DEL RIO INDUSTRIAL CONSULTANTS
1.08 Guidelines for Selecting Pronoun Case
a. Pronouns that serve as subjects of verbs must be in the nominative case:
He and I (not Him and me) decided to apply for the jobs.
b. Pronouns that follow linking verbs (such as am, is, are, was, were, be, being, been) and rename the words to which they refer must be in the nominative case.
It must have been she (not her) who placed the order. (The nominative-case pronoun she follows the linking verb been and renames it.)
If it was he (not him) who called, I have his number. (The nominative-case pronoun he follows the linking verb was and renames it.)
c. Pronouns that serve as objects of verbs or objects of prepositions must be in the objective case:
Mr. Andrews asked them to complete the proposal. (The pronoun them is the object of the verb asked.)
All computer printouts are sent to him. (The pronoun him is the object of the preposition to.)
Just between you and me, profits are falling. (The pronoun me is one of the objects of the preposition between.)
d. Pronouns that show ownership must be in the possessive case. Possessive pro- nouns (such as hers, yours, ours, theirs, and its) require no apostrophes:
I bought a cheap cell phone, but yours (not your’s) is expensive.
All parts of the machine, including its (not it’s) motor, were examined.
The house and its (not it’s) contents will be auctioned.
Don’t confuse possessive pronouns and contractions. Contractions are shortened forms of subject–verb phrases (such as it’s for it is, there’s for there is, and they’re for they are).
e. When a pronoun appears in combination with a noun or another pronoun, ignore the extra noun or pronoun and its conjunction. In this way pronoun case becomes more obvious:
The manager promoted Jeff and me (not I). (Ignore Jeff and.)
f. In statements of comparison, mentally finish the comparative by adding the implied missing words:
Next year I hope to earn as much as she. (The verb earns is implied here:
. . . as much as she earns.)
g. Pronouns must be in the same case as the words they replace or rename. When pronouns are used with appositives, ignore the appositive:
A new contract was signed by us (not we) employees. (Temporarily ignore the appositive employees in selecting the pronoun.)
We (not us) citizens have formed our own organization. (Temporarily ignore the appositive citizens in selecting the pronoun.)
h. Pronouns ending in self should be used only when they refer to previously mentioned nouns or pronouns:
The CEO himself answered the telephone.
Robert and I (not myself) are in charge of the campaign.
i. Use objective-case pronouns as objects of the prepositions between, but, like and except:
Everyone but John and him (not he) qualified for the bonus.
Employees like Miss Gillis and her (not she) are hard to replace.
j. Use who or whoever for nominative-case constructions and whom or whom- ever for objective-case constructions. In making the correct choice, it’s sometimes helpful to substitute he for who or whoever and him for whom or whomever:
For whom was this book ordered? (This book was ordered for him/
whom?)
Who did you say would drop by? (Who/He … would drop by?)
Deliver the package to whoever opens the door. (In this sentence the clause whoever opens the door functions as the object of the preposition to. Within the clause itself, whoever is the subject of the verb opens. Again, substitu- tion of he might be helpful: He/Whoever opens the door.)
1.09 Guidelines for Making Pronouns Agree With Their Antecedents.
Pronouns must agree with the words to which they refer (their antecedents) in gender and in number.
a. Use masculine pronouns to refer to masculine antecedents, feminine pronouns to refer to feminine antecedents, and neuter pronouns to refer to antecedents without gender:
The man opened his office door. (Masculine gender applies.) A woman sat at her desk. (Feminine gender applies.)
This computer and its programs fit our needs. (Neuter gender applies.) b. Use singular pronouns to refer to singular antecedents:
Common-gender pronouns (such as him or his) traditionally have been used when the gender of the antecedent is unknown. Sensitive writers today, how- ever, prefer to recast such constructions to avoid gender-biased pronouns.
Study these examples for bias-free pronouns. See Chapter 2 for additional discussion of bias-free language.
Each student must submit a report on Monday.
All students must submit their reports on Monday.
Each student must submit his or her report on Monday. (This alternative is least acceptable since it is wordy and calls attention to itself.)
c. Use singular pronouns to refer to singular indefinite subjects and plural pro- nouns for plural indefinite subjects. Words such as anyone, something, and anybody are considered indefinite because they refer to no specific person or object. Some indefinite pronouns are always singular; others are always plural.
always singular always Plural
anybody either nobody both
anyone everyone no one few
anything everything somebody many
each neither someone several
Somebody in the group of touring women left her (not their) purse in the museum.
