Learn vague pronoun reference with free interactive flashcards. Ambiguous reference an ambiguous reference occurs when the pronoun could refer to two. Using pronouns the writing centre university of ottawa. Introduction pronouns help writers to avoid repetition, but when a pronoun is vague, or unclear, readers cant tell what or whom it refers to. As a result, the reader cannot know for sure whether mabel sold the disk or the cabinet. Churchill, roosevelt, and stalin take another meeting.
Schmitz explained to her assistant julie that she would need a cup of coffee to finish payroll on time. Choose from 147 different sets of vague pronoun reference flashcards on quizlet. If you use they, their, or them, make sure the noun is also plural. A pronoun is a word used to stand for or take the place of a noun. The computer started up but then it crashed because it is old not the computer started up but then the computer crashed because the computer is old. It just proves theres someone for everyone a match made in writers heaven read the following passage and summarize what it says. Exercise on vague or unclear pronoun reference with answer.
A pronoun should refer clearly to the noun it is replacing. Personal pronouns can be singular or plural, and can refer to someone in the first, second, or third person. Partially hydrogenated oils can be especially dangerous to your health, so you should eliminate this type of fat from your diet. Singular pronouns are used with singular antecedents, and plural pronouns are used with plural antecedents. Transgender, genderqueer, and other gender nonconforming people.
The profits from the investment would be large, which i realized almost immediately. Her is a pronoun representing the daughter in a simple construction that causes no confusion. Pronoun reference every pronoun must have a clear reference. Unclear pronoun reference you want to write a sentence as clean as a bone. If the noun is singular, the pronoun should be singular.
Nicks hair is so long that this young man really needs to visit a barber before his interview at the bank. Some people dont feel like the most common gender pronouns sheher, hehim represent their gender identities or expressions because of how they are typically attributed to binary conceptions of sex malefemale and gender manwoman. Ambiguous pronoun reference a pronoun with multiple, possible antecedents. Referential forms point to people or objects in the real world or to other forms called antecedents and include the various types of personal pronouns, the demonstratives, and a number of other referring forms.
A pronoun must refer to a single noun, which acts as its antecedent. Pronouns usually refer to other words, called their antecedents because they should come before the pronoun. Cate hoppes and maverick wagley present vague pronoun references and a guide on how to revise them. Because of the boy s hunger, he was permitted to eat early. Better writing avoiding vague and ambiguous pronoun references. Personal pronouns, pronounantecedent agreement, and vague or. Vague pronoun reference and pronounantecedent disagreement definition. Forms that express reference personal reference personal pronouns subject and object pronouns subject pronouns function as subject nps the object pronoun forms can. The word pronoun means for a noun and it called a nouns deputy. In general, a pronoun should refer to a particular word in the preceding sentence. There is no single rule for making pronoun reference clear in all cases. Avoiding vague pronoun references practice write your answers on the lines and then print this page. A pronoun is a word used instead of a common noun or a proper noun. We explain unclear pronoun references with video tutorials and quizzes, using our many waystm approach from multiple teachers.
Unclear pronoun reference makes sentences confusing, vague, and difficult to. Note that in most cases, more than one correct answer is possible. It, this, and which are pronouns, and they need to refer back to a specific noun, not to the whole idea of a previous statement. After braiding janees hair, andrea decorated them no word to which this pronoun refers with beads. The rule a pronoun must refer to a single noun, which acts as its antecedent.
Jul 16, 2010 i think mike cruickshanks new profit maximiser service is going to be one of the big hits and i can say hand on heart, if you follow the instructions, and just get involved, you will make a lot of money over the coming weeks, months and years. Actually, the term pronoun reference refers to the fact that the meaning of a pronoun comes from its antecedent, the noun or pronoun to which it refers. Vague pronoun reference and pronoun antecedent disagreement definition. Exercise on vague or unclear pronoun reference in the following pairs of sentences, one sentence is correct, and the other sentence contains a vague or ambiguous pronoun reference. Such errors, called faulty or vague pronoun reference, can confuse readers and obscure the intended meaning. Here youll first learn all about clear pronoun referenceand ways in which unclear pronoun reference can occur in your writing and speech. According to the menu, the pasta sauce is homemade. Pronouns a pronoun is a word that replaces a noun or noun phrase. Better writing avoiding vague and ambiguous pronoun. A pronoun should refer clearly to one, clear, unmistakable noun. Simmons decided to postpone the pronoun reference quiz so that her composition students could discuss their new 3,000word essay. Vague pronoun reference sometimes faulty pronoun reference occurs, not because there are too many nouns possibly being referred to, but because there is none.
