PRONOUNS

1. What is a Pronoun?2. Subject Pronouns3. Object Pronouns4. Possessive Pronouns5. Reflective and Intensive Pronouns6. Interrogatives and Demonstratives7. Pronoun Agreement8. Indefinite-Pronoun Agreement9. Pronoun Problems10.More Pronoun Problems

WHAT IS A PRONOUN?

Pronouns

• A pronoun is a word that is used in place of a noun. A pronoun can refer to a person, place, thing, or idea. The word that a pronoun refers to is called the antecedent.

Raymond visited Death Valley, and he was impressed.

Refers to

Personal pronouns

• Pronouns such as we, I, he, them, and it are called personal pronouns. Personal pronouns have a variety of forms to indicate different persons, numbers, and cases.

Person and Number

• These are first-person, second-person and third-person personal pronouns, each having both singular and plural forms.

Singular Plural

I went out. We left early.

You left too. You are leaving.

He came by bus. They came by car.

Case

• Each personal pronoun has three cases: subject, object, and possessive. Which form to use depends on the pronouns function in a sentence.

Subject: He read about Death Valley.Object: Julie asked him about the rocks.Possessive: Ramon brought his book.

IDENTIFY THE PERSONAL PRONOUNS IN EACH SENTENCE...

1. Death Valley is famous for its strange moving boulders.

2. They are found in a dry lake bed called Racetrack Playa.

3. The rocks slide on their own, leaving long tracks behind them.

4. Can you think of an explanation for this curious event?

5. Investigators offer two major theories for us to consider.

IDENTIFY THE PERSONAL PRONOUNS IN EACH SENTENCE...

6. One geologist thinks that when floodwater freezes, an ice sheet can form under a rock and help it slide.

7. Other scientists disagree with his theory.8. They believe that the wind alone can

move the rocks.9. Some scientists have hedged their bets,

telling us that both theories could be true.10.We still don’t know for sure how the

rocks move.

SUBJECT PRONOUNS

Subject Pronouns• A subject pronoun is used as a subject in a

sentence.

Singular Plural

I We

You You

He, she, it They

Pronouns as Subjects

• Use a subject pronoun when the pronoun is a subject or part of a compound subject.

You and he thought the movie was scary.He and I ate popcorn.

OBJECT PRONOUNS

Predicate Pronouns

• A predicate pronoun follows a linking verb and identifies the verb’s subject. Use the subject case for predicate pronouns.

The owner was he.

subject Predicate Pronoun

identifies

Object Pronouns

• An object pronoun is used as a direct object, an indirect object, or an object of a preposition.

Singular Plural

Me Us

You You

Him, her, it Them

Direct Object

• The pronoun receives the action of a verb and answers the question whom or what.

The mysterious death of king Tut fascinates me.Direct Object

Indirect Object

• The pronoun tells to whom or what or for whom or what an action is performed.

Chu lent me a video on the topic.

DirectObject

IndirectObject

to

Object of a Preposition

• The pronoun follows a preposition (such as to, from, for, against, by, or about).

We will save the video for you.

preposition Object of a preposition

POSSESSIVE PRONOUNS

Possessive Pronouns

• A possessive pronoun is a personal pronoun used to show ownership or relationship.

Singular Plural

My, mine Our, ours

Your, yours Your, yours

Her, hers, his, its Their, theirs

The Chinese museum kept its amazing secret for years.

No one saw the mummies in their colorful clothes.

Then Professor Mair and his tour group arrived.

REFLEXIVE AND INTENSIVE PRONOUNS

Reflexive Pronouns

• A reflexive pronoun refers to the subject and directs the action of the verb back to the subject. Reflexive pronouns are necessary to the meaning of a sentence.

Houdini called himself a master escape artist.

reflects

Intensive Pronouns

• An intensive pronoun emphasizes a noun or another pronoun in the same sentence. Intensive pronouns are not necessary to the meaning of a sentence.

You yourselves have seen magic shows on TV.

INTERROGATIVES AND DEMONSTRATIVES

Interrogative Pronouns• An interrogative pronoun is used to introduce

a question.

