Pronoun agreement and reference pretest: are you up for the challenge?

As a copy editor, your job is to ensure that the text you’re editing is clear, concise, and grammatically correct. One of the most common mistakes writers make is pronoun agreement and reference errors. These errors can be tricky, but with a little practice, you can learn how to identify and correct them.

Before we dive into some tips, let’s start with a quick pretest. Read the following sentences and identify any pronoun agreement and reference errors.

1. The team won their game last night.

2. Alice and her friend went to the park with she and her dog.

3. The dog barked at the mailman, it was scared.

4. John and Mark went to the store to buy food, but he forgot the list.

How did you do? Let’s check your answers:

1. The team won its game last night.

2. Alice and her friend went to the park with her and her dog.

3. The dog barked at the mailman; he was scared.

4. John and Mark went to the store to buy food, but John forgot the list.

If you got them all correct, great job! If not, don’t worry, we’ll break down each error and explain why it’s incorrect.

Sentence 1: The team won their game last night.

In this sentence, “team” is a collective noun, which means it refers to a group of individuals. While the individuals may have won the game, the team as a whole did not win “their” game. Instead, use “its” to refer to the team as a singular entity.

Corrected sentence: The team won its game last night.

Sentence 2: Alice and her friend went to the park with she and her dog.

The error in this sentence is an incorrect use of pronoun reference. When using the pronoun “her,” it’s unclear which woman it’s referring to. Instead, use the name of the person you’re referring to or change the pronoun to make the sentence clearer.

Corrected sentence: Alice and her friend went to the park with Alice and her dog.

Sentence 3: The dog barked at the mailman, it was scared.

This sentence suffers from a lack of pronoun agreement. The word “it” is unclear, as it could be referring to the dog or the mailman. To make it clear, use the correct pronoun for each noun.

Corrected sentence: The dog barked at the mailman; he was scared.

Sentence 4: John and Mark went to the store to buy food, but he forgot the list.

This sentence suffers from pronoun reference errors. It’s unclear who “he” is referring to – John or Mark. To make it clear, use the name of the person you’re referring to.

Corrected sentence: John and Mark went to the store to buy food, but John forgot the list.

In conclusion, it’s important to have a good understanding of pronoun agreement and reference when editing text. These errors can often go unnoticed, but they can significantly impact the clarity and effectiveness of your writing. With practice, you’ll become a pro at identifying and correcting these errors, making you a better copy editor overall.