Language Arts: Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement
Matching pronouns correctly with their antecedents
Language Arts: Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement
Matching pronouns correctly with their antecedents
Language Arts - Grade 6-8
- 1
Choose the correct pronoun: Each student must bring (his or her, their) signed permission slip.
Look for the word each. It refers to one person at a time.
The correct choice is his or her because the singular antecedent each student takes a singular pronoun in traditional agreement. - 2
Choose the correct pronoun: The players hung up (his or her, their) uniforms after the game.
The correct choice is their because the plural antecedent players takes the plural pronoun their. - 3
Rewrite the sentence correctly: Somebody forgot their backpack in the classroom.
The word somebody is singular in traditional agreement.
One correct revision is: Somebody forgot his or her backpack in the classroom. - 4
Choose the correct pronoun: Maria and Elena said (she, they) would finish the poster tonight.
The correct choice is they because Maria and Elena is a compound antecedent and refers to more than one person. - 5
Choose the correct pronoun: Neither of the boys remembered to pack (his, their) lunch.
Neither refers to not one and not the other, so it is singular.
The correct choice is his because neither is singular in traditional pronoun-antecedent agreement. - 6
Identify the antecedent of the pronoun and tell whether the agreement is correct: The dog wagged its tail when it saw the children.
The antecedent of its is dog, and the agreement is correct because dog is singular. The antecedent of it is also dog, and that agreement is correct as well. - 7
Choose the correct pronoun: A person should always do (your, his or her) best on a test.
Make the pronoun match the singular subject a person.
The correct choice is his or her because the singular antecedent a person should match a singular pronoun in traditional agreement. - 8
Rewrite the sentence correctly: If a student wants extra credit, they should ask the teacher before Friday.
One correct revision is: If a student wants extra credit, he or she should ask the teacher before Friday. - 9
Choose the correct pronoun: The committee announced (its, their) decision at the meeting.
Decide whether the group is acting together as one unit.
The correct choice is its because committee is a collective noun treated as singular when acting as one group. - 10
Choose the correct pronoun: Both of the cats cleaned (its, their) paws after eating.
The correct choice is their because both refers to two cats, so the antecedent is plural. - 11
Find and correct the pronoun error: Everyone should put their name on the top of the paper.
The word everyone is singular in traditional grammar.
A traditional correction is: Everyone should put his or her name on the top of the paper. - 12
Choose the correct pronoun: The team celebrated after (it, they) won the championship.
The correct choice is it because team is a collective noun acting as one unit in this sentence. - 13
Choose the correct pronoun: Several of the musicians brought (his or her, their) instruments early.
Several always means more than one.
The correct choice is their because several refers to more than one musician, so the antecedent is plural. - 14
Rewrite the sentence to fix agreement: Neither Jenna nor the girls remembered her homework.
One correct revision is: Neither Jenna nor the girls remembered their homework. - 15
Explain why the pronoun is correct or incorrect: One of the actors forgot their costume before the play.
Focus on the word one, not the word actors.
In traditional pronoun-antecedent agreement, the pronoun is incorrect because one is singular. A corrected sentence is: One of the actors forgot his or her costume before the play.