Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement

Lesson Plan - Get It!

Audio:

Start by refreshing your memory on pronouns.

A pronoun is a word that can take the place of a noun.

Common pronouns include the following.

Read each sentence below and select the correct pronoun to replace the noun or nouns in bold.

Now that you have reviewed pronouns, look at the sentences you read at the beginning of the lesson.

• How can you use pronouns to make these sentences sound better or more natural?

• President Lincoln delivered President Lincoln's speech in 1863.
• President Lincoln delivered his speech in 1863.

• The children laughed when the children saw the clown.
• The children laughed when they saw the clown.

In the sentences above, a noun is replaced with a pronoun.

However, you must be careful when you replace a noun with a pronoun. The pronoun must agree with the noun or pronoun it refers to (the antecedent).

A singular pronoun must be used when referring to a singular noun, and a plural pronoun must be used when referring to a plural noun.

This is called pronoun-antecedent agreement.

Look at some examples of sentences that demonstrate pronoun-antecedent agreement.

She had oatmeal for her breakfast.

The pronoun her agrees with its antecedent She. Both are singular.

The workers started their meeting.

The pronoun their agrees with its antecedent workers. Both are plural.

Mom, Aunt Carol, and Grandma went to see a play, and they had a great time.

The pronoun they agree with is its antecedents, Mom, Aunt Carol, and Grandma. Both are plural.

Tom went to the store, and he bought milk and cookies.

The pronoun he agrees with its antecedent, Tom. Both are singular.

Now, look at some examples of sentences in which the pronoun does not agree with its antecedent.

The little boy could not find their cat.

Here, the plural pronoun there does not agree with the singular noun boy (the antecedent).

The horses ate his hay in the barn.

Again, the singular pronoun his does not agree with the plural noun horses.

The girls wanted hot dogs for her dinner.

The plural noun girl is followed by a singular pronoun her. The pronoun does not agree with its antecedent.

After reading the examples of sentences without a pronoun-antecedent agreement, you can see that these sentences can confuse the reader!

Continue to the Got It? section to go on a pronoun scavenger hunt!