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Working
on
Pronouns 2
-CASES OF PRONOUNS
-PRONOUN AND ANTECEDENT AGREEMENT

____________________________________
(Name)
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Good day!
In the last module, you were introduced to the different types of pronouns. And I am happy that you were able
to understand most of the lessons in your module. This time, you will be working on the CASES of PRONOUNS as well as
with PRONOUN AND ANTECEDENT AGREEMENT. As I have mentioned in your class, CASES depend on the FUNCTIONS
that is why you have to review your lesson on the FUNCTIONS of NOUNS since nouns and pronouns have the same
functions.

Pronoun Case
Pronoun Case is really a very simple matter. There are three cases.

1. Subjective case: Pronouns are in the subjective case or nominative case if they are used as subject or
predicate nominative.
Example: May and she will be our representatives. ( She is used as subject.)
Our representatives will be May and she. (she is used as predicate nominative)

2. Objective case: Pronouns are in the objective case if they are used as direct, indirect objects or objects
prepositions.
Example: God loves him. (Him is used as a direct object)
Cris’ parents give him a monthly allowance. (Him is used as indirect object)
This gift is for him. (Him is used as object of the preposition.
3. Possessive case: Pronouns are in the possessive case if they express ownership.
Example: That bag is hers.
Mind your own business and ignore ours.
If you have understood the explanation above, you may now answer Exercise A. If you have any
question, ask your teacher.

Exercise A. Mark the circle beside the correct pronoun. Number 1 is done for you.

1 . Five of ( we, us, ourselves) took a cab to the play.

2. Are you and ( they, them, themselves) attending the meeting.
3. No one is more concerned about the matter than ( she, her, herself).
4. ( Who, Whom) can I go out with tonight?
5. Margaret and ( I, me, myself) hope to be roommates.
6. The committee told Smith and ( they, them, themselves) to write a new resolution.
7. Is he the one for ( who, whom) the note is intended?
8. We discovered that it was ( they, them, themselves) who started the fire.
9. Everyone asked Joan and ( he, him, himself) to speak at the convention.
10. A person as young as ( she, her, herself) should not be given too much responsibility.
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PRONOUN AND ANTECEDENT AGREEMENT

A pronoun and its antecedent must agree. An antecedent is the word or group of words for which the pronoun
stands.

AGREEMENT BETWEEN PERSONAL PRONOUNS AND ANTECEDENTS

A personal pronoun indicates if its antecedent in number, person, and gender.

The number of a pronoun indicates if it is singular or plural. Person refers to a pronoun ‘s ability to indicate
either the person speaking (1st person);the person spoken to (2nd person); or the person, place, or thing spoken about
(third person). Gender is the characteristic of nouns and pronouns that indicates whether the word is masculine
(referring to males); feminine (referring to females); or neuter (referring to males or females).

The only pronouns that indicate gender are third-person singular personal pronouns.

In the example below, the pronoun his agrees in its antecedent, Kevin, in number (both are singular), in person
(both are third person), in gender (both are masculine).

EXAMPLE: Kevin is very generous with his money.

AGREEMENT IN NUMBER

When an antecedent is compound, making the noun agree can be a problem. Keep the following three rules in
mind to determine the number of compound antecedents.

Use a singular personal pronoun with two or more singular antecedents joined by or or nor.

Example: Either Vincent or Carlo will bring his stereo.

Use a plural personal pronoun with two or more antecedents joined by and.

Example: Melissa and I are studying for our examinations.

Use a plural personal pronoun if any part of a compound antecedent joined by or or nor is plural.

Example: When the boys or their sister comes home, give them this message.

AGREEMENT IN PERSON AND GENDER

When dealing with pronoun-antecedent agreement, take care not to shift either or person or gender.

SHIFT IN PERSON: Mike is attending the public high school because you pay less tuition there.

CORRECT: Mike is attending the public high school because he pays less tuition there.

SHIFT IN GENDER: The horse threw its head back and stood on his hind legs.

