CDS English · Spotting Errors
Pronouns: case and agreement
The fifth check: test every pronoun twice. Is it the right form for its job (I or me, who or whom), and does it match the noun it stands for?
Why this matters
Pronoun errors are short words, so they hide well: 'their' for 'his', 'who' for 'whom', 'who's' for 'whose'. Two questions find almost all of them: what job does the pronoun do in its clause, and which noun does it replace?
Concept 1 of 2: Pronoun case: who/whom, I/me, whose, your, its being
A pronoun changes its form with its job. As a subject: I, he, she, we, they, who. As an object: me, him, her, us, them, whom. Showing ownership: my, his, your, their, its, whose. These forms are called the pronoun's case.
Definition
- Subjective case (the doer): I, he, she, we, they, who.
- Objective case (receives the action, or comes after a preposition): me, him, her, us, them, whom.
- Possessive case (owns a noun): my, your, his, her, its, our, their, whose.
- Who or whom? Substitute. Turn the clause into a statement and try he or him in its place. If 'he' fits, use who; if 'him' fits, use whom. Ignore a side phrase such as 'you think' or 'I believe'.
- Two people joined by 'and': drop the other person and test the pronoun alone: 'Ravi and I are going' (I am going); 'She invited Ravi and me' (she invited me).
- Look-alikes: whose (owner) vs who's (who is); its (owner) vs it's (it is); your (owner) vs you.
- Before an -ing form used as a noun, the exam wants the possessive: 'I insist on its being sent', 'I dislike his coming late'.
- After everything, all, nothing, the only, use that, not what: 'Everything that happened ...'.
Worked example
Find the part with the error. (a) The manager (b) invited Ravi and I (c) to the meeting. (d) No error
Practice this conceptself-check · 4 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
CDS · 2017 · CDS (I) 2017 — English · Q40Hard
Example 1 · Spotting Errors · Pronouns
Directions: find error in underlined part or No error
Whom you think will be dismissed first?
A side phrase hides the pronoun's job
In 'the man who I think is guilty', the words 'I think' are a side phrase. Remove them: 'the man who is guilty'. The pronoun is the subject of 'is', so 'who' is right and 'whom' would be wrong.
'And me' as a subject
A pronoun joined to a name by 'and' looks harmless. Remove the name and say the sentence with the pronoun alone: 'Me am going to the fair' shows at once that 'I' is needed.
Contraction or possessive?
'Who's' and 'it's' always mean 'who is' and 'it is'. If the word shows an owner ('who's books', 'it's tail'), it must be 'whose' or 'its'.
'Everything what'
After everything, all, nothing and the only, the relative pronoun is 'that': 'Everything that happened was my fault', not 'everything what happened'.
Concept 2 of 2: A pronoun matches its antecedent in number and person
A pronoun stands for a noun said earlier, its antecedent. It must match that noun in number (one or many) and in person (I and we, you, or he, she and they).
Definition
- Find the antecedent: the noun the pronoun replaces.
- Singular antecedent, singular pronoun. Each, every, every one, everybody and anyone are singular: 'Every student must bring his or her book.' Everyday English often says 'their' here; this exam has marked 'their' wrong after every and each.
- Plural antecedent: their. 'Certain animals talk only to their own kind.'
- Person must match too: 'Those of us who ...' is first person (we), so the pronoun is our. 'One' takes one's: 'One must do one's duty.'
- A country as one unit takes its: 'India and its neighbours'.
- Reciprocal pronouns (for actions done to each other): each other for two, one another for more than two. This is the exam's rule.
- Fixed phrases keep their own possessive: 'out of her mind', 'make up his mind'.
Worked example
Find the part with the error. (a) Each of the girls (b) has brought (c) their own lunch. (d) No error
Practice this conceptself-check · 4 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
CDS · 2017 · CDS (II) 2017 — English · Q95Moderate
Example 2 · Spotting Errors · Pronouns
Directions: find error in part a, b or c; else no error
Those of us who have a family history of heart disease should make a yearly appointment with their doctors.
'Their' after every or each
'Every student should give their ideas' is normal speech, but this paper has marked it as the error. After every, each and every one, use 'his' or 'his or her'.
Check person, not only number
A pronoun can be plural and still wrong if the person is wrong. A subject that includes the speaker (us, we) needs 'our', not 'their'.
Each other is for two
When the sentence names exactly two people ('both of them', 'the two brothers'), the exam wants 'each other'. 'One another' is for three or more.
The antecedent may sit in another part
The noun is often in part (a) and the pronoun in part (c). Trace every pronoun back to its noun before you choose No error.
Summary — formulas & gotchas at a glance
A revision cheat-sheet for the formulas and gotchas above. Click any concept name to jump back to its full explanation.
Watch out for (8)
- A side phrase hides the pronoun's job→ Pronoun case: who/whom, I/me, whose, your, its being
- 'And me' as a subject→ Pronoun case: who/whom, I/me, whose, your, its being
- Contraction or possessive?→ Pronoun case: who/whom, I/me, whose, your, its being
- 'Everything what'→ Pronoun case: who/whom, I/me, whose, your, its being
- 'Their' after every or each→ A pronoun matches its antecedent in number and person
- Check person, not only number→ A pronoun matches its antecedent in number and person
- Each other is for two→ A pronoun matches its antecedent in number and person
- The antecedent may sit in another part→ A pronoun matches its antecedent in number and person
Test yourself on Spotting Errors
25 past CDS questions from this chapter, timed at 25 minutes and marked the way the exam marks it. You see your score and every answer the moment you finish. Free to start.