Pronouns
Pronouns are words that take the place of nouns.
Without pronouns, our writing and speech would be painfully repetitive. Consider this:
“Emma laughed so hard, milk came out of Emma’s nose. Emma was so embarrassed that Emma ran to the bathroom to clean Emma’s face. Emma’s friends couldn’t stop talking about what had happened to Emma.”
That sounds ridiculous, right? We already know we’re talking about Emma, so we don’t need to keep saying her name over and over. Instead, we use pronouns:
“Emma laughed so hard, milk came out of her nose. She was so embarrassed that she ran to the bathroom to clean her face. Her friends couldn’t stop talking about what had happened to her.”
The same idea applies here:
“Zach lifted the log. Zach found a worm under the log. Zach picked the worm up and put the worm in Zach’s pocket. Then Zach put the log back where Zach had found the log.”
Since we already know who we’re talking about and what he lifted, we can clean this up with pronouns:
“Zach lifted the log. He found a worm under it. He picked the worm up and put it in his pocket. Then he put the log back where he had found it.”
Pronouns exist because people are smart. We have relatively long attention spans, and when we start talking about someone or something, we generally know we’re still talking about that same person or thing. Pronouns let us take out the unnecessary repeated noun when we’re confident the reader or listener knows what we’re referring to.
Here’s another example. We could write:
“Four astronauts boarded the capsule in Houston, leaving the astronauts’ families behind as the astronauts started the astronauts’ two-week journey into space. The astronauts radioed Houston to let Houston know that the astronauts were safe.”
That’s painful to read. Instead, we use pronouns:
“Four astronauts boarded the capsule in Houston, leaving their families behind as they started their two-week journey into space. They radioed Houston to let them know that they were safe.”
Click on the video above for more explanations of the different types of pronouns and how they can be used in a sentence.
Types of Pronouns and How They Work in Sentences
Some pronouns can be used just like nouns as the subject of a sentence.
- They found the results to be inconclusive.
- Mine is the one on the left.
- My sister and I worked on the project together.
Some pronouns don’t refer to a specific person, people, or thing(s), but can be used as a sentence’s subject.
A few examples:
- Whoever wants to go should get on the bus now.
- Each of you is getting a free lunch.
- In a matter of minutes, anyone can learn to change a tire.
But pronouns that end in “-self” or “-selves” (called reflexive pronouns) can never be used as sentence subjects.
They can only refer back to the subject:
- Good sentence: I hurt myself on the treadmill.
- Bad sentence: Myself was hurt on the treadmill.
Pronouns Never Need an Apostrophe!
This is a common mistake. The pronoun already shows possession on its own—its, his, her, their, your, our—none of these need an apostrophe.
Watch out especially for “its” vs. “it’s.” The one with the apostrophe is a contraction for “it is,” not a possessive pronoun.
The Antecedent: The “Name Tag” Noun
When you use a pronoun, the reader needs to know what noun that pronoun is replacing. That noun—the one that comes before the pronoun to let the reader know who or what the pronoun refers to—is called the antecedent.
The word “antecedent” comes from Latin and literally means “the thing that goes before.” But that’s a big, fancy word, so here’s an easier way to remember it:
Think of the antecedent as the pronoun’s “Name Tag.”
The antecedent is the noun that introduces itself first so that when the pronoun shows up later, the reader already knows who’s who.
Consider the sentence: “Bethany was not close to her father.” Who does “her” refer to? Bethany. So “Bethany” is the antecedent—the Name Tag noun that tells us what “her” means.
In the sentence “Four astronauts boarded the capsule in Houston, leaving their families behind as they started their two-week journey into space,” the antecedent is “astronauts.” Every time you see “their” or “they” in this sentence, you know those pronouns point back to the Name Tag noun: astronauts.
More Examples
- “The dog wagged its tail.” → The antecedent (Name Tag) is “dog.” The pronoun “its” points back to “dog.”
- “Marcus told his brother the good news.” → The antecedent (Name Tag) is “Marcus.” The pronoun “his” points back to “Marcus.”
- “The students turned in their essays before they left class.” → The antecedent (Name Tag) is “students.” Both “their” and “they” point back to “students.”
- “When Sarah got home, she made dinner.” → The antecedent (Name Tag) is “Sarah.” The pronoun “she” points back to “Sarah.”
Why Does the Antecedent Matter?
If a pronoun doesn’t have a clear antecedent, the reader gets confused. Look at this example:
“Tom told James that he got the promotion.”
Who got the promotion—Tom or James? It’s unclear because “he” could point back to either name. This is called an unclear antecedent, and it’s one of the most common writing problems. The fix is to rewrite the sentence so there’s no confusion: “Tom told James, ‘I got the promotion,'” or “Tom told James, ‘You got the promotion'”—depending on what you actually mean.
Here’s another example of a missing antecedent:
“They say it’s going to rain tomorrow.”
Who are “they”? The weathercasters? Your neighbors? Nobody has been named. There’s no Name Tag noun for “they” to point back to. To fix it, give the pronoun an antecedent: “The forecasters say it’s going to rain tomorrow.”
Quick Summary: The Name Tag Rule
Every pronoun needs a Name Tag—a clear antecedent noun that comes before it (or is otherwise obvious from context) so the reader knows exactly who or what the pronoun refers to. If you can’t easily identify the Name Tag for a pronoun, the sentence probably needs to be rewritten.