Pronoun Reference

1
Pronoun Reference

• Ill position the target, and when I nod my head,
  shoot at it.

2

• Ohhh, nooo!

3
Contents

• Ambiguous Reference
• Implied Antecedents
• Imprecise References

4
1. Ambiguous Reference

• More than one possible antecedent
• Mother told Ann that her skirt is too short.
• Whose skirt?
• Mother told Ann that Anns skirt Mothers
• Mother said to Ann, Your skirt My
• Mother said, Ann, your skirt Ann, my
• Jim sold his car to Bill before he moved to
  Banff.
• Who moved to Banff?
• Jim sold his car to Bill before Jim Bill moved
  
• Jim before the former the latter moved
• Just before Jim moved to Banff, he sold to
  Bill.
• Just before Bill moved to Banff, Jim sold him

5
2. Implied Antecedents

• Antecedent implied, not stated
• At Red River College, they provide a great deal
  of hands-on training.
• Who are they?
• At Red River College, instructors provide
• Red River College provides
• A great deal of hands-on training is provided at
  
• The parents tried to explain the risks involved
  in hitch hiking, but it was useless.
• What was useless?
• The parents , but their efforts were useless.
• The parents , but they were ignored.
• The parents , but the children ignored them.

6
3. Imprecise References

• Pronoun referring to entire clause or complete
  sentence
• When John finally proposed, it was only because
  he had learned of her inheritance.
• When John finally proposed, he did so only
• John finally proposed only because he
• The storm lasted all weekend long, which made us
  feel depressed.
• Because the storm , we felt depressed.
• We felt depressed because the storm lasted
• The storms lasting all weekend long made

7
Imprecise References (contd)

• You didnt return any of his calls. This made him
  feel that you dont care.
• After you didnt return any of his calls, he felt
  that you dont care.
• Your not returning any of his calls made him feel
  that you dont care.

8
Test your knowledge

• She spends most of her spare time doing math
  homework because it is her most difficult
  subject.
• Rita told Helen that her pearl necklace is a
  fake.
• My cousin from Ottawa gave me a new portable
  television, which pleased me very much.
• We have not yet tried the sport of curling, but
  we are very much interested in it.
• Because Ronalds father is a doctor, this is the
  profession he wants to pursue.
• After I parked my van next to the SUV, I noticed
  that there was a deep scratch on it.
• When I called emergency at the hospital, they put
  me on hold.

9

• After the guest speaker entered the room, they
  stood and gave him a huge round of applause.
• The Board of Directors is organizing a workshop
  for our administrators since they need to sharpen
  their managerial skills.
• Camille told Alice that she is being promoted.
• My nephew wants to pursue a career in medicine,
  but he doesnt know how to go about it.
• My sister always shares her good fortune with
  others, and this makes me proud of her.
• Our soccer team has asked the owners to award
  them a bonus for finishing in first place.
• I have never experienced real tornado, but I am
  terrified of them.

10

• When it flooded the valley it was because the dam
  had burst.
• The plumber told the homeowner that he needed a
  new set of taps.
• When Paul volunteered to host the Christmas
  dinner, it was a surprise to us all.
• On the bulletin board, it says that our
  instructor is absent today.
• The jury members could not reach a decision this
  caused the charge to be dismissed.
• Whenever I take my brothers to this ice cream
  stand, they make us wait in line for at least ten
  minutes.

11

• After Maureen returned from her Mexican vacation,
  she complained about their air pollution.
• Our class coordinated the food bank drive, which
  was praised in an SA newsletter.
• Just because lasagna is one of Italys favorite
  dishes doesnt mean they eat it every day.
• When Ernest was told to take his younger sister
  for a walk, it annoyed him very much.
• I called our local drama society and they told me
  that they would send me a schedule of plays for
  the coming year.