Either of the companies has the right to exercise its (not their) option to sell stock.
d. Use singular pronouns to refer to collective nouns and organization names:
The engineering staff is moving its (not their) facilities on Friday. (The singular pronoun its agrees with the collective noun staff because the mem- bers of staff function as a single unit.)
Jones, Cohen, & Chavez, Inc., has (not have) canceled its (not their) contract with us. (The singular pronoun its agrees with Jones, Cohen, & Chavez, Inc., because the members of the organization are operating as a single unit.) e. Use a plural pronoun to refer to two antecedents joined by and, whether the
antecedents are singular or plural:
Our company president and our vice president will be submitting their expenses shortly.
f. Ignore intervening phrases—introduced by expressions such as together with, as well as, and in addition to—that separate a pronoun from its antecedent:
One of our managers, along with several salespeople, is planning his retire- ment. (If you wish to emphasize both subjects equally, join them with and:
One of our managers and several salespeople are planning their retirements.) g. When antecedents are joined by or or nor, make the pronoun agree with the
antecedent closest to it.
Neither Jackie nor Kim wanted her (not their) desk moved.
Review Exercise B—Pronouns
In the space provided for each item, write a, b, or c to complete the statement accu- rately. When you finish, compare your responses with those provided. For each item on which you need review, consult the numbered principle shown in parentheses.
1. Send e-mail copies of the policy to the manager or (a) me, (b) myself.
2. James promised that he would call; was it (a) him, (b) he who left the message?
3. Much preparation for the seminar was made by Mrs. Washington and (a) I, (b) me before the brochures were sent out.
4. The Employee Benefits Committee can be justly proud of (a) its, (b) their achievements.
5. A number of inquiries were addressed to Jeff and (a) I, (b) me, (c) myself.
6. (a) Who, (b) Whom did you say the letter was addressed to?
7. When you visit Franking Savings Bank, inquire about (a) its, (b) their certificates.
8. All e-mail messages for Taylor and (a) I, (b) me, (c) myself will become part of the lawsuit.
9. Apparently one of the female applicants forgot to sign (a) her, (b) their application.
10. Both the printer and (a) it’s, (b) its cover are missing.
11. I’ve never known any man who could work as fast as (a) him, (b) he.
12. Just between you and (a) I, (b) me, the stock price will fall by afternoon.
13. Give the supplies to (a) whoever, (b) whomever ordered them.
14. (a) Us, (b) We employees have been given an unusual voice in choosing benefits.
15. When he finally found a job, Dante, along with many other recent graduates, described (a) his, (b) their experience in an employment blog.
16. Either James or Robert must submit (a) his, (b) their report next week.
17. Any woman who becomes a charter member of this organization will be able to have (a) her, (b) their name inscribed on a commemorative plaque.
18. We are certain that (a) our’s, (b) ours is the smallest camera phone available.
19. Everyone has completed the reports except Debbie and (a) he, (b) him.
20. Lack of work disturbs Mr. Thomas as much as (a) I, (b) me.
1. a (1.08h) 3. b (1.08c) 5. b (1.08c, 1.08e) 7. a (1.09d) 9. a (1.09b) 11. b (1.08f) 13. a (1.08j) 15. a (1.09f) 17. a (1.09b) 19. b (1.08i)
Cumulative Editing Quiz 1
Use proofreading marks (see Appendix B) to correct errors in the following sen- tences. All errors must be corrected to receive credit for the sentence. Check with your instructor for the answers.
example: Max and her started there own company in early 2000’s.
1. Neither the citys nor the countys would take responsibility for there budget overruns.
2. Can we keep this matter just between you and I?
3. Only a few attornies still have private secretarys.
4. Our staff committee gave their recommendation to the president and I as soon as they finished deliberating.
5. Theres really no excuse for we citizens to have no voice in the matter.
6. The manager and myself will deliver supplies to whomever ordered them.
7. Many basketball and football star’s earn huge salarys.
8. Are you sure that this apartment is their’s?
9. Each student must submit their report on Monday.
10. Both the network administrator and myself are concerned about the increase in personal Web use and it’s tendency to slow productivity.
Verbs (1.10-1.15)
Verbs show the action of a subject or join the subject to words that describe it.
