vCommission on Higher Education

KHADIJAH MOHAMMAD ISLAMIC ACADEMY

Dr. Sophia Ampuan Sharief Bldg, Torugan,West Poblacion, Balo-i, Lanao del Norte

CATEGORIES OF PRONOUNS

A pronoun stands in the place of a noun. Like nouns, pronouns can serve as the subject
or object of a sentence: they are the things sentences are about. Pronouns include words
like he, she, and I, but they also include words like this, that, which, who, anybody,
and everyone. Before we get into the different types of pronouns, let’s look at how they work
in sentences.
Because a pronoun is replacing a noun, its meaning is dependent on the noun that it is
replacing. This noun is called the antecedent. Let’s look at the first sentence of this
paragraph again:

Because a pronoun is replacing a noun, its meaning is dependent on the noun that it is
replacing.

There are two pronouns here: its and it. Its and it both have the same antecedent: “a
pronoun.” Whenever you use a pronoun, you must also include its antecedent. Without the
antecedent, your readers (or listeners) won’t be able to figure out what the pronoun is referring
to. Let’s look at a couple of examples:

 Jason likes it when people look to him for leadership.

 Trini does her hair and make up every day—with no exceptions.
 Billy often has to clean his glasses.
 Kimberly is a gymnast. She has earned several medals in different competitions.
So, what are the antecedents and pronouns in these sentences?

 Jason is the antecedent for the pronoun him.

 Trini is the antecedent for the pronoun her.
 Billy is the antecedent for the pronoun his.
 Kimberly is the antecedent for the pronoun she.

Pronoun Antecedents

We’ve already defined an antecedent as the noun (or phrase) that a pronoun is
replacing. The phrase “antecedent clarity” simply means that is should be clear who or what
the pronoun is referring to. In other words, readers should be able to understand the sentence

ENGLISH PLUS MODULE: UNIT One: Pronoun Ma’am Pree

 vCommission on Higher Education
KHADIJAH MOHAMMAD ISLAMIC ACADEMY
Dr. Sophia Ampuan Sharief Bldg, Torugan,West Poblacion, Balo-i, Lanao del Norte
the first time they read it—not the third, forth, or tenth. In this page, we’ll look at some
examples of common mistakes that can cause confusion, as well as ways to fix each sentence.

Let’s take a look at our first sentence:

Rafael told Matt to stop eating his cereal.

When you first read this sentence, is it clear if the cereal Rafael’s or Matt’s? Is it clear
when you read the sentence again? Not really, no. Since both Rafael and Matt are singular,
third person, and masculine, it’s impossible to tell whose cereal is being eaten (at least from
this sentence).

Antecedent Agreement

As you write, make sure that you are using the correct pronouns. When a pronoun
matches the person and number of its antecedent, we say that it agrees with it antecedent. Let’s
look at a couple of examples:
 I hate it when Zacharias tells me what to do. He‘s so full of himself.
 The Finnegans are shouting again. I swear you could hear them from across town!
In the first sentence, Zacharias is singular, third person, and masculine. The pronouns he
and himself are also singular, third person, and masculine, so they agree. In the second
sentence, the Finnegans is plural and third person. The pronoun them is also plural and third
person.

When you select your pronoun, you also need to ensure you use the correct case of
pronoun. Remember we learned about three cases: subject, object, and possessive. The case of
your pronoun should match its role in the sentence. For example, if your pronoun is doing an
action, it should be a subject:

 He runs every morning.

 I hate it when she does this.
However, when something is being done to your pronoun, it should be an object:

 Birds have always hated me.

 My boss wanted to talk to him.
 Give her the phone and walk away.

Pronoun Cases

English personal pronouns have two cases: subject and object (there are also
possessive pronouns, which we’ll discuss next). Subject-case pronouns are used when the

ENGLISH PLUS MODULE: UNIT One: Pronoun Ma’am Pree

 vCommission on Higher Education
KHADIJAH MOHAMMAD ISLAMIC ACADEMY
Dr. Sophia Ampuan Sharief Bldg, Torugan,West Poblacion, Balo-i, Lanao del Norte
pronoun is doing the action. (I like to eat chips, but she does not). Object-case pronouns are
used when something is being done to the pronoun (John likes me but not her).

