Download Basic Noun-Pronoun Agreement

Basic Noun-Pronoun Agreement
Nouns and their pronouns make another set of teammates who must agree not only on
the direction in which they are going to run, but on the type of play they are going to use
to score a point. That is, they need to agree on two things:
Number (singular/one or plural/more than one)
Gender (male, female, neutral)
For example, the following sentences do not make sense since the pronouns do not agree
with their nouns in number (1st sentence) or gender (2nd sentence):
Elvis sightings have occurred more abundantly in the last two years; he has
been occurring at the rate of ten per month.
I know a woman who likes Elvis Presley's music so much, he trained her dog
(named Elvis) to thump her tail and bark in rhythm to all of its tapes.
The sentences do make sense when the pronoun gender and number is straightened out:
Elvis sightings have occurred more abundantly in the last two years; they have
been occurring at the rate of ten per month.
("Sightings" is the noun to which the pronoun refers; it is plural and thus
requires the plural pronoun "they" to make sense. Note that the verb changes as
well since verbs have to agree with their nouns [or pronouns].)
I know a woman who likes Elvis Presley's music so much, she trained her dog
(named Elvis) to thump his tail and bark in rhythm to all of her tapes.
("Woman" is a feminine noun, so it requires the feminine pronoun "her." You
can assume, because of its name, that the dog is male, so it would be more
correct to say "his" tail. If you don't know the dog's gender, you could say "its"
tail. Yet "its" does not make sense when referring to the tapes, since the neutral
pronoun "its" implies that the tapes belong to the dog. So you could say "her
tapes," to show that they belong to the woman, or "his tapes" to refer to the
tapes of Elvis' singing.)
It's simple, right? Yet there are two major stumbling blocks with noun-pronoun
agreement:
Tricky Indefinite Pronouns:
In most cases, it is clear whether a pronoun's antecedent is singular or plural. For
instance, the word girls is plural, so it needs a plural pronoun like they or them or their.
On the other hand, the word girl is singular, so it clearly needs a singular pronoun like
she or her.
But what about indefinite pronouns--such as all, any, both, each, every, few, many,
neither, nobody, and none? They do not refer to a specific, definite person. Thus they are
called "indefinite pronouns." The indefinite pronouns are a bit trickier than relative
pronouns. These
indefinite pronouns may be singular or
plural; however, there a few of these pronouns that can
be singular in one context (usage) and plural in another
context (usage)—please refer to the chart below labeled
“Indefinite Pronouns Chart). The following pronouns are always
singular grammatically, even though it might seem they should be plural:







each
anybody
somebody
nobody
everybody
one
anyone








everyone
someone
neither
either
nothing
anything
everything
something
NOTE: A good rule of thumb to remember is that all the words ending in -one, -thing,
and -body are singular. Thus, in formal grammar, we would write sentences such as
"everyone took his book to class with him" or "everybody in the cheerleading squad took
her gymbag with her to the game."
The words ending in -one and -body must use a singular form, even though these words
might seem to be plural when we think of "everybody in a crowd" or "everybody in
Texas." Don't think of the word that way. Instead, think of it as being equivalent to
"every single individual." For example, "Every single student took his book to class with
him" is equivalent to "everyone took his book to class with him." Just as each single
student is singular, everyone is also considered singular.
Remember that these pronouns all use singular verbs. We write that, "Everybody is here."
We don't write, "Everybody are here." Just as everybody uses a singular form of the verb,
in the same way, it must use other singular pronouns in reference to itself when it is the
antecedent in a sentence.
The following sentences in red are incorrect grammatically:
NO! WRONG! "Everyone took their book to class with them that day." The sentence
should state, "Everyone took his book with him that day" or "Everyone took her book
with her to class that day."
NO! WRONG! "Nobody brought their homework, however." The sentence should state,
"Nobody brought his homework" or "Nobody brought her homework."
NO! WRONG! " Someone left their socks in the hallway." The sentence should state,
"Somebody left her socks in the hallway" or "Somebody left his socks in the hallway."
On the Other Hand . . .
However, the following pronouns are always plural in grammatical usage:
o
o
o
o
o
both
several
few
many
all
These words all require plural pronouns (like they, them, and their) and they all use plural
verbs.
For example, the following sentences in blue are punctuated correctly, but those
sentences in red are incorrect grammatically:
YES! CORRECT! Both of them are coming home tonight.
NO! WRONG! Both of them is coming home tonight.
YES! CORRECT! Several performances are scheduled for next week.
NO! WRONG! Several performances is scheduled for next week.
YES! CORRECT! All are guilty of transgression in their hearts.
NO! WRONG! All is guilty of transgression in his heart.
An indefinite pronoun does not refer to any specific person, thing or amount. It is vague
and "not definite". Some typical indefinite pronouns are:

all, another, any, anybody/anyone, anything, each, everybody/everyone,
everything, few, many, nobody, none, one, several, some, somebody/someone
Note that many indefinite pronouns also function as other parts of speech. Look at
"another" in the following sentences:


