PronounsGrammar

Pronouns

• Words such as he, she, it, and they are used to replace nouns.

The First Pronoun Rule: Agreement

• A pronoun must always agree with the noun to which it refers (antecedent).

• Any young boy who watched the first moon landing probably spent the next few years wishing that they could become an astronaut.

• In spoken English, people make pronoun agreement errors all the time. • In written English, you have to be precise.• Boy (the antecedent) is singular, therefore, the pronoun replacing it must

also be singular.• Any young boy who watched the first moon landing probably spent the

next few years wishing he could become an astronaut.

Commonly Used Singular and Plural Pronouns

• Neither of the two young girls with whom I watched the first moon landing expressed their feelings out loud, but I knew that all three of us wanted to be astronauts.

• Neither and either are considered singular. Therefore, in this sentence, it is incorrect to use the possesive pronoun « their. »

• We should use « her » instead.• Neither of the two young girls with whom I watched the first

moon landing expressed her feelings out loud, but I knew that all three of us wanted to be astronauts.

Indefinite Pronouns

ACT

• Although the American bald eagle has been on the endangered species list for years, they have been sighted in wildlife preserves much more frequently during the past two years.

A. NO CHANGEB. they areC. it can beD. it has been

ACT Clues

• Even if you missed the pronoun as you read the sentence, you almost certainly would have noticed that the answer choices offered you two different pronouns.

• Look out for pronouns in the answer choices. • Should the pronoun be singular or plural?• Is the pronoun being used as a subject or an

object?

2nd Pronoun Rule

Pronoun Case

Pronoun Case

• If a pronoun is the subject of a sentence, it must be expressed as a subject.

• Subject pronouns include I, we, you, he, she, it, they and who.

• If a pronoun is the object of a sentence, or the object of a preposition, it must be expressed as an object.

• Object pronouns include me, us, you, him, her, it, them, and whom.

• Which choice best fits the sentence?• (She/Her) bought a souvenir NASA sweatshirt.• Because the person who buys the shirt is the

subject of the sentence, the correct pronoun is “she.”

• Jane bought a souvenir NASA sweatshirt for (he/him).

• Because the person who receives the shirt is the object of the preposition “for,” the correct pronoun is “him.”

Who/Whom

• Before the moon landing, the TV announcer gave some additional background on the astronauts about who we were all quite interested.

• This sentence is incorrect because the pronoun is the object of the preposition “about.”

• Before the moon landing, the TV announcer gave some additional background on the astronauts about whom we were all quite interested.

ACT

• The students, who had been studying the space program, were thrilled to witness the lunar landing.

A. NO CHANGEB. about whom had been studying the space program,C. whom had been studying the space program,D. who had been studying the space program

Work Cited

• Martz, Geoff, Kim Magloire, and Theodore Silver. Cracking the ACT. 2007 ed. New York: Random House, 2007.