Person

Person refers to the relationship that an author has with the text that he or she writes,
and with the reader of that text. English has three persons (first, second, and third).

First-person is the most informal. The author is saying, this is about me and people I know.

 First-person pronouns include I, me, we

Second-person is also informal, though slightly more formal than first-person. The author is
saying, this is about you, the reader.

 All second-person pronouns are variations of you, which is both singular and plural

Third-person is the most formal. The author is saying, this is about other people.

In the third person singular there are distinct pronoun forms for male, female, and
neutral gender. Here is a short list of the most common pronouns and their gender:

Person Pronouns

First I, me, we, us

Second you

Male he, him

Third Female she, her

Neutral it, they, them

ENGLISH PLUS MODULE: UNIT One: Pronoun Ma’am Pree

 vCommission on Higher Education
KHADIJAH MOHAMMAD ISLAMIC ACADEMY
Dr. Sophia Ampuan Sharief Bldg, Torugan,West Poblacion, Balo-i, Lanao del Norte

Number

There are two numbers: singular and plural. The table below separates pronouns according to
number. You may notice that the second person is the same for both singular and plural: you.

Person Number Pronouns

Singular I, me
First
Plural we, us

Singular you
Second
Plural you

he, him

Singular she, her

Third
it

Plural they, them

Personal Pronouns

The following sentences give examples of personal pronouns used with antecedents:

 That poor man looks as if he needs a new coat. (the noun phrase that poor man is the
antecedent of he)
 Kat arrived yesterday. I met her at the station. (Kat is the antecedent of her)
 When they saw us, the lions began roaring (the lions is the antecedent of they)
 Adam and I were hoping no-one would find us. (Adam and I is the antecedent of us)
 You and Aisha can come if you like. (you and Aisha is the antecedent of the second,
plural, you)

Note: First- and second-person pronouns don’t always require an explicitly stated antecedent.
When a speaker says something like “I told you the zoo was closed today,” it’s implied that
the speaker is the antecedent for I and the listener is the antecedent for you.
Here’s two examples with the pronoun and antecedents indicated:

ENGLISH PLUS MODULE: UNIT One: Pronoun Ma’am Pree

 vCommission on Higher Education
KHADIJAH MOHAMMAD ISLAMIC ACADEMY
Dr. Sophia Ampuan Sharief Bldg, Torugan,West Poblacion, Balo-i, Lanao del Norte
 Jason hurt himself. (Jason is the antecedent of himself)
 We were teasing each other. (we is the antecedent of each other)

Demonstrative Pronouns

Demonstrative pronouns substitute for things being pointed out.

They include this, that, these, and those. This and that are singular; these and those are plural.

The difference between this and that and between these and those is a little more
subtle. This and these refer to something that is “close” to the speaker, whether this closeness
is physical, emotional, or temporal. That and those are the opposite: they refer to something
that is “far.”

 Do I actually have to read all of this?

o The speaker is indicating a text that is close to her, by using “this.”
 That is not coming anywhere near me.
o The speaker is distancing himself from the object in question, which he doesn’t
want to get any closer. The far pronoun helps indicate that.
 You’re telling me you sewed all of these?
o The speaker and her audience are likely looking directly at the clothes in question,
so the close pronoun is appropriate.
 Those are all gross.
o The speaker wants to remain away from the gross items in question, by using the
far “those.”
Note: these pronouns are often combined with a noun. When this happens, they act as a kind
of adjective instead of as a pronoun.

 Do I actually have to read all of this contract?

 That thing is not coming anywhere near me.
 You’re telling me you sewed all of these dresses?
 Those recipes are all gross.
The antecedents of demonstrative pronouns can be more complex than those of personal
pronouns:

Animal Planet’s puppy cam has been taken down for maintenance. I never wanted
this to happen.

The antecedent for this is the concept of the puppy cam being taken down.