Who made up this riddle?Interrogative Pronoun Use

Who, whom Refers to people

What Refers to things

Which Refers to people or things

Whose Indicates ownership or relationship

Using Who and Whom

• Who is always used a subject or predicate pronoun.Who knows the answer to the riddle?

Your favorite comedian is who?• Whom is always used as an object.

Whom did you tell?To whom did you give my name?

Demonstrative Pronouns

• A demonstrative pronoun points out a person, place, thing, or idea. This, that, these, and those.

Singular Plural

This is the game that we created.

These are the rules.

That is the spinner. Those are the playing pieces.

PRONOUN AGREEMENT

Pronoun Agreement

• The antecedent is the noun or pronoun that a pronoun replaces or refers to. The antecedent and the pronoun can be in the same sentence or in a different sentences.

Louis writes his own detective stories.

Agatha Christie writes mysteries. Her stories are famous.

Refers to

Replaces

Agreement in Numbers

• Use a singular pronoun to refer to a singular antecedent.

One story has its setting in Egypt.• Use a plural pronoun to refer to a plural

antecedent.The characters have their motives for

murder.

Agreement in Person

• The pronoun must agree in person with the antecedent.

Louis likes his mysteries to have surprise endings.

You want a story to grab your attention.

3rd person

2nd person

INDEFINITE-PRONOUN AGREEMENT

Indefinite-Pronoun Agreement

• An indefinite pronoun does not refer to a specific person, place, thing, or idea.

Something unusual is going on in Loch Ness.

Has anyone photographed the Loch Ness monster?

Singular Plural Singluar or Plural

AnotherAnybodyAnyoneAnythingEachEitherEverybodyEveryoneEverythingNeitherNobodyNo oneNothingOneSomebodySomeoneSomething

BothFewManySeveral

AllAnyMostNonesome

Some indefinite pronouns are always singular, some are always plural, and some can be either singular or plural.

Singular Indefinite Pronouns

• Use a singular personal pronoun to refer to a singular indefinite pronoun.

Everyone took his or her camera to the lake.

One dropped his camera in the water.

Refers to

Refers to

Plural Indefinite Pronouns

• Use a plural personal pronoun to refer to a plural indefinite pronoun.

Several reported their sightings of the monster.

Many could not believe their own eyes!

Refers to

Refers to

Singular or Plural Indefinite Pronouns

• Some indefinite pronouns can be singular or plural. The phrase that follows the indefinite pronoun will often tell you whether the pronoun is singular or plural.

Most of the monster story has its origin in fantasy.

Most of the monster stories have their origins in fantasy.

Singular indefinite pronoun

plural indefinite pronoun

Singular personal pronoun

plural personal pronoun

PRONOUN PROBLEMS

Pronoun Problems – “We” and “Us”

• The pronoun we or us is sometimes followed by a noun that identifies the pronoun. Use we when the pronoun is a subject or a predicate pronoun. Use us when the pronoun is an object.

We owners don’t always understand our pets.

Dogs and cats often surprise us owners.subject

object

Unclear Reference

• Be sure that each personal pronoun refers clearly to only one person, place, or thing.

• Confusing: Tony and Fred want to become veterinarians. He now works at an animal shelter (who works? Tony or Fred?)

• Clear: Tony and Fred want to become veterinarians. Fred now works at an animal shelter.

MORE PRONOUN PROBLEMS

Pronoun Problems – Pronouns in Compounds

• Use the subject pronoun I, she, he, we, and they in a compound subject with a predicate noun or pronoun.

Kathy and he decided to research a mystery.

The research team was Jim and I.

Pronoun Problems – Problems in Compounds

• Use the object pronouns me, her, him, us, and them in a compound object.

Samantha asked Jim and me about the movie.

Kathy loaned our report to Mac and her.

Intervening Phrases• Sometimes words and phrases come between a

subject and a pronoun that refers to it. Don’t be confused by those words in between, Mentally cross out the phrase to figure out agreement.

Jim, like the others, brought his map. (His agrees with Jim, not with others.)

Five planes from a Navy airfield lost their way in the Bermuda triangle. (Their agrees with

planes, not with airfield.)