ACT GRAMMAR
PRONOUN RULES:
A pronoun is a noun that takes the place of an “antecedent” (another proper or regular noun). For example, "he" can be used in place of "man" or "Bob Jones." Unlike regular nouns, most pronouns change their form depending on whether they are used as subjects or objects. The subjective case pronouns (used as a subject) are directly related to a verb and “does” the action. The objective case pronouns (used as objects) are the object of a verb, preposition, participle, etc. and have actions “done” to them.
Subjective Case: Objective Case:
I me
we us
you you
it it
he him
she her
they them
who whom
Subjective Case: Objective Case:
I me
we us
you you
it it
he him
she her
they them
who whom
RULE: Pronouns must be used in the proper form for the proper case.
EXAMPLES:
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RULE: “Who” is used as a pronoun for a person or people (or anthropomorphized animals). “That” is used for everything else.
EXAMPLES:
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RULE: Pronouns must agree in number (singular vs. plural) and perspective consistently throughout the sentence.
EXAMPLES:
Note: In the third example, the error is the commonly-used "their" to replace a singular noun (everyone); while this is used in common, everyday speech, using "their" as a possessive pronoun for a single person is not accepted as grammatically correct. |
RULE: Pronouns should clearly reference one antecedent rather than ambiguously referencing multiple antecedents.
EXAMPLES:
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