Note: The pronoun it can also have more complex antecedents:

I love Animal Planet’s panda cam. I watched a panda eat bamboo for half an hour. It was

ENGLISH PLUS MODULE: UNIT One: Pronoun Ma’am Pree

 vCommission on Higher Education
KHADIJAH MOHAMMAD ISLAMIC ACADEMY
Dr. Sophia Ampuan Sharief Bldg, Torugan,West Poblacion, Balo-i, Lanao del Norte

Indefinite Pronouns

Indefinite pronouns, the largest group of pronouns, refer to one or more unspecified
persons or things, for example: Anyone can do that.

These pronouns can be used in a couple of different ways:

 They can refer to members of a group separately rather than collectively. (To each his
or her own.)
 They can indicate the non-existence of people or things. (Nobody thinks that.)
 They can refer to a person, but are not specific as to first, second or third person in the
way that the personal pronouns are. (One does not clean one’s own windows.)

Please note that all of these pronouns are singular. Look back at the example “To each
his or her own.” Saying “To each their own” would be incorrect, since their is a plural pronoun
and each is singular. We’ll discuss this in further depth in Text: Pronoun
Antecedents. The table below shows the most common indefinite pronouns:

anybody anyone anything each either every

everybody everyone everything neither no one nobody

nothing one somebody someone something

Person and Number

Some of the trickiest agreements are with indefinite pronouns:

 Every student should do his or her best on this assignment.

 If nobody lost his or her scarf, then where did this come from?
As we learned earlier in this outcome, words like every and nobody are singular, and
demand singular pronouns. Here are some of the words that fall into this category:

Some of these may feel “more singular” than others, but they all are technically
singular. Thus, using “he or she” is correct (while they is incorrect).

 Anyone going on this hike should plan on being in the canyon for at least seven hours;
he or she should prepare accordingly.

ENGLISH PLUS MODULE: UNIT One: Pronoun Ma’am Pree

 vCommission on Higher Education
KHADIJAH MOHAMMAD ISLAMIC ACADEMY
Dr. Sophia Ampuan Sharief Bldg, Torugan,West Poblacion, Balo-i, Lanao del Norte
 I know somebody has been throwing his or her trash away in my dumpster, and I want
him or her to stop.
However, as you may have noticed, the phrase “he or she” (and its other forms) can
often make your sentences clunky. When this happens, it may be best to revise your
sentences to have plural antecedents.

Relative Pronouns

There are five relative pronouns in English: who, whom, whose, that, and which. These
pronouns are used to connect different clauses together. For example:

 Belen, who had starred in six plays before she turned seventeen, knew that she wanted
to act on Broadway someday.
o The word who connects the phrase “had starred in six plays before she turned
seventeen” to the rest of the sentence.
 My daughter wants to adopt the dog that doesn’t have a tail.
o The word that connects the phrase “doesn’t have a tail” to the rest of the sentence.
These pronouns behave differently from the other categories we’ve seen. However, they
are pronouns, and it’s important to learn how they work.

Possessive Pronouns

Possessive pronouns are used to indicate possession (in a broad sense). Some occur as
independent phrases: mine, yours, hers, ours, yours, theirs. For example, “Those clothes are
mine.” Others must be accompanied by a noun: my, your, her, our, your, their, as in “I lost my
wallet.” This category of pronouns behaves similarly to adjectives. His and its can fall into
either category, although its is nearly always found in the second.

Both types replace possessive noun phrases. As an example, “Their crusade to capture
our attention” could replace “The advertisers’ crusade to capture our attention.”

ENGLISH PLUS MODULE: UNIT One: Pronoun Ma’am Pree

 vCommission on Higher Education
KHADIJAH MOHAMMAD ISLAMIC ACADEMY
Dr. Sophia Ampuan Sharief Bldg, Torugan,West Poblacion, Balo-i, Lanao del Norte

REVIEW

The table below includes all of the personal pronouns in the English language. They
are organized by person, number, and case.

Person Number Subject Object Possessive

Singular I me my mine
First
Plural we us our ours

Singular you you your yours

Second
Plural you you your yours

he him his his

Singular she her her hers

Third
it it its its

Plural they them their theirs

ENGLISH PLUS MODULE: UNIT One: Pronoun Ma’am Pree