1.10 Guidelines for Agreement With Subjects. One of the most troublesome areas in English is subject–verb agreement. Consider the following guidelines for making verbs agree with subjects.
she their
a. A singular subject requires a singular verb:
The stock market opens at 10 a.m. (The singular verb opens agrees with the singular subject market.)
He doesn’t (not don’t) work on Saturday.
b. A plural subject requires a plural verb:
On the packing slip several items seem (not seems) to be missing.
c. A verb agrees with its subject regardless of prepositional phrases that may intervene:
This list of management objectives is extensive. (The singular verb is agrees with the singular subject list.)
Every one of the letters shows (not show) proper form.
d. A verb agrees with its subject regardless of intervening phrases introduced by as well as, in addition to, such as, including, together with, and similar expressions:
An important memo, together with several contracts, is missing. (The sin- gular verb is agrees with the singular subject memo.)
The president as well as several other top-level executives approves of our proposal. (The singular verb approves agrees with the subject president.) e. A verb agrees with its subject regardless of the location of the subject:
Here is one of the contracts about which you asked. (The verb is agrees with its subject one, even though it precedes one. The adverb here cannot function as a subject.)
There are many problems yet to be resolved. (The verb are agrees with the subject problems. The word there does not function as a subject.)
In the next office are several printers. (In this inverted sentence, the verb are must agree with the subject printers.)
f. Subjects joined by and require a plural verb:
Analyzing the reader and organizing a strategy are the first steps in mes- sage writing. (The plural verb are agrees with the two subjects, analyzing and organizing.)
The tone and the wording of the message were persuasive. (The plural verb were agrees with the two subjects, tone and wording.)
g. Subjects joined by or or nor may require singular or plural verbs. Make the verb agree with the closer subject:
Neither the memo nor the report is ready. (The singular verb is agrees with report, the closer of the two subjects.)
h. The following indefinite pronouns are singular and require singular verbs:
anyone, anybody, anything, each, either, every, everyone, everybody, everything, many a, neither, nobody, nothing, someone, somebody, and something:
Either of the alternatives that you present is acceptable. (The verb is agrees with the singular subject either.)
i. Collective nouns may take singular or plural verbs, depending on whether the members of the group are operating as a unit or individually:
Our management team is united in its goal.
The faculty are sharply divided on the tuition issue. (Although acceptable, this sentence sounds better recast: The faculty members are sharply divided on the tuition issue.)
j. Organization names and titles of publications, although they may appear to be plural, are singular and require singular verbs.
Clark, Anderson, and Horne, Inc., has (not have) hired a marketing consultant.
Thousands of Investment Tips is (not are) again on the best-seller list.
1.11 Voice. Voice is that property of verbs that shows whether the subject of the verb acts or is acted upon. Active-voice verbs direct action from the subject toward the object of the verb. Passive-voice verbs direct action toward the subject.
active voice: Our employees send many e-mail messages.
Passive voice: Many e-mail messages are sent by our employees.
Business writers generally prefer active-voice verbs because they are specific and forceful. However, passive-voice constructions can help a writer be tactful.
Chapter 3 presents strategies for effective use of active- and passive-voice verbs.
1.12 Mood. Three verb moods express the attitude or thought of the speaker or writer toward a subject: (a) the indicative mood expresses a fact; (b) the impera- tive mood expresses a command; and (c) the subjunctive mood expresses a doubt, a conjecture, or a suggestion.
indicative: I am looking for a job.
imperative: Begin your job search with the want ads.
subjunctive: I wish I were working.
Only the subjunctive mood creates problems for most speakers and writers.
The most common use of subjunctive mood occurs in clauses including if or wish.
In such clauses substitute the subjunctive verb were for the indicative verb was:
If he were (not was) in my position, he would understand.
Mr. Simon acts as if he were (not was) the boss.
We wish we were (not was) able to ship your order.
The subjunctive mood can maintain goodwill while conveying negative informa- tion. The sentence We wish we were able to ship your order sounds more pleasing to a customer than We cannot ship your order. However, for all practical purposes, both sentences convey the same negative message.
1.13 Tense. Verbs show the time of an action by their tense. Speakers and writers can use six tenses to show the time of sentence action; for example:
Present tense: I work; he works.
Past tense: I worked; she worked.
Future tense: I will work; he will work.
Present perfect tense: I have worked; he has worked.
Past perfect tense: I had worked; she had worked.
Future perfect tense: I will have worked; he will have worked.