Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement
Overview
Just like in subject-verb agreement, it is important that pronouns and their antecedents
agree with each other. This will help in making utterances clear and be understood better. It
will avoid miscommunication between the speaker and the receiver.
Learning Outcomes
1. Familiarize with the rules in pronoun-antecedent agreement.
2. Apply the rules learned in writing.
Content
A. Introductory Activity
Read the comic strip below. Did you notice any grammatical errors in it? Or is there
anything that the characters said that made the conversation unclear? Would you like to
tell the class what may be wrong with the utterances? What needs to be done in order to
correct it?
https://explosm.net/comics/2606/
B. Developmental Activity
A pronoun is a word used to stand for (or take the place of) a noun. A word can refer to
an earlier noun or pronoun in the sentence.
Example:
We do not talk or write this way. Automatically, we replace the noun Lincoln's with a
pronoun. More naturally, we say
The pronoun his refers back to President Lincoln. President Lincoln is
the ANTECEDENT for the pronoun his.
An antecedent is a word for which a pronoun stands. (ante = "before")
The pronoun must agree with its antecedent in number.
Rule: A singular pronoun must replace a singular noun; a plural pronoun must replace a
plural noun.
Thus, the mechanics of the sentence above look like this:
Here are nine pronoun-antecedent agreement rules. These rules are related to the rules
found in subject-verb agreement.
1. A phrase or clause between the subject and verb does not change the number
of the antecedent.
Example:
2. Indefinite pronouns as antecedents
• Singular indefinite pronoun antecedents take singular pronoun referents.
SINGULAR: each, either, neither, one, no one, nobody, nothing, anyone, anybody,
anything, someone, somebody, something, everyone, everybody, everything
Example:
• Plural indefinite pronoun antecedents require plural referents.
PLURAL: several, few, both, many
Example:
• Some indefinite pronouns that are modified by a prepositional phrase may be either
singular or plural.
EITHER SINGULAR OR PLURAL: some, any, none, all, most
Examples:
Sugar is uncountable; therefore, the sentence has a singular referent pronoun.
Jewelry is uncountable; therefore, the sentence has a singular referent pronoun.
Examples:
Marbles are countable; therefore, the sentence has a plural referent pronoun.
Jewels are countable; therefore, the sentence has a plural referent pronoun.
3. Compound subjects joined by and always take a plural referent.
Example:
4. With compound subjects joined by or/nor, the referent pronoun agrees with the
antecedent closer to the pronoun.
Example #1 (plural antecedent closer to pronoun):
Example #2 (singular antecedent closer to pronoun):
Note: Example #1, with the plural antecedent closer to the pronoun, creates a
smoother sentence than example #2, which forces the use of the singular "his or her."
5. Collective Nouns (group, jury, crowd, team, etc.) may be singular or
plural, depending on meaning.
In this example, the jury is acting as one unit; therefore, the referent pronoun is
singular.
In this example, the jury members are acting as twelve individuals; therefore, the
referent pronoun is plural.
In this example, the jury members are acting as twelve individuals; therefore, the
referent pronoun is plural.
6. Titles of single entities. (books, organizations, countries, etc.) take a
singular referent.
EXAMPLES:
7. Plural form subjects with a singular meaning take a singular referent. (news,
measles, mumps, physics, etc.)
EXAMPLE:
8. Every or Many a before a noun or a series of nouns requires a singular referent.
EXAMPLES:
9. The number of vs A number of before a subject:
• The number of is singular.
• A number of is plural.
Note!
Personal Pronouns
he, she, it- singular
they, you, we- plural
Possessive Pronouns
his, her/hers, its-singular
their/theirs, our/ours, your/yours-plural
Object pronouns
him, her, it-singular
us, you, them-plural
Practice Exercise
Test I.
Directions: Read each sentence carefully. Underline the pronoun and encircle the
antecedent.
1. The man of the house could give guests an idea of reassures he kept.
2. Neither Carmen nor her sisters have brought a gift for their brother.
3. Some of the equipment was still packed in its containers.
4. All of the mineral water has lost its sparkle.
5. Sandra, I believe that you need to see the coach.
Directions: Re-write the following sentences, correcting any vague pronoun-antecedent
agreement. Write your answers on a clean ½ crosswise yellow paper.
6. If anyone would like to come with us, you should get ready now.
7. Neither the father nor his sons knew his way out of the deep dark forest.
8. Anyone in the Secret Society of Women Only knows their secret handshakes.
9. Bob gave his father his pocketknife.
10. If anyone saw the crash, they should call the police.
GRADED INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCE TASK
On a short bond paper, write about one of your happiest experiences as a
college student. Write it in two to three paragraphs and give it a title. Make sure
to apply the rules and principles that you have learned about punctuation marks,
capitalization, subject-verb agreement, pronouns, etc.
Also, please follow the simple format below for uniformity.
Name:__________________ Subject: __________
Program and Block: _____ Date Submitted: __
Your Title
Here goes the body of your essay._______________________________________
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