Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement

Some Basic Terms to Know:

•Pronoun- a word used in place of a

noun
•Antecedent- the noun that the
pronoun replaces or refers to
- a word for which a
pronoun stands.
Example:
Antecedent

Mr. and Mrs. Samuels are painting

their house.

Referent
Arjay put his book on the table.

Queeny bit her lip.

Ruby sold her bike to buy in-line

skates.
 Example:

President Lincoln delivered Lincoln’s

Gettysburg Address in 1863.

President Lincoln delivered his

Gettysburg Address in 1863.
 Agreement

A pronoun must agree with its

antecedent in three ways:
• Person refers to first, second, or third
person.
• Number distinguishes between
singular and plural.
• Gender distinguishes masculine or
feminine
 Steps for Determining Antecedent
Agreement

1. Identify the pronoun.

2. Decide to whom or to what this
pronoun refers or what it replaces
the antecedent.
3. Identify the person, gender, and
number of the referenced pronoun.
4. Determine if the person, gender,
and number are the same for the
pronoun and the antecedent.

• If they are, you have agreement.

• If they are not the same, you
have a correction to make.
 9 Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement
Rules:

1. A phrase or clause between the

subject and verb does not change the
number of the antecedent.

Example:
The can of lima beans sits on its shelf.

singular singular
prepositional phrase
 Note: If you get confused, try
taking the phrase or clause out of
the sentence.

Example:
Dr. Ellen Wong finished her report.
(singular)

The doctors finished their reports.

(plural)
2. Indefinite pronouns as antecedents
• Singular indefinite pronoun
antecedents take singular pronoun
referents.
Singular: another, anybody, anyone,
anything, each, either, enough,
everybody, everyone, everything,
little, much, neither, nobody, no one,
nothing, one, other, somebody,
someone, something
Examples:
Each of the clerks does a good deal of work around his or her office.

singular singular

Everyone in my English class does his or her homework.

singular singular
• Plural indefinite pronoun
antecedents require plural referents.
Plural: both, few, many, others

Example:
Both do a good job in their office.

plural plural
• Some indefinite pronouns that are
modified by a prepositional phrase
may be either singular or plural.

Either Singular or Plural: all, any,

more, most, none, some, such
 All of the jewelry has lost its glow

singular singular
When the object of the preposition is
uncountable use a singular
referent pronoun.

Examples:
Some of the sugar fell out of its bag

singular singular
When the object of the preposition is
countable use a plural referent
pronoun
Examples:
Some of the marbles fell out of their bag.

plural
plural
All of the jewels have lost their glow.

plural plural
 3. Compound subjects joined by
and always take a plural referent.

Examples:
Jones and Smith made their presentation.

plural plural
Joan and Jim moved to the mountains, where they built a cabin.

plural plural
4. 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):
Neither the director nor the actors did their jobs.

singular plural plural

Example #2 (singular antecedent closer to
pronoun):

Neither the actors nor the director did his or her job.

plural singular singular

5. Collective Nouns (group, jury,
crowd, team, etc.) may be singular
or plural, depending on meaning.

Examples:
The jury reads its verdict.

singular singular
The jury members gave their individual opinions

plural plural
6. Titles of single entities. (books,
organizations, countries, etc.) take a
singular referent.
Example:
The Grapes of Wrath made its character seem real.

singular singular
7. Plural form subjects with a singular
meaning take a singular referent.
(news, measles, mumps, physics,
mathematics, ethics, politics, social
studies, etc.)
Example:
The news has lost much of its sting two days later.

singular singular
8. Every or Many a before a noun or
a series of nouns requires a singular
referent.
Example:
Many a girl wishes she could sing like Taylor Swift.

singular singular
9. The number of vs. A number of
before a subject:
• The number of is singular.

Example:
The number of volunteers increases its ranks daily.

singular singular
 • A number of is plural.

Example:
A number of volunteers are offering their help.

plural plural