In This Chapter... + The Antecedent Must Exist ‘The Antecedent & Pronoun Must Make Sense Together * The Antecedent Must Be Unambiguous ‘The Antecedent & Pronoun Must Agree in Number + Pronoun Case * The Deadly Five: I, ls, They, Them, Their + This, That, These, and ThasePRONOUNS STRATEGY PRONOUNS ‘A pronoun is 2 word tha takes che place oF a noun, so that we do not have to repeat that noun elfewhere in the sentence. Gasoline has become so expensive that [T now consumes as much as 16% of personal income in some rural areas. Inthe sentence above, the pronoun i takes the place of the noun gasoline, Alternatively, we can say that i¢ refers wo gasoline. The noun gasoline is known as the Anteoedent of i. Pronoun errors are so frequent on the GMAT that everytime you see a pronoun, such asi, ity, they them, of thir, you should be sure to check whether ic is being used correctly ‘The first question you mus ask yourslfis cis: What isthe antecedent of cis pronoun? Once you have found the antecedent, you must male sure that it makes sense, chat i isthe only posible antecedent, and that it agices in number wih che pronoun, [Notice that these questions are essentially the same as those you should ask with subjects and vecbs: “what is the subject ofthis verb, does it make sense with the verb,” ete. The Antecedent Must Exist ‘The frst ask is o find che antecedent in the sentence. The park rangers discussed measures to prevent severe wildfires, which would be devastating to IT. ‘What noun does i refer to? We mighe guess the park. However, you should note that in this sentence, park is not truly a noun. Rather, park is acting a an adjective inthe phrase the park rangers. Asa result, park cannot be the antecedent of it. Moreover there ino other possible antecedent in the sentence. Thus, as writen, this sentence is incotrect. One simple way to fix this sentence is to eliminate the pronoun, replacing it with the noun YYou want co refer to, Right: The rangers discussed measures to prevent severe wildfires, which would bbe devastating to THE PARK. ‘We eliminated the frst mention of park ro avoid repetition (afterall, che noun rangers seems specific enough), but we could have left the subject as she park rangers. ‘Watch out for nouns used a adjectives! They cannot be antecedents of pronouns. The antecedent to which you want to refer must actually exist in the sentence and be functioning as a noun. ManhattanGMAT Prep ‘he new standare Chapter 5Chapter 5 ‘When you porte sncedee in pace of the pronoun, he ene hold ene PRONOUNS STRATEGY ‘The Antecedent & Pronoun Must Make Sense Together ‘The next eas isto check whether the antecedent and the pronoun agree logically. That is, iF you replace the pronoun with the noun, will you get a sensible sentence? ‘Although the term “supercomputer” may sound fanciful or exaggerated, IT is simply an extremely fast mainframe that can execute trillions of calculations ‘every second. Looking forthe antecedent, we find she term “upercompucer” Now we replace the pronoun: the term “supercomputer” is simply an extremely fast mainframe... ‘The error in meaning is subdle but unmistakable. The term is nat 2 mainframe; rather, the term refers o a mainframe. Therefore, you must change the verb or make some other edit. Right: Although the term “supercomputer® may sound fanciful or exaggerated, IT simply REFERS TO an extremely fast mainframe that can execute tril- lions of calculations every second. ‘As you might recall, these issues are aspects of the Meaning principle. The GMAT tries to ‘tick you into “assuming away” lice wrinkles in meaning. Afterall you knew what the author of the firs sentence meant to say, right? But make no assumptions. Whenever you find an antecedent, always check that it makes sense in place of the pronoun. The Antecedent Must Be Unambiguous Every pronoun on the GMAT must early refer to only one antecedent. Sentcnces in which there ae ewo oF more possible antecedents for any pronoun should be rewrite. Researchers claim to have developed new “nano-papers” incorporating tiny cellulose fibers, which THEY allege give THEM the strength of cast iron. ‘What nouns do they and them refer to? We might assume that shy refers to ecarcers (who claim something) and that them refers to new “nano-paper:” However, in reality both they and them have ambiguous antecedents. Either pronoun could refer to researchers ax to “hano- Paper. Resolve the ambiguity by recasting the sentence. In this case, eliminate they and them. Right: Researchers claim to have developed new “nane-papers” incorporating tiny cellulose fibers, which allegedly give THESE MATERIALS the strength of cast iron. ‘Make sure that every pronoun has only one possible antecedent, ManhattanGMAT Prep the new standardPRONOUNS STRATEGY The Antecedent & Pronoun Must Agree in Number ‘Afeer finding the antecedent, ask yourself ifthe pronoun agrees with the antecedent in rmumber. Ifthe antecedents igus, the ponoun hat rf to must be ing. the ‘antecedent is plural, the pronoun that refers to it must be plural. Confronted by radical changes in production and distribution, modern Hollywood studios are attempting various experiments in an effort to retain ITS status as the primary arbiter of movie consumption. ‘The