ANTECEDENTS OF PRONOUNS
Antecedent
is the grammatical term used to refer to the noun that a pronoun replaces. An
antecedent comes before a pronoun. A pronoun and its antecedent must agree in
gender and number. For example, if the antecedent is singular and female, the
pronoun must refer to a single female. If the antecedent is plural, then the
pronoun must be plural as well.
It
is important to make sure that your pronouns have clear antecedents. Sometimes
the references are vague and the reader cannot figure out to whom a pronoun is
referring.
Examples
of Antecedents:
Examples
of Pronouns and Antecedents :
1.
Jennifer = she
or her
2.
Bob and Chris =
they or them
3.
Kevin = he or
him
Examples
of Pronouns and Antecedents in a Sentence:
1. Marcus put his book on the table.
2. Mr. and Mrs. Samuels are painting their house.
3. Do you know if Marie invited Leslie to her party?
4. Lois, Mark, and I would like for you to come with
us.
Examples
of Sentences with Unclear Pronoun-Antecedent References:
1. Jeff handed his father his glove. (Does the glove
belong to Jeff or his father?)
2. The soldiers taught the farmers how to use their
weapons. (Do the weapons belong to the soldiers or the farmers?)
3. Karen left Josie's book on her desk. (Whose
desk-Karen's or Josie's?)
DANGLING CONSTRUCTIONS
A
dangling construction is a group of words that the writer intends to be a
modifier for a noun or phrase but the noun or phrase is not actually in the
sentence. Instead, the modifier erroneously describes a noun or phrase
that is in the sentence -- sometimes with humorous results.
Here are some examples.
· After
eating, the waiter gave us the bill. (The sentence grammar says the waiter did
the eating but that's not what the writer really means.)
·
While running,
my shoe lost its heel. (I couldn’t slow that shoe down!)
·
To avoid
extinction, researchers hope to breed in captivity.
·
After taking a
three-month bicycle trip through Montana, my dog was happy to see me.
·
After reading
the book, the movie is going to be great.
·
Wrapped in wax
paper, the picnickers couldn't see if the sandwiches were tuna or egg salad.
·
Rolling down the
hill, Larry saw an avalance of rocks approaching.
·
After placing
bets, the horses headed to the starting gate.
Similar
to dangling modifiers are misplaced modifiers.
·
I saw penguins
on a trip to the zoo. (I hope the penguins enjoyed their visit!)
·
Jake shot an
elephant in his pajamas. (Jake never did explain how the elephant got into his
PJ’s).
·
Mike caught the
fly ball running backwards.
·
I found a
lottery ticket walking home.
