Noun-Pronoun Agreement

1. Consistency with Pronouns Noun-Pronoun Agreement

2. Pronouns • A pronoun is the part of speech that substitutes for nouns or noun phrases and designates persons or things asked for: • It can take the place of a subject word (subject pronoun) I, you, he, she, it, we, they • It can take the place of an object word (object pronoun) me, you, him, her, it, us, them • It can take the place of a possessive word (possessive pronoun) my, mine, your, yours, his, hers, its, our, ours, their, theirs)

3. A pronoun must agree with its antecedent (Noun) Every pronoun must agree with its antecedent in number, gender, and person. The antecedent is the noun [or other pronoun] being replaced or that the pronoun refers to. • Sami purchased an airline ticket, and now he can’t find it. • Sami is the antecedent for he • “airline ticket” is the antecedent for “it.”

4. Number Agreement • Number refers to whether a pronoun or noun is singular or plural. • Sami purchased an airline ticket, and now he can’t find it. • Samiis singular; the pronoun he is also singular. • Airline ticketis singular; the pronoun it is also singular. • Airline passengers must show their photo-identification cards to the ticket agent. • Airline passengers is plural; the pronoun their is also plural.

5. Gender Agreement Gender refers to whether a pronoun or noun is masculine, feminine, or neuter. • Janewants to increaseher job opportunities by completing her college education. • Will Ali tell us about his scores? • Each passengeris a singular genderless antecedent, so the singular pronoun his or her is preferred usage. • The university has changed its recommendations for the new parking lot facility.

6. Person Agreement • Person refers to the point of view from which a sentence is written: first person (the person writing, I, WE), second person (the person written to, YOU),and third person (the person written about, HE, SHE, IT, THEY) • Incorrect: I hate to proofread my paper because proofreading is such a boring thing for you to do. • Incorrect: When a person turns thirty, your perspective on life changes in many ways. • Correct: When a person turns thirty, his or her perspective on life changes in many ways.

7. These Indefinite Pronouns are always singular

8. Indefinite Pronouns • Someone left his or her lights on. • Anyoneknowsthe story of the town? • Nobody wantshis or her name slandered. • Each of the participants wants to be on the team. • Neither of the men looks as if hewanted the job.

9. These Indefinite Pronouns are always Plural • The few who completed their assignments left early. • The police asked both witnesses if they saw the accident. • Several students expressed their interest in attending the course.

10. These pronouns can be singular or plural, depending on context

11. Using either … or, neither … nor, and not only … but also. • Of the two antecedents in the sentence, the pronoun must agree with the closerone. • Either Mary orthe students will bring theirnotebooks to the class. • Either the students orMary will bring hernotebooks to the class.

12. Using either … or, neither … nor, and not only … but also. • 3. Neither the woman nor the men will do theirexam on Friday. • 4. Neither the men nor the womanwill do her exam on Friday. • 5. Not only my parents but also my brotherfixed his car after the storm. • 6. Not only my brother but also my parents fixed their car after the storm.

13. Collective nounsare singular or plural, depending on context • Collective nouns are groups of individual: team, jury, class, committee, army, family, etc. • If all members are acting as one unit, treat the collective noun as singular and use a singular pronoun or verb. • If, however, all members are acting individually, treat the noun as pluraland use a plural pronoun or verb.

14. Theteamcelebrateditsvictory. The team changed into their street clothes and went home happy.

15. Collective nounsare singular or plural, depending on context • The class is meeting in its scheduled room today. • The class must turn in their assignments tomorrow. • The union can do only as much as its members allow. • This is the army, and it is a fine organization. • My family are fighting among themselves.