antecedent of is is modern Holbawoed studios. Howeves, sis singulas, while srudios is plural. We muse change either the pronoun or the noun co make the number match. Righe: Confronted by radical changes in production and distribution, modem Hollywood studios are attempting various experiments in an effort to retain THEIR status as the primary arbiters of movie consumption. Right: Confronted by radical changes in production and distribution, the mod: ‘ern Hollywood studio is attempting various experiments in an effort to retain [IS status as the primary arbiter of movie consumption. Either sentence i correct. We can speak about made Holywoad srdios (plural) or the “genetic” modern Hollywood sudio (singular). Ether way, we must match the number of the pronoun and its anecedent, Note chat the GMAT tends to test number agreement when you can easly express the relevant concepts either in singular or in plural form. Also, we saw in Subjece-Verb Agreement thatthe GMAT can disguise che subject and its number in various ways (eg. additive phrases such as along with). The same disguises apply ro pro- ‘noun antecedents. Be sure to identify the ancecedent property. Pronoun Case Occasionally you need to think about the cae of the pronoun or antecedent. "Cas means grammatical role or Function, There ae 3 cases in English: subject, objec, and possessive. 1) Subjecs pronouns can be the subjets of sentences. I you he she it we they who They arived lt. 2) Object pronouns can be the objects of verbs or prepositions. me you him her it us them whom No one saw chem or talked to them. 3) Rassesive pronouns indicate ownership or a similar relation. mmy/mine your/yours his herfhers. its ur/ours theit/theirs whose Dhie presence went unnoticed. ManhattanGMAT Prep ‘the new standard Chapter 5Chapter 5 PRONOUNS STRATEGY “The GMAT does not force you to pick pronoun cases directly, since this tak is too easy For instance, Them arrived late and No one saw the sound terrible to the native ear and are simple to fix. However, we need to consider the topic of ease fora couple of reasons. 4) Sometimes (though nat always), pronouns show a tendency to refer to nouns in the same ‘ase, especially when they are embedded in parallel structures, In particular, a pronoun in subject position in one clause may often be presumed to refer to the subject ofa paral- Tel clause, even if that subject is relatively far avay. Right: Supernovas destroy their immediate environments in vast explosions, BUT by synthesizing heavy chemical elements, THEY provide the universe with the possibilty of biochemistry-based ife as we know it. Supernovasis the subject ofthe fis claus. The they i ls in subject position in the second claus, whichis parallel tothe first dause. Even though there are atleast two close possible antecedents (environments and explosion), we know thatthe cleanly refers to supernova ) Nouns in the possessive case (with 5 or #) are often poor antecedents. ‘Wrong: The board is investigating several executives’ compensation packages in order to determine how much may have been improperty awarded to THEM. In his sentence, che pronoun shem actualy refers better to packages than to executives In face, according to the Posssive Poison rule, shem cannot refer to exeusve, The Possesive Poison rule states that possessive nouns can serve as antecedents only to possessive pro- ‘nouns, not to subject or object pronouns. ‘Asa result of «controversy afew years ago with another major standardized test, the GMAT will almost certainly steer away from having this rule be the “make or break’ for any question. However, you should avoid the possibilty of ambiguity by taking the possessing noun out of the possessive case. Better: The board is investigating the compensation packages of several execu: tives in order to determine how much THEY may have been improperly awarded. Since the reference of the pronoun they is stl somewhat ambiguous (executes or pack- ‘ager), an even better way to fix the ise is to replace they with a noun: Best: The board is investigating the compensation packages of several execu- tives in order to determine how much THESE EXECUTIVES may have been improperly awarded ManhattanGMAT Pre} the new standardPRONOUNS STRATEGY ‘The Deadly Five: It, Its, They, Them, Their ‘The most common pronoun mistakes involve Third Person Personal Pronouns—the singular it and is, together wich the plural they, hem and their. Whenever you see one of these five pronouns, you should find the antecedent and check its viability (isthe antecedent sensible, unambiguous, and in agreement with the pronoun?"). Be particularly careful with heir, which is often used in everyday speech to refer to singular subjects. ‘Wrong: Whenever a student cals, take down THEIR information, Right! Whenever a student call, take down HIS or HER information. Right Whenever students cal, take down THEIR information. This, That, These, and Those ‘The Demonstative Pronouns ae sis, har, shoe and whore You may wse any ofthese pro- nouns at adjectives infront of nouns, swe have aleady see. ‘New “nano-papers” incorporate fibers that give THESE MATERIALS strength, You may also use that or those to indicate a “New Copy’ or copies of the antecedent. ‘The money spent by