Pronouns

Next we have to tackle that little word "it", which also can have different meanings depending on where in a sentence it appears. But once again, we have to pause, because "it" is a pronoun, and we need to make sure that you understand what pronouns are.

The word “pronoun” comes from the Latin for “in place of.” A pronoun is a word that you use “in place of” a noun. In short, it’s a substitute word that takes the place of a noun.

Here are some examples of pronouns:

he
she
him
her
we
they
it

How would the English language sound without pronouns? See for yourself:

In the left-hand column, we have "normal" English. All the pronouns have been left in, and they're highlighted in bold. All of these pronouns are simply substitute words for "Sandy".
In the right-hand column, the pronouns have been taken out. Because of this, we are forced to repeat the name "Sandy" many times. It sounds a bit awkward, doesn't it?

English with Pronouns	English without Pronouns
Sandy came to school today. She was wearing a red dress and her hair was bunched up in a pony tail. Before her first class, she spent a few minutes gossiping with her best friend. Then the bell rang and she ran into class, but her teacher said that she was late and she had to get a pass.	Sandy came to school today. Sandy was wearing a red dress and Sandy's hair was bunched up in a pony tail. Before Sandy's first class, Sandy spent a few minutes gossiping with Sandy's best friend. Then the bell rang and Sandy ran into class, but Sandy's teacher said that Sandy was late and Sandy had to get a pass.

What do we call the word to which a pronoun refers? In other words, what do we call the word for which the pronoun is “substituting”?

We call it the pronoun's antecedent.

Instructions for the Quiz

In each sentence, the pronoun is underlined. Your job is to determine the pronoun's antecedent. In other words, choose the "original" word for which the pronoun is substituting.

Example:

Bill is tall, and he is strong.

In this example, "he" is a pronoun that refers to Bill, so Bill is the antecedent of the pronoun "he."