CORRECT: The horse threw its head back and stood on its hind legs.
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You may now answer the following exercise.

EXERCISE A: Write an appropriate personal pronoun to complete each sentence.

1. Boris and Leo improved ____ act by constant practice.

2. If the dark blue print or the pale yellow is not oil-based, don’t use ___.
3. Neither the bed nor the rugs retained ____ new look.
4. All the participants showed ____ appreciation.
5. Neither Marc nor Sam brought ____ radio to the game.
6. Lincoln is Nebraska’s capital and Omaha is ____ largest city.
7. My parents give me ____ permission to go on trip.
8. Andy and Louis sold several acres of their ____ property.
9. Either Jane or Wendy left ____ scarf in the car.
10. Ms. Stone and ___ secretary attended the convention.

EXERCISE B. Rewrite each sentence , correcting the unnecessary shift in person or gender.

1. Each girl must submit their report before leaving.

________________________________________

2. Those hiker s will soon realize that you cannot walk for miles in shoes meant for dress wear.
__________________________________________________________________________
3. The welders wear goggles so that your eyes will be shielded from the sparks.
______________________________________________________________
4. Trying to protect its calf, the cow disregarded her own safety as the coyotes approaches.
________________________________________________________________________
5. We learned in Chemistry that you should often try again.
_____________________________________________

INDEFINITE PRONOUNS AS ANTECEDENTS

 Singular indefinite pronoun antecedents take singular pronoun referents.

Example:
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 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:
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Marbles are countable; therefore, the sentence has a plural referent pronoun.

Jewels are countable; therefore, the sentence has a plural referent pronoun.

COMPOUND SUBJECTS JOINED BY AND ALWAYS TAKE A PLURAL REFERENT.

Example:

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."
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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.

TITLES OF SINGLE ENTITIES. (books, organizations, countries, etc.) take a singular referent.

EXAMPLES:

PLURAL FORM SUBJECTS WITH A SINGULAR MEANING take a singular referent. (news, measles, mumps,
physics, etc)
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EXAMPLE:

EVERY OR MANY A before a noun or a series of nouns requires a singular referent.

EXAMPLES:

THE NUMBER OF VS A NUMBER OF before a subject:

 The number of is singular.

 A number of is plural.

If you have clarifications, do not hesitate to ask your teacher. If everything is clear, you may answer the exercises that
follow.
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EXERCISE 1. Check the correct sentences.

One of the students must give their oral report tomorrow.

One of the students must give his oral report tomorrow.
Everybody was hoping to have his lottery number picked.
Everybody was hoping to have their lottery number picked.

If anyone doesn't like the music I'm playing, they can go somewhere else.
If anyone doesn't like the music I'm playing, he or she can go somewhere else.
One of my friends must bring their tapes to the party.
Everyone should take his work seriously.
Since it was cold and windy, the boys had to wear his caps.
Sara and Jen had to finish their homework before they could go to the movies.
In the first-day confusion, neither of the teachers could find his classroom.

EXERCISE 2. Directions: Replace the underlined noun(s) in each sentence with the correct pronoun
referent.

1.A hospital cares for patients as well as a hospital can.

2. No matter how hard she tried, Marjorie Roberts could not find Marjorie’s briefcase.
3. A person who follows a person’s ideals may find life difficult but rewarding.
4. Janet, George, and Paula were surprised when Janet’s, George’s, and Paula’s escorts did not arrive on time.
5. Although it was dangerous, the three police officers kept. order until the police officers got some
reinforcements.
6. We felt that Joe followed Joe’s instinct to uncover the murderer.
7. Neither the two dogs nor the cat receives the two dogs or the cat’s food tonight.
8. Joanne decided that Joanne could not take five courses successfully this semester.
9. The hungry boy stood at the counter patiently, then the boy gobbled the hot dog and french fries.
10. Either President Bush or the senators will have to give P President Bush’s or the senators’ approval for the
emergency measures to pass.

Congratulations.