He has one job in the day and another at night. (pronoun)
I'd like another drink, please. (adjective)
Most indefinite pronouns are either singular or plural. However, some of them can be
singular in one context and plural in another. The most common indefinite pronouns
are listed below, with examples, as singular, plural or singular/plural.
Notice that a singular pronoun takes a singular verb AND that any personal pronoun
should also agree (in number and gender). Look at these examples:


Each of the players has a doctor.
I met two girls. One has given me her phone number.
Similarly, plural pronouns need plural agreement:

Many have expressed their views
INDEFINITE PRONOUN CHART.
pronoun
Meaning
example
another
an additional or different person
or thing
That ice-cream was good. Can
I have another?
anybody/anyone
no matter what person
Can anyone answer this
question?
anything
no matter what thing
The doctor needs to know if
you have eaten anything in the
last two hours.
each
every one of two or more people
or things, seen separately
Each has his own thoughts.
either
one or the other of two people or
things
Do you want tea or coffee? / I
don't mind. Either is good for
me.
enough
as much or as many as needed
Enough is enough.
everybody/everyone
all people
We can start the meeting
because everybody has
arrived.
everything
all things
They have no house or
possessions. They lost
everything in the earthquake.
less
a smaller amount
"Less is more" (Mies van der
Rohe)
little
a small amount
Little is known about his early
life.
much
a large amount
Much has happend since we
met.
neither
not one and not the other of two
people or things
I keep telling Jack and Jill but
neither believes me.
nobody/no-one
no person
I phoned many times but
nobody answered.
Singular
nothing
no single thing, not anything
If you don't know the answer
it's best to say nothing.
one
an unidentified person
Can one smoke here? | All the
students arrived but now one is
missing.
other
a different person or thing from
one already mentioned
One was tall and the other was
short.
somebody/someone
an unspecified or unknown
person
Clearly somebody murdered
him. It was not suicide.
something
an unspecified or unknown
thing
Listen! I just heard something!
What could it be?
you
an unidentified person
(informal)
And you can see why.
both
two people or things, seen
together
John likes coffee but not tea. I
think both are good.
few
a small number of people or
things
Few have ever disobeyed him
and lived.
fewer
a reduced number of people or
things
Fewer are smoking these days.
Many
a large number of people or
things
Many have come already.
Others
other people; not us
I'm sure that others have tried
before us.
Several
more than two but not many
They all complained and
several left the meeting.
They
People in general (informal)
They say that vegetables are
good for you.
All
the whole quantity of something
or of some things or people
All is forgiven.
All have arrived.
Any
no matter how much or how
Is any left?
Plural
singular or plural
many
Are any coming?
More
a greater quantity of something;
a greater number of people or
things
There is more over there.
More are coming.
Most
the majority; nearly all
Most is lost.
Most have refused.
None
not any; no person or persons
They fixed the water so why is
none coming out of the tap?
I invited five friends but none
have come.*
Some
an unspecified quantity of
something; an unspecified
number of people or things
Here is some.
Some have arrived.
Such
of the type already mentioned
He was a foreigner and he felt
that he was treated as such.
* Some people say that "none" should always take a singular verb, even when talking
about countable nouns (eg five friends). They argue that "none" means "no one", and
"one" is obviously singular. They say that "I invited five friends but none has come" is
correct and "I invited five friends but none have come" is incorrect. Historically and
grammatically there is little to support this view. "None" has been used for hundreds of
years with both a singular and a plural verb, according to the context and the emphasis
required.
Above chart retrieved from: http://www.englishclub.com/grammar/pronounsindefinite.htm
Exercises
EXERCISE 1: UNDERLINE THE CORRECT WORD OR WORDS IN THE
PARENTHESES. ALSO, UNDERLINE THE ANTECEDENT OF THE PRONOUN.
1.
Someone has removed the grammar book, and I want (him, them) to return it.
2.
Although I knew somebody called me, I did not answer (her, them).
3.
Each man must do what (he, they) feel(s) is right.
4.
Everybody in the lab was ready to complete (her, their) assignment.
5.
No one wants to admit (his, their) weaknesses.
6.
Everybody wanted to claim (his, their) strengths.
7.
One of the students lost (his, their) books.
8.
Anybody who wants to improve (his, their) grades may sometimes need help.
9.
All of the students have arrived to (his, their) classroom.
10.
Either Ms. Marco or Ms. Linko wants to sell (her, their) car.
Agreement: cross out the correct pronoun, placing correct version above it. If correct,
place the letter C at the end of the sentence.
15.
Every student furnished her own transportation.
16.
Each band member brought his own instrument.
17.
The collection of books was famous for their popularity with young people.
18.
The media wants to set its own hours for meeting with the staff.
19.
Either Paul or Jim will lend me their notes.
20.
Bad news always has its way of traveling fast.
21.
The jury gave their verdict at sundown.
22.
The United States expressed their disapproval of the war.
23.
The United Nations didn’t give its approval either.
24.
Before the game, the team must try on its new uniforms.
There are a number of online quizzes available to check you skill in pronoun agreement.
One such site is: http://www.esc.edu/online-writing-center/exercise-room/noun-pronounagreement/