16. Activity: Choose the correct Answer in the following: 1. Not only my brothers but also mom loves to drench _________ omelets in ketchup. • their • her • his and her • its

17. Activity: Choose the correct Answer in the following: 2. Each of those worried students is wondering how to answer effectively on ________ pronoun agreement quiz. • their • her • his or her • them

18. Activity: Choose the correct Answer in the following: 3. The girls and their professor sweated in the hot classroom. Each one of them wondered why ________ had decided to go to summer school. • they • her • his or her • she

19. Activity: Choose the correct Answer in the following: 4. Robert and Sue concentrated on the essay topic. ________ discussed different ideas on how to begin writing. • He • She • They • He or she

20. Activity: Choose the correct Answer in the following: 5. Either of these thick books by respected authors will have the answer to your research question in _______ many pages. • his • his or her • its • their

21. Activity: Choose the correct Answer in the following: 6. Sam is starving, and his friends have just ordered their meals. Despite Sam’s hunger, neither of them will pay for ______ share in the meal. • their • him • his • its

22. Activity: Choose the correct Answer in the following: 7. Carl refuses to return to the weight room because ______ staff always pokes fun of his skinny arms and legs. • his • their • her • its

23. Activity: Choose the correct Answer in the following: 8. The students should memorize a Shakespeare poem for Mr. Adam because the extra credit points will help them improve _________ grades at the end of the semester. • they • his or her • their • them

24. Activity: Choose the correct Answer in the following: 9. A person should be allowed to make up ___________ mind. • his or her • her • their • its

25. Activity: Choose the correct Answer in the following: 11. Either Sabrina or her friends will ask the professor for a permission to use _________ dictionaries in the exam. • her • their • his or her • them

26. Each of the girls makes (her – their) own clothes. The jury finally made (its – their) decision. It often seems that television programmers are not concerned with (its – their) viewers. Both Tim and Tony write to (his – their) mothers twice a week from camp. Neither the Library of Congress nor the New York Public Library has (its – their) own film rooms.

27. 6. Either of the two boys will offer (his – their) help. 7. Neither Jim nor the boys have (its – their) own private rooms. 8. Either the congressman or Senator James will give (his – their) speeches today. 9. American citizens must protect (its – their – his) rights. 10. Every person should turn in (her – his or her) own savings account.

28. 11. Neither the baseball players nor the managers want to lose (his – their) side of the argument. 12. Each student should turn in (his or her – their) paper on time. 13. Does everyone have (its –his) textbook? 14. Each of the freshmen women called (her – their) mother on the first day of the fall term.

29. 15. The President and Mrs. Clinton gave (his or her – their) speech on the occasion. 16. One of the girls agreed to drive (her – their) car in the trip. 17. Mr. Perry is a captain in the Navy; (he­ –she–they) is also a well-known author. 18. The crowd got confused when (it – they) saw the actor on stage.

30. (1) Perhaps because their country has a relatively short history, Americans are fascinated by its nation's past and their own. (2) America, the land of the immigrant, has become America the land of deeply rooted cultures. (3) Americans' fascination with his past takes many forms. (4) First, Americans eagerly search through dusty court records and yellowed newspapers to trace our ancestors' lives. (5) Family trees are constructed to trace its heritage from the present to the seventeenth century and, perhaps, even to the "old country."

31. (6) Second, the increasing memberships in ethnic and social organizations signal a renewed interest in the past. (7) For example, the Daughters of the American Revolution group still admits members to their elite roll. (9) Millions of people flock to Colonial Williamsburg each year to consider your country's past. (10) Also, ethnic festivals draw large crowds to its celebration of native foods and cultures.

32. (11) In the past, new American citizens cast off the culture and traditions of his "old countries" and instead were quickly assimilated into the mainstream of American society. (12) Today, however, each of us is quick to describe their family's lineage and residence in the United States.

33. 1. The tour group (is / are) arguing among (itself / themselves) about where to eat dinner. 2. The tour group (is / are) going to spend (its / their) first night in Paris. 3. The class (has / have) been told to put down (its / their) pencils when (it has / they have) finished the exam. 4. The class (is / are) working on (its / their) project for the school science fair. • ANSWERS: • 1. are, themselves (or "The TOURISTS are arguing among themselves . . . .") 2. is, its 3. have, their, they have (or "The class PARTICIPANTS have been told . . . ." or "The STUDENTS have been told . . . .")