Pronoun Agreement
What is pronoun agreement?
A pronoun is a word that refers to the writer or the reader (I, you) or to someone/something
else mentioned by the writer (he, she, they, it, this) in a piece of writing.
An antecedent is the thing that a pronoun replaces or refers to. It can come before the
pronoun or after the pronoun.
Pronoun agreement means that the pronoun matches its antecedent.
Rule:
A pronoun must match its antecedent. Pronouns and antecedents must match with regard to:
• number
• person.
Examples:
Red Riding Hood walked to her grandma’s house.
(The antecedent is Little Red Riding Hood, and the pronoun is her.)
The wolf licked its jaws.
(The antecedent is wolf, and the pronoun is its.)
The flowers opened their petals in the sun as Red Riding Hood walked by.
(The antecedent is flowers, and the pronouns is their.)
Can you give me examples?
Yes! See the examples below.
Examples:
AVOID THIS: Red Riding Hood grabbed their basket and walked through the woods.
INSTEAD, DO THIS: Red Riding Hood grabbed her basket and walked through the woods.
AVOID THIS: The huntsman and the wolf got ready for his fight.
INSTEAD, DO THIS: The huntsman and the wolf got ready for their fight.
Give it a try!
With a partner, read your literary essay. Find the pronouns. Find each pronoun’s antecedent.
Do they match? If not, revise to make your pronouns and antecedents agree.
May be photocopied for classroom use. © 2016 by Lucy Calkins and Colleagues from the Teachers College Reading and Writing Project from Units of Study in Opinion, Information, and Narrative Writing (Heinemann: Portsmouth, NH).