her parents is less than THAT spent by her children, In this example, that spent by her children racans the mney spent by her children. Note that the two pots of money are NOT the same. One por of money is spent bythe parents; another pot of money, spent by the children, isthe New Copy. In contrast, when you use i, they or other personal pronouns, you mean the same aca thing asthe antscedene ‘The money spent by her parents is more than IT was expected to be, That or thoce indicating « New Copy or copies must be modified. In other words, you have to add a description to indicate how the new copy is different from the previous version. ‘The money spent by her parents is less than THAT SPENT by her children Her company is outperforming THAT OF her competitor. A litele oddly, the GMAT insists that any “New Copy” shar or shore agree in number with the previous version. Ifyou must change number, repeat the noun. Wrong: Her company is outperforming THOSE OF her competitors. Right: Her company is outperforming THE COMPANIES OF her competitor. Finally, on the GMAT, do not use sis or thee in place of nouns. Also, do not use shat or shore in place of nouns (unless you modify shat or hax). Use i, they or them instead. ‘Wrong: Her products are unusual; many consider THESE unique. Right Her products are unusual; many consider THEM unique. ManhattanGMAT Prep the new standard Chapter 5 ‘Newer ship pc They Tht Thr in serene Sop and ck whee the pon i adage corey nmIN ACTION PRONOUNS PROBLEM SeT Chapter 5 Problem Set all the pronouns in the following sentences. Underline the antecedent, if there is one, of ‘each pronoun. If you notice any pronoun errors in a sentence, correct the sentence by altering the ‘pronoun(s). Explain what rules ate violated by the incorrect sentences. Ifa sentence is correct, mark it with the word CORRECT. 1. When the uests finished thelr soup they were brought plates of salad. 2 Everyone here needs their own copy f the textbook inorder to take this class 3. Jim may not be elected CEO by the board because he does not meet their standards. 4, Meg let all her class notes at school because she decided that she could do her homework without it. 5. Some people believe that the benefits of a healthy diet outweigh that of regular exercise. 6 Caroline receives e-mail from friends who she knows well, from acquaintances who's names are only vaguely familiar, and from strangers about who she knows nothing at all, 7. The players’ helmets need to be repainted before they are used in Sunday's game. 8. We finally chose the coffee table towards the back of the store, which we thought would complement our living room furniture. 9. Oil traders have profited handsomely from the recent rise in Its price. 10. A few Shakespearean scholars maintain that he borrowed some of is most memorable lines from Christopher Marlowe. 11. The Smiths avoid the Browns because they dislike their children, 12. careful analysis of the students’ test scores reveals that some of them must have cheated. ManhattanGMAT Prep thenewstandard SSB7a Chapter 5 13, 4 15. PRONOUNS PROBLEM SET IN ACTION ‘Our cat is cuter than those in the shelter, ‘The rapid development of india in the twenty-first century is like England in the eighteenth century. She took her laptop and her books with her on the airplane because she thought she ‘could use these to get some work done. ManfattanGMAT Prep the new standardIN ACTION ANSWER KEY PRONOUNS SOLUTIONS Chapter 5 1 8. ‘When the guess finished ie) soup (ig) were brought plates of salad. CORRECT. Guess s the antecedent oftheir and thy (Greryone) here needs (is oF hed) own copy of the textbook in order to take this class Everyones an indefinite pronoun. Ie isthe antecedent of his or her. (Their is incorrect because cveryoneis singular) Jim may not be elected CEO by the board because he does not meet (fs) standards ‘Boards the antecedent of is, (Ther is inconect, because board is a singular collective noun.) Meg left all Ged) class notes at school because (ig) decided that ha) could do Ge) homework ‘withoue Gem) -Megis the antecedent of her and she. Notes is the antecedent of them. (Iris incorrect because nots is plural.) ‘Some people believe that the benefits of a healthy diet outweigh Ghose) of regular exercise. Benefits isthe antecedent of shove (Thats inconec, because benefits is plural.) Caroline recive e-mail from fads 6B) (ED knows wel fom acquaintances RSD) names are only vaguely familiar, and from strangers about (whom) Ghe) knows nothing at all. Caroline isthe ancecedent ofboth she. Friends is the antecedent of the first whom. (Who is incorrect because the objective case is required here. Whom is the direct abject of the verb knows, we would say that she knows them) Acquaintances's the antecedent of whose. (Who is incostect, because whos means “who is". We need the possessive pronoun whose to indicate that the names belong to the acquaincances ) Sorangersis the ancecedent of whom. (Whois incarecx because we need the objective case here The players’ helmets need to be repainted before (hep) are used in Sunday's game. ‘CORRECT. Helmets isthe antecedent of they. You need not worry that they could refer vo layer’, because (1) Aelmesss closer to they, and (2) player is a possessive noun, and is therefore aot a good antecedent for & pronoun in the subjective case (W finally chose the coffee table towards the back of the store, because (We) thought thae this table ‘would complement our living room furniture. Weis a pronoun that never has an antecedent in the sentence, because we is fist person (ve refers to the people speaking). ManhattanGMAT Prep the new standardChapter 5 7% 10. nh. 2 13. 