Lesson 5.06: Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement
Always plural such as:
Both, Many, Others, Several, All, Few.
Always singular such as:
Each, Either, Neither, Everyone, Everybody, No one, Nobody, Nothing, Other, Someone, Somebody, Something.
Singular
If the pronoun is referring to one person or thing. Such as: He, She, It, Him, Her, It, His, Hers, Its, Himself, Herself, Itself. If all members of the group are acting together, they are acting as one.
Plural
If the pronoun is referring to two or more. Such as: They, Them, Themselves. If all members of the group are acting individually, then they aren't working together as one, but as many together.
Pronoun
It can replace a noun or another pronoun; therefore, it can be the subject of a sentence. It must agree with its antecedent. It is either singular or plural.
Indefinite pronoun
It cause trouble sometimes because they refer to an identifiable but not specifiable person or thing. Such as: All, Many, Some, Such.
Possessive pronoun
It does not take the apostrophe.
It's
It is.
Collective nouns
It refer to groups of people. They may be singular or plural depending on the context of the sentence. Thus, the pronouns referring to the collective noun may be singular or plural. Examples: - The congregation [collective noun] of alligators slept peacefully in its [congregation is singular because the alligators are all sleeping at the same time as one] spot on the riverbank. - A sleuth [collective noun] of bears pilfered through the garbage to find their [sleuth is plural because the bears would all eat at the same time. They are going through the garbage at separate times] dinner. - A charm [collective noun] of hummingbirds fluttered by the window before moving on to its [the hummingbirds are acting as one when they fly by ; that is why the singular pronoun is taken] next house.
Antecedent
Its sentence usually a noun that the pronoun replaces. Example: Ms. Crow [subject of the sentence and the antecedent of her] tripped over her [pronoun] feet. She [subject] is clumsy!
Its
Possessive pronoun.
Plural antecedent
Two or more subjects joined by [and ]
Has anyone lost ( her , their ) jacket?
her
Neither Mary nor Laura has turned in ( her , their ) report.
her
Either the players or the coach will receive ( his , their ) trophy
his
Everyone should be in ( his or her , their ) seat before the bell rings.
his or her
At the zoo, every lion, tiger, bear, and crocodile roared ( its , their ) voice with anticipation of the visitors.
its
Some of the vanilla has lost ( its , their ) flavor.
its
All of the children were excited to see ( his or her , their ) parents after the spend the night party.
their
Both Mr. Perkins and Mr. King have commitments and can't attend ( his , their ) reunion.
their