Pronoun Agreement

A pronoun takes the place of a noun in a sentence. In your sentences, you need to make sure that your pronouns match their antecedents (the noun that they rename or take the place of) in number and character. Always use singular pronouns with singular nouns and plural pronouns with plural nouns. The singular pronouns are those such as he, she, it, I, and sometimes you. Plural pronouns are those such as they, we, and sometimes you.

 

Avoid Shifting Characters When Using Pronouns

When using pronouns in your sentences, avoid shifting from one character to another:

Example of Pronoun Shift If Orlando wants to make Rosalind love him, you need to learn to write poems.

The pronouns in this sentence do not agree—the sentence contains a shift from Orlando to you. You should correct the sentence like this:

Correct Example If Orlando wants to make Rosalind love him, he needs to learn to write poems.

 

Avoid Overusing Pronouns

If you have several people or places in your sentence, avoid using too many pronouns—this can confuse your readers because of the number of antecedents.

Example of Pronoun Overuse Hamlet and Laertes were friends, but then he killed his father.

In the first clause, two men are named, but in the second clause it is unclear to whom “he” and “his” refer. This sentence is clearer when written like this:

Correct Example Hamlet and Laertes were friends, but then Hamlet killed Laertes’ father.

 

Avoid Incorrect Pronoun Usage

Use who and whom to refer to people and groups of individuals, never that.

Example of Incorrect Pronoun Usage Falstaff, that is very fat, is one of Shakespeare’s funniest characters.

Correct Example Falstaff is a person, but the pronoun “that” refers to an object, not person. You can correct his sentence like this:

Falstaff, who is very fat, is one of Shakespeare’s funniest characters.

 

Special Note on Who and Whom

Who is a subject pronoun, which means that it does the action in the sentence; whom is an object pronoun, which means that it receives the action in the sentence. When in doubt, this chart can help determine which one to use.

Subject	She/He/They	Who
Object	Her/Him/Them	Whom
Possessive	Hers/His/Their	Whose
Contraction	She’s/He’s/They’re	Who’s

 

Note If the sentence sounds right using he, then who is the correct pronoun to use because they are both subject pronouns. If it sounds better with him, then use whom because they are both object pronouns.

 

 

 

Exercises

Part 1

Each sentence has a problem with pronoun agreement. Identify the pronouns that do not agree and correct the sentence.

1. You can do anything if we set your mind to it.

2. When I saw that delicious sandwich, you wanted to eat it all by myself.

3. When you want something, someone should reach out and get it.

4. If I can make it there, they can make it anywhere all by myself.

5. Quentin and his roommate, Shreve, always talk about stories you heard on vacation.

 

Part 2

Each sentence has too many pronouns. Identify the pronouns that are unclear and correct them.

1. Ashley, Megan, and Cordelia are all cheerleaders, but she also does gymnastics.

2. Brutus talks to Caesar because he wants him to be in power.

3. Bob thinks that Adam is very old and tired, but he is young and in love.

4. The dog and the man both escape from the forest, but he wants to go back.

5. When animals are in trouble, they need to do something to save them.

 

Part 3

Some of the sentences below have problems with “who/whom” usage, but some are correct. Identify whether the sentence is correct (C) or incorrect (I), then correct the incorrect pronouns.

C   I   1. Whom took the last cookie from the jar?

C   I   2. Whom did you get that from?

C   I   4. Thieves whom get caught are usually not very careful.

C   I   5. Who will read the next passage?

C   I   6. She cannot stand to be around men whom gamble and drink all night.

 

Answers

Part 1

1. You can do anything if we set your mind to it.
You can do anything if you set your mind to it

2. When I saw that delicious sandwich, you wanted to eat it all by myself.

3. When you want something, someone should reach out and get it.
When you want something, you should reach out and get it.

4. If I can make it there, they can make it anywhere all by myself.
If I can make it there, I can make it anywhere all by myself.

5. Quentin and his roommate, Shreve, always talk about stories you heard on vacation.
Quentin and his roommate, Shreve, always talk about stories they heard on vacation.

 

Part 2

Each sentence has too many pronouns. Identify the pronouns that are unclear and correct them.

1. Ashley, Megan, and Cordelia are all cheerleaders, but she also does gymnastics.
Ashley, Megan, and Cordelia are all cheerleaders, but Ashley also does gymnastics.

2. Brutus talks to Caesar because he wants him to be in power.
Brutus talks to Caesar because Brutus wants Caesar to be in power.

3. Bob thinks that Adam is very old and tired, but he is young and in love.
Bob thinks that Adam is very old and tired, but Bob is young and in love.

4. The dog and the man both escape from the forest, but he wants to go back.
The dog and the man both escape from the forest, but the dog wants to go back.

5. When people see that animals are in trouble, they need to do something to save them.
When people see that animals are in trouble, the people need to do something to save the animals.

 

Part 3

Some of the sentences below have problems with “who/whom” usage, but some are correct. Identify whether the sentence is correct (C) or incorrect (I), then correct the incorrect pronouns.

C   I   1. Whom took the last cookie from the jar?
Who took the last cookie from the jar?

C   I   2. Whom did you get that from?

C   I   3. Thieves whom get caught are usually not very careful.
Thieves who get caught are usually not very careful.

C   I   4. Who will read the next passage?

C   I   5. She cannot stand to be around men whom gamble and drink all night.
She cannot stand to be around men who gamble and drink all night.

 

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