4 PRONOUNS SOLUTIONS IN ACTION ANSWER KEY Rather chan use the pronoun i, we repeat the noun sable to be on the safe side. We might be able to gec away with using , but the antecedent might be considered ambiguous (table or sor) ‘The original sentence is incorrect because the pronoun which teers to soe. Stores an illogical antecedent for which, because the tab, not the stor, is what would complement someone's living oom furniture. (Oil traders have profited handsomely from the recent rise in the price of oil ‘This new, correct version of the sentence contains no pronouns, ‘The original sentence is inconrect because fs has no antecedent. Cit isan adjective in the expression oi sraders, and therefore cannot be the antecedent of is. A few Shakespearean scholars maintain that Shakespeare borrowed some of (fils) most memorable lines from Christopher Marlowe. Shakespeareis the antecedent of his ‘The original sentence is incorrect because he as no antecedent. Shokepearean is an adjective, and therefore cannot be the antecedent. We are thus forced to replace he with Shakespeare in the correct ‘The original sentence is ambiguous. The antecedent of they could be the Smith or the Browns. Likewise, che antecedent oftheir could be the Smiths or she Browns. To correct this sentence, we would need to get rid of the pronouns. One possible version: The Smiths avoid the Browns because the Browns dislike the Smith? children. We cannot be sure, however, that this version accurately rep- resents what the author intended, because he or she might have meant chat The Smiths avoid the Browns because the Smiths dislike the Browns children. A careful analysis of che students test score reveals that some students must have cheated. ‘This new, correct version of the sentence contains no pronouns. ‘The original sentence is incorrect because them refers to test scores. Them fil co refer to sade’, bocause (1) test scores is closer to them, and (2) student? isa possessive noun, and is therefore rela- tively unattractive as an antecedent for a non-possessive pronoun such as shen. ‘Our cat is cuter chan the cats in the shelter. This new, correct version of the sentence contains no third-person pronouns. (Ours a pronoun, but frs-person pronouns such as our never have antecedents inthe sentence.) ‘The original sentence is incorrect because those has no antecedent. Thos is plural and therefore cannot refer to cat “The rapid development of Indi in the ewenty-fst century slike (Ea) of England in the ‘eighteenth century. MankattanGMAT Prep the new standargIN ACTION ANSWER KEY PRONOUNS SOLUTIONS Chapter 5 15. Developments the acecedent ofthat ‘The original sentence i incoszec because it makes an illogical comparison, Indi developments snot like England. Icis like England's development or that of England. (Ge)r00k Gs) laptop and (hep) books with Gey) on the airplane because (he) thous use Gh) to get some work done ‘The first she is the antecedent of all three her’. The three uses of she lack an antecedent, but are correct. The subject of the sentence is simply an unnamed sbe. Note that the GMAT will generally name any personal antecedent, rather than leave this person nameless asin the example above Her lepap and ber books isthe ancecedent of them. (The original ses is incoreece because shee is never used asa stand-alone pronoun without « noun following) @® could ManhattanGMAT Prep the new standardPROBLEM SET PRONOUNS Chapter 5 Sentence Correction: Part I Now hat you have completed your study of PRONOUNS, i is time to test your skills on prob. Jems that have actually appeared on real GMAT exams over the past several years. ‘The problem set that follows is composed of EASIER pase GMAT problems from three books pub- lished by GMAC (Graduate Management Admission Council): The Offical Guide for GMAT Review, 12% Edition (pages 40-44 8 658-683) ‘The Official Guide for GMAT Verbal Review (pages 234-253) ‘The Official Guide for GMAT Verbal Review, 2nd Edition (pages 244-268) "Note: The ewo editions of the Verbal Review book largely ovedap. Use one OR the other ‘The problems in the set below are primarily focused on PRONOUN issues. For each of these prob- Jems, identify ach pronoun and its antecedent. Eliminate any answer choice that contain ervots in pronoun use, including missing or unclear antecedents and agreement errors. ‘Note: Problem numbers preceded by “D” refer ro questions in the Diagnostic Test chapter of ‘The Official Guide for GMAT Review, 12" Edition (pages 40-44). ‘GENERAL SET Pronouns 12 Edition: 1,7, 23,47, 91, D42. Verbal Review: 12, 15, 19, 29, 41, 44, 49, 53, 65, 67 OR 2nd Edition: 16, 19, 21, 29, 40, 43, 48, 51, 62, 64 Additionally, more difficult Oficial Guide problems related to PRONOUNS ate listed in Chapter 12, which is in Part I (Advanced). ManhattanGMAT Prep the new standa