Name: ___________________________________________
Miss Phillips
Period: __________
Grammar Unit: Pronouns
Unit Objectives:
1. Students will identify personal, indefinite, and possessive pronouns and recognize antecedents of pronouns.
2. Students will demonstrate control over the agreement of pronouns with antecedents.
3. Students will understand and utilize the various kinds of pronouns.
Personal Pronouns
A pronoun is a word __________________________________________________________________________________.
The most frequently used pronouns are called ____________________________________________________________.
The words she and it in the sentence below are personal pronouns.
Dana has a favorite folktale, and she tells it often.
Pronouns that are used to refer to ___________________________________________________ are called personal
pronouns.
A subject pronoun ____________________________________________________________________________________.
An object pronoun ___________________________________________________________________________________.
I will read that fable. (subject pronoun)
Jesse told me about the story. (object pronoun)
Personal Pronouns
Used as Subjects
Used as Objects
Singular
I
you
he, she, it
me
you
him, her, it
Plural
we
you
they
us
you
them
Guided Practice: Personal Pronouns
Directions: Circle each pronoun and label it subject or object.
1. I read “The Bundle of Sticks,” a fable by Aesop.
2. It taught me the value of cooperation.
3. A man had four sons, and they always fought.
4. They started an argument in the morning and continued it all day.
5. He became impatient and scolded them.
Using Pronouns Correctly
People sometimes confuse pronouns in the nominative and objective cases. They write or say __________ when they
should use __________. They use __________ when they should use __________. Remember to use a subject pronoun
as the subject. Use an object pronoun as the object of a verb.
Subjects are who or what are DOING the action.
Objects are who or what is RECEIVING the action.
She owns a collection of fables. (_______________)
He told her an amusing fable. (_______________)
The fable entertained us. (_______________)
Be sure to use a subject pronoun in a compound subject and an object pronoun in a compound subject.
Richard and I recited the fable. (_______________)
Jennifer helped Richard and me. (_______________)
Guided Practice: Using Pronouns Correctly:
Directions: Circle the correct pronoun in each sentence.
1. ( I, Me ) am the strongest power.
2. How will you show ( I, me )?
3. You and ( I, me ) will have a contest.
4. A traveler is approaching ( we, us ).
5. I see his dog and ( he, him ).
Pronouns and Antecedents:
The noun or group of words that a pronoun refers to is called its _____________________________________________.
Example 1. Albert read “Sleeping Beauty.” He found it exciting.
In this example, the noun Albert is the antecedent of the pronoun He.
“Sleeping Beauty” is the antecedent of the pronoun it.
The pronoun must agree with its antecedent in _______________ (singular or plural) and _______________.
Example 2. The king and queen were proud of the baby girl, and they loved her dearly.
In this example, the pronoun they agrees with its antecedent, The king and queen.
The pronoun her agrees with its antecedent, the baby girl.
Guided Practice: Pronouns and Antecedents:
Directions: Fill in the blanks with the correct pronoun, and then circle its antecedent.
1. The bear made a promise. __________ promised the family great wealth.
2. The man spoke with his children. He told __________ about the bear’s request.
3. The youngest daughter became worried. The bear’s request frightened __________.
4. The girl listened to her family. The said, “If __________ go, the bear promises __________ will be rich.”
5. Finally the girl told her father and her brothers and sisters, “__________ will go because I love __________.”
Possessive Pronouns:
Some personal pronouns indicate ownership or possession. These pronouns are called ____________________________
pronouns, and they replace possessive forms of nouns.
A ____________________________________________ is a pronoun in the possessive case. It shows who or what has
something.
Some possessive pronouns are used before nouns. They replace the name of the person or thing that has something.
Aesop’s fables are famous. His fables are famous.
A fable is a brief tale. Its characters are often animals.
Other possessive pronouns stand alone in a sentence.
This book is yours.
Aesop’s Fables is a favorite of mine.
Possessive Pronouns
Used Before Nouns
Used Alone
Singular
my
you
her, his, its
mine
yours
hers, his, its
Plural
our
your
their
ours
yours
theirs
Possessive pronouns DO NOT contain an apostrophe. DO NOT confuse the possessive pronoun its with the
word it’s. It’s is a CONTRACTION.
Guided Practice: Possessive Pronouns:
Directions: Write a possessive pronoun to replace each underlined word or phrase.
1. The boy walked beside the horse; the man rode on the horse’s back.
2. Next a woman gave the woman’s opinion, and they followed that advice and rode together.
3. The man and the boy’s weight was too great.
4. The horse collapsed, and the man and boy worried about the horse’s health.
5. They carried the horse on the man’s and the boy’s shoulders.
Indefinite Pronouns:
An _______________________________________ pronoun does not refer to a particular person, place, thing, or idea.
Like possessive pronouns, indefinite pronouns can be used alone or with nouns.
Has any student read this Native American folktale?
Have any read “The Voice of the River”?
When used alone, indefinite pronouns may be singular or plural.
Indefinite Pronouns
another
anybody
anyone
anything
each
either
Always Singular
everybody
no one
everyone
nothing
everything
one
much
somebody
neither
someone
nobody
something
Always Plural
both
few
many
others
several
When an indefinite pronoun is used as the _______________ of a sentence, the indefinite pronoun may be
_______________ or _______________, depending on the noun that follows. Indefinite pronouns that change their
number include _______________, _______________, _______________, _______________, and _______________.
Some of the people are familiar with this folktale. (_______________)
Most of this tale takes place in Africa. (_______________)
Most of the characters are animals. (_______________)
Possessive pronouns often have indefinite pronouns as their antecedents. In such cases, the pronouns must agree in
_______________.
Many are happy to share their folktales. (_______________)
Each must be willing to wait his or her turn. (_______________)
Guided Practice: Indefinite Pronouns:
Directions: Circle the correct singular or plural indefinite pronoun in each sentence.
1. ( Everyone, Many ) likes to read an exciting myth.
2. ( Each, Many ) are originally from Greece.
3. ( One, Others ) from Greece is about a father and son.
4. ( Anyone, Few ) were able to guess the myth’s ending.
5. ( Both, One ) of the mythical characters live on the island of Crete.
Relative Pronouns: The Correct Use of “Who,” “Which,” and “That”
Relative pronouns are _________________________________________________________________________________.
Rule #1
Use “who” or “that” only when ___________________________________________________________________________.
“Who” is used only when referring to ____________________________________________________________________.
“That” can be used for ________________________________________________________________________________.
NEVER use “that” to describe a specific person, only for a group of people or type of person.
Examples:
1. The woman who called you is Ms. Smith.
2. The citizen groups are the ones that you should talk to.
3. The person who called you was a salesman.
Rule #2
Use “which” to refer to objects and animals (things). NEVER use “which” when referring to people.
Examples:
1. Gary lost the keys which you had given him.
2. The elephant which stampeded was massive.
Guided Practice: Relative Pronouns:
Directions: Write “who,” “that,” or “which” in each blank.
1. The money __________ was stolen was never recovered.
2. The lady ___________ is wearing a yellow skirt is Tim’s grandmother.
3. The students ____________ were absent had a different assignment.