Pronouns Chapter 3

Pronouns A pronoun is a word that takes the place of a noun or another pronoun. Common pronouns are: I, you, he, she, it, we, they, me, him, her, us, them, my, mine, your, their

Singular: I, you, he, she, it Plural: we, you, they

Practice and Apply Decide the correct pronoun form to complete each sentence.

1. The diamond detectives were Carla and (I, me). 2. According to legend the huge diamond has had many owners, and (they, them) all came to a bad end. 3. Jean Baptiste Tavernier brought the original blue diamond from India; the first owner to die was (him, he) 4. (He, Him) is said to have been killed in India by wild dogs.

5. Marie Antoinette and Lois XVI inherited the diamond; (we, us) know that the next victims were (them, they). 6. Carla and (me, I) learned that a Dutch diamond cutter may have recut the stone to disguise it. 7. His son and (he, him) died tragically soon afterward.

8. In the 1830s Henry Hope bought the recut gem; the person for whom the diamond was named was (he, him). 9. (We, Us) discovered that the Hope diamond is now in the Smithsonian Institution in Washington D.C. 10. “Hope diamond experts” are (us, we)!

Singular: me, you, him, her, it Plural: we, you, them

Practice and Apply Decide the correct pronoun form to complete each sentence.

1. King Tutankhamen was only about nine years old when the priests crowned (he, him) pharaoh. 2. (He, Him) and his wife were not in power long before the young pharaoh died. 3. (I, Me) saw a video showing x-ray pictures of Tut’s skull. 4. (They, Them) revealed that someone had struck Tut on the back of the head.

5. It occurred to (I, me) that only someone the king knew could get so close to (he, him). 6. There are several possible suspects, but two of (them, they) had the best opportunity—the queen and the royal minister- Ay. 7. (She, Her) and Ay married when Ay became pharaoh.

8. A ring discovered in 1931, however, shows that Ay married another queen after (she, her). 9. Just between you and (me, I), I believe that Ay is the most likely killer. 10. All the suspects may be long dead, but the evidence has outlived (they, them).

Possessive Pronouns A possessive pronoun is a personal pronoun used to show ownership or relationship. Singular: my, mine, your, yours, her, hers, his, its Plural: our, ours, your, yours, their, theirs

Practice and Apply Decide the correct pronoun form to complete each sentence.

1. Imagine (your, you’re) visiting a museum in Urumqui, in the desert of northwest China. 2. In one room, you find remarkable mummies in (their, they’re) cases. 3. The leggings, shirts, and cloaks on the mummies look as colorful as (your, you’re) clothes today. 4. This experience really happened to Professor Mair and his tour group on (their, they’re) trip to China in 1987.

5. The mummies are about 3,000 years old, and (they’re, their) European, not Chinese! 6. (It’s, Its) a mystery why the Europeans went all the way to China. 7. Mair’s astonishing report made (its, it’s) way around the world.

8. Some 3,000 years ago, a group of European Celts may have started trading with (their, they’re) Chinese neighbors. 9. When one of the Celts was buried, the dry, salty desert preserved the body and (its, it’s) clothing perfectly. 10. You can satisfy (your, you’re) curiosity about these mummies of Ururmqi by reading the articles about them.

Pronoun Agreement The antecedent is the noun or pronoun that a pronoun refers to. Agreement in number- singular or plural Agreement in Person- 1 st, 2 nd, or 3 rd Agreement in Gender

Practice and Apply Tell the pronoun and its antecedent in the following sentences.

1. Agatha Christie loved real-life mysteries of the past. She helped to investigate them in the Middle East. 2. Max Mallowan was an English archaeologist. He was married to Christie for 45 years. 3. The couple went on many archaeological trips and found them exciting and a real source of inspiration. 4. Christie and Mallowan, made important discoveries about Assyria. It was a wealthy country in an ancient world.

5. Pottery pieces revealed their secrets about the powerful Assyrian civilization. 6. Although Christie helped Mallowan at the site, she also kept writing mysteries. 7. A mystery writer may use exotic places as background for her stories.

8. Christie started Murder in Mesopotamia in the desert, but she finished it in England. 9. The story takes place at an archeological dig. One of its main characters in Dr. Leidner. 10. When Mrs. Leidner is murdered, the detective Hercule Poirot must catch her.

Pronoun Problems Use we when the pronoun is a subject or a predicate pronoun. Use us when the pronoun is an object.

Practice and Apply Choose the correct pronoun in parenthesis.

1. Cats baffle (us, we) owners by the things they do. 2. They often rub themselves against (us, we) humans. 3. My two cats, Pickles and Bert do this. Surprisingly, (he, Bert) does this even with strangers.

4. However, (he, Pickles) hides when guests arrive. 5. This rubbing is simple. (We, Us) humans are being marked by the cats as part of its territory.