Pronouns and Pronoun Shifts

WHAT IS A PRONOUN?

A word or phrase that may be substituted for a noun or noun phrase.

Without pronouns, we’d have to keep on repeating nouns, and that would make our speech and writing repetitive, not to mention cumbersome.

PRONOUN EXAMPLES

Most pronouns are very short words. Examples include: He She They It We Who

PRONOUN EXAMPLES

EXAMPLES OF SENTENCES WITH PRONOUNS

Katelynn and Alyssa went to the basketball game. (No Pronouns). She and her went to the basketball game. (She, Her= Pronouns). They went to the basketball game. (They= Pronoun and Correct).

EXAMPLES OF SENTENCES WITH PRONOUNS

Seth decided that Seth did not want to have homework over the weekend. (No Pronouns).

He decided that he did not want to have homework over the weekend. (He= Pronouns).

Seth decided that he did not want to have homework over the weekend. (He= Pronoun and Correct).

WHAT ARE THE PRONOUNS IN THE FOLLOWING SENTENCES?

What are the problems with it? Sarah and Katie went to the store, because they

were desperately bored at home. What is your deal?

PRONOUN SHIFTS

A pronoun shift is a grammatical error in which the author starts a sentence, paragraph, or section of a paper using one particular type of pronoun and then suddenly shifts to another.

This often confuses the reader.

MOST COMMON TYPES OF PRONOUN SHIFTS

The most common shift is from third person nouns and pronouns (he / she / it / they) to second person pronouns (you / your / yours). However, some students switch between first person pronouns (I / we / me / us / my / our) to other pronouns halfway through a sentence or essay as well.

EXAMPLES OF PRONOUN SHIFTS

WRONG! INCORRECT! When we asked the reason why we had to wear school uniforms, we learned that you were made to wear them to look more professional.

In the WRONG sentence, the word “we” undergoes a pronoun shift to “you” midway through the sentence.

CORRECTED VERSION: When we asked the reason why we had to wear school uniforms, we learned that we were made to wear them to look more professional.

EXAMPLES OF PRONOUN SHIFTS

WRONG! INCORRECT! If you eat healthy foods, most people should be able to maintain their desired weight.

CORRECTED VERSION: If you eat healthy foods, you should be able to maintain your desired weight.

OR EVEN BETTER: If everyone ate healthy foods, they should be able to maintain their desired weight.

PRACTICE

What is the PRONOUN SHIFT in this sentence? How can we correct it?

Suzanne went to the store to buy supplies for her party. They bought balloons, cups, and plates.

PRACTICE

What is the PRONOUN SHIFT in this sentence? How can we correct it?

Patrice and I were so excited to travel abroad for the first time. We asked the hotel if you could check in early so that you would have more time.

PRACTICE

Can you create your own sentence with an incorrect pronoun shift?