Pronouns

Pronoun RulesSubjects

Rule #1Use a subject pronoun when it is the subject of a sentence or clause.Example:• I

• You signed up for a marathon.• He • She • It• We • They

Pronoun Rules Object Pronouns

Rule #2When the pronoun takes the place of a noun in the object position, use an object pronoun.Common mistake: Janice invited Jamal and I to the party.

Correct: Janice invited Jamal and me to the party.

The party surprised_______.Singular• me• you • him, her, itPlural• us • you• them

Object Pronouns

When the pronoun takes the place of a noun in the object position, use an object pronoun: • me• you• him• her• it• us • them

Example:Jazmine’s cat, Cutie, likes to play with her when she gets home from work.

Instead of repeating the name Jazmine, we replace the noun with the object pronouns her and she.

Pronoun Rules Object Pronouns

Rule #3Use the object pronoun when it is the object of a preposition.• The party was for_______.

Singular• me• you• him, her, it

Plural• us• you• them

Possessive Pronouns

Rule #4 A possessive pronoun takes the place of a noun and tells us who the noun belongs to. • The sundae is______.

Singular Plural

my, mine our, ours

your, yours your, yours

his, her, hers their, theirs

* Never use an apostrophe with a possessive pronoun.

Pronouns as Possessive Adjectives

Rule #5 A possessive pronoun adjective tells us who something belongs to, but it must be immediately followed by the noun that it is describing.• That is________ cake.

Singular» my » your» his, her, itsPlural» our» your» their

Pronoun –AntecedentAgreement

Rule #6 The antecedent is the noun that a pronoun has taken the place of.

Juana told Jose that she was tired of his attitude.

Practice

1. A student can receive feedback on (his or her, their) papers in the online writing lab.– The singular antecedent student must agree with the

singular pronoun his or her.

2. When people train for a marathon, (you, they) should not run every day. – The plural antecedent people must agree with the plural

pronoun they.

Tricky Antecedents: Indefinite pronouns

everyone, everybody, someone, somebody, anyone, anybody

These are singular and all pronouns that refer to these indefinite pronouns must be singular.

Everyone in the movie theatre was wearing glasses.

TIP!! If you look at the second syllable in the indefinite pronoun, you will see why they are singular.

*everyONE*everyBODY*someONE*someBODY*anyONE*anyBODY

Tricky Antecedents: Collective nouns

family, class, government, team, group, couple, crowd, faculty, staff, public

When a collective noun refers to a single unit, it is singular and neutral. • The class is large. It consists of twenty-nine students.

When a collective noun refers to a collection of individuals, it is plural.• The class presented their projects today. (Each member of the class presented his or her

project.