What's an "antecedent"? Well, every pronoun must refer back to a noun; therefore, the pronoun must have the same "number" as its noun. If the noun is singular, then the pronoun must also be singular If the noun is plural, then the pronoun must be plural.
The following sentence has a pronoun error:
I didn't expect to find the victim with a noose around their neck.
The word "their" is plural and doesn't match its singular antecedent, "victim," a singular noun (there's only one victim). The corrected sentence is:
I didn't expect to find the victim with a noose around his neck. (If your victim is female, you can use "her" instead of "his.") The pronoun agreement problem is common, but it is also deadly and will seriously affect your grade. Papers with pronoun agreement problems will receive a "D" or lower grade. Remember: pronouns must match their antecedents in number.
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