Here is another example of faulty pronoun reference where a pronoun is asked to refer to a whole group of words instead of a clear, single noun antecedent. If an antecedent is singular, its pronoun must be singular, too. Cliffsnotes study guides are written by real teachers and professors, so no matter what youre studying, cliffsnotes can ease your homework headaches and help you score high on exams. Write the letter v next to the sentence that has a vague pronoun reference. A pronoun s antecedent is the word to which the pronoun refers. Avoid most pronoun reference problems by following these rules. Even though they rarely visit aunt michelle, penelope looks forward to sandquist, amy l. A pronouns reference will be unclear if it is ambiguous, implied, vague or indefinite. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools.
The reader cannot be sure whether howard is very angry because. A pronouns antecedent is theword to which the pronoun refers. Reference and possession pronoun grammatical number. It just proves theres someone for everyonea match made in writers heaven read the following passage and summarize what it says. So strained were bobs eyes from staring at a computer monitor all. In one sentence, for example, the pronoun he might mean zippy the dog. Pronoun reference check every pronoun in your sentence to make sure that it has a word to which it refers. A pronoun may be unclear if there is more than one noun to which the pronoun could be referring. The pronoun it does not have a clear noun antecedent.
Make pronouns agree in person and number with their antecedents. Pronoun reference cst claremont school of theology. The cliff dwellings at mesa verde were built by the ancestral pueblo people. If an antecedent is singular, its pronoun must besingular, too. To avoid a vague pronoun reference, make sure that a pronoun cannot possibly refer to more than one antecedent. An antecedent is the noun to which the pronoun refers.
This noun is called the pronoun s antecedent unfortunately, it is very easy to create a sentence that uses a pronoun without a clear, unmistakable noun antecedent. Eliminate a vague pronoun reference by the following methods. Using pronouns pronouns are words that replace nouns so that you dont need to repeat the same noun several times in a text e. Pronoun worksheets and activities ereading worksheets. More subtle errors occur when you use a pronoun reference that is too general or indefinite or one that only you know. Pronoun reference is the practice of making pronouns refer clearly to the words they replace. A vague pronoun reference occurs when a pronoun could refer to more than one subject or the subject that the pronoun refers to is only implied. In these three sentences, the pronouns refer to the idea that harry was always late, but they cant logically refer back to either of the two nouns, harry or class.
Apr 14, 2016 cate hoppes and maverick wagley present vague pronoun references and a guide on how to revise them. Faulty pronoun reference means the antecedent of your pronoun is not totally and immediately clear. In these three sentences, the pronouns refer to the idea that harry was always late, but they cant logically refer back to. A pronoun depends on a noun called the pronouns antecedent for meaning. I think mike cruickshanks new profit maximiser service is going to be one of the big hits and i can say hand on heart, if you follow the instructions, and just get involved, you will make a lot of money over the coming weeks, months and years. The word a pronoun refers to is called its antecedent. Or he was pleased by the way the highly ornate frame complemented the painting. I told uncle richard, aunt gretchen, and then dad, which infuriated gary. By the time my family arrived, they were very hungry. After the firstmention of a noun, a pronoun is commonly used to refer to the noun a second time. Bobs hands were so cramped from typing a 2,000word essay that a the poor boy. Most often a reader will try to connect the pronoun with the subject of a previous clause or sentence. Read your sentences carefully to make sure that all pronoun references are clear. The pronoun reference is faulty here because the pronoun it has two antecedents.
A pronoun is a word used to stand for or take the place of a noun a pronoun should refer clearly to one, clear, unmistakable noun coming before the pronoun. Making pronoun references clear memorial university. Also, it must be clear which noun the pronoun is substituting for. Improve your language arts knowledge with free questions in identify vague pronoun references and thousands of other language arts skills. Since the legal profession is highly valued by the public, they are very well paid. If the antecedent is in third person, the pronoun must be in third person. Apr 02, 20 a pronoun must clearly refer to a subject. When i travelled to new york, i realized that you needed to. Using pronouns correctly eliminates unnecessary noun repetition in your writing. Avoiding vague pronoun references macmillanmcgrawhill. A pronouns antecedent may be either a noun or another pronoun, but in either case, it must be clear what the antecedent is. Unclear pronoun references tutorials, quizzes, and help. Jan 29, 2018 here are answers to the editing exercise.
Vague pronoun reference a pronoun without a specific antecedent. Last year vince played on the college lacrosse team, but this year he is too busy to play. Pronoun agreement and reference a pronoun must agree with the word it refers to the antecedent. Making pronoun references clear pronouns substitute for nouns.
Unclear pronoun reference, along with a mismatch between the pronoun and its referent or antecedent, the word the pronoun is intended to replace, are issues that frequently cause students trouble. If you continue browsing the site, you agree to the use of cookies on this website. Pronoun case and perspective lesson this lesson is for students who already have a basic knowledge of pronouns. No fair scratching your head as you try to figure the passage out. Avoiding vague and ambiguous pronoun references vocabulary antecedent the noun which a pronoun substitutes for or refers to. Vague pronoun reference and pronounantecedent disagreement. If a pronoun seems to refer to more than one antecedent, either reword the sentence to make the antecedent clear or eliminate the pronoun.