Let’s go talk to him. I need to tell you and
he / him something.
4. Mrs. Minski needs to know the truth. I’m going to tell
Mr. Chang and she / her the truth, and you can’t stop me.
5. Alex introduced Sally and I / me to his cousin from Mexico
City.
Exercise 5, p. 137.
Complete the sentences in each situation with pronouns for the word in italics.
Situation 1: There’s Sarah.
1. I need to go talk to her
2. _________ and I have been friends since high school.
3. I went to elementary school with _________ brother and
__________ .
4. _________ parents are best friends with my parents.
5. _________ is getting married next month. Another friend and I
are taking _____on a short trip before _________ marriage.
6. Being with _________ is a lot of fun. We laugh a lot.
7. ________ always has a good time with _________friends.
Situation 2 : I’m not feeling well. I think I ’d better stay home
today.
8. My friends and _________ were planning to volunteer at
our local food bank today.
9. The food bank often asks my friends and _________ to
help them with various projects.
10. But my friends will have to go without__________.
1 1 . I ’d better call _________ friend Sami to tell him I
can’t come today.
12. Could I use your cell phone? I don’t have _________
with ___________
Answers
2. She and I have been friends since high school.
3. I went to elementary school with her brother and her .
4. Her parents are best friends with my parents.
5. She is getting married next month. Another friend and I are taking
her on a short trip before her marriage.
6. Being with her is a lot of fun. We laugh a lot.
7. She always has a good time with her friends.
8. My friends and I were planning to volunteer at our local food bank
today.
9. The food bank often asks my friends and me to help them with
various projects.
10. But my friends will have to go without me.
1 1 . I ’d better call my friend Sami to tell him I can’t come today.
12. Could I use your cell phone? I don’t have mine with me.
Exercise 6, p.138
Choose the correct words in italics.
2. This umbrella is my / mine. The other one is your
/ yours.
3. Mary and Bob have their / theirs books. In other
words, Mary has her / hers, and Bob has his / him.
4. Our / Ours house is almost the same as our /
ours neighbors’ house. The only difference in
appearance is that our / ours is gray and their /
theirs is white.
Answers
2. This umbrella is my / mine. The other one is
your / yours.
3. Mary and Bob have their / theirs books. In
other words, Mary has her / hers, and Bob has
his / him.
4. Our / Ours house is almost the same as our /
ours neighbors’ house. The only difference in
appearance is that our / ours is gray and their /
theirs is white.
Exercise 8, p.138
Complete the sentences with its or it’s.
2. A honeybee has two wings on each side of __
body.
3. Tom has a pet. __ name is Squeak. __ a turtle.
__ been his pet for several years.
4. A nation that does not educate __ children
has no future.
5. All of us can help create peace in the world.
Indeed, __ our responsibility to do so.
Answers
2. A honeybee has two wings on each side of its body.
3. Tom has a pet. Its name is Squeak. It’s a turtle. It’s
been his pet for several years.
4. A nation that does not educate its children has no
future.
5. All of us can help create peace in the world. Indeed,
it’s our responsibility to do so.
Exercise 9, p. 139
Choose the correct words in italics.
When I was in Florida, I observed an interesting bird called
an anhinga. It’s / its a fish eater. It / They dives / dive
into the water and spears/spear its / it’s prey on its / it’s long,
pointed bill. After emerging from the water, it / they
tosses / toss the fish into the air and catches / catch
it / them in mid-air, and then swallows / swallow
it / them headfirst. Its / It’s interesting to watch anhingas in
action. I enjoy watching it / them a lot.
Personal Pronouns: Agreement with
Generic Nouns and Indefinite Pronouns
A student walked into the room. She was
looking for the teacher.
A student walked into the room. He was
looking for the teacher.
The pronouns refer to particular individuals
whose gender is known.The nouns are not
generic.
NOTE:A generic noun does not refer to any person or thing in
particular; rather, it represents a whole group.
A student should always do his assignments.
A student should always do his or her assignments.
A student is a generic noun; it refers to anyone who is a
student.
With a generic noun, a singular masculine pronoun has
been used traditionally, but many English speakers now use
both masculine and feminine pronouns to refer to a singular
generic noun.
Students should always do their assignments.
Problems with choosing masculine and/or
feminine pronouns can often be avoided
by using a plural rather than a singular
generic noun.
Indefinite pronouns
everyone someone anyone
everybody somebody anybody
everything something anything
no one
nobody
nothing
Somebody left his book on the desk.
Everyone has his or her own ideas.
In formal English, the use of a singular pronoun to refer to
an indefinite pronoun is generally considered to be
grammatically correct.
informal :
Somebody left their book on the desk.
Everyone has their own ideas.
In everyday, informal English (and sometimes even in
more formal English), a plural personal pronoun is usually
used to refer to an indefinite pronoun.
Exercise 12, p.140
Change the sentences by using plural instead of singular generic nouns where possible.
Change pronouns and verbs as necessary. Discuss the advantages of using plural rather than
singular generic nouns.
3. Each student in Biology 101 has to spend three hours per
week in the laboratory where he or she does various
experiments by following the directions in his or her lab
manual.
4. A citizen has two primary responsibilities. He should vote in
every election, and he should serve willingly on a jury.
5. We listened to a really interesting lecturer last night. She
discussed her experiences as an archeologist in Argentina.
Answers
3 . (All) students in Biology 101 have to spend
three hours per week in the laboratory where
they do various experiments by following the
directions in their lab manuals.
4 . Citizens have two primary responsibilities. They
should vote in all elections and they should serve
willingly on juries.
5. (no change)
Exercise 13, p.141
Complete each sentence with the pronoun(s) that seems appropriate to the given situation.
Choose the correct verbs in parentheses as necessary. Discuss formal vs. informal pronoun usage.
2. One friend to another: Of course you can learn to
dance! Anyone can learn how to dance if ______
(wants, want) to.
3. Business textbook: An effective corporate manager
must be able to motivate _____ employees.
4. One roommate to another: If anyone asks where I
am, tell ___ you don’t know. I want to keep my
meeting with Jim a secret.
Exercise 13, p.141
5. Son to his mother: Gosh, Mom, everyone who came to the
class picnic was supposed to bring ____ own food. I
didn’t know that, so I didn’t have anything to eat. I ’m
really hungry!
6. A university lecture: I will end my lecture today by saying
that I believe a teacher needs to work in partnership
with ___ students.
7. A magazine article: People do not always see things the
same way. Each person has ____ own way of
understanding a situation.
Answers
Most common answers:
2. they (informal) . . . want
3. his or her
4. them (informal)
5. their (informal)
6. his or her
7. his or her