Here`s an example that shows the right pronoun-precursor concordance: Pronoun errors occur when the pronoun you use to “defend” a noun doesn`t match that noun in number, place, or gender. The marbles are countable; The sentence therefore has a reference plural pronoun. Whenever a sentence relates to a person of the unknown sex and a singular possessive pronoun relating to that person is required, the male and female possessive pronoun is usually included in the phrase “to be or she.” In this case, “to be or she” is a better choice than “she”, because “student” is a singular noun and “she”, which is a plural pronoun, does not correspond to the number. Given the other possible answer possibilities, “they” is the contraction of “they are” that would make no sense in the sentence, “it is” is the contraction of “it is”, which would make no sense in the sentence, and “it is” the possessive form of the pronoun “he” that is not used to refer to a person. None of these answers can therefore be correct. How you rewrite the sentence depends on the style guide you use. Both the 8th Edition MLA and the 7th Edition APA support the use of the singular. On the other hand, the 17th edition of the Chicago Manual of Style (CMOS) does not support the use of the singular in formal writings, unless the person being discussed prefers it. CMOS recommends rewriting the sentence so that the noun and pronoun match. Need to refresh the pronouns? See Pronouns in the area of writing update. c) With the conjunction “or” or “nor”, the pronoun must correspond to the closest precursor.

Rule: a singular pronoun must replace a singular noun; a plural pronoun must replace a plural noun. While pronouns they were historically only plural, it is grammatically acceptable to use them as singular pronouns. They should always be used when they relate to more than one person. They can also be used as a singularly gender-neutral pronoun if they relate to a person, if the sex is unknown, or if you know the person prefers them as their personal name. For example, the sentence in the written version contains a small error….