had their battery changed.
Answer: Sentence A is correct. The pronoun its refers to neither, which is a
singular pronoun.
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120 Part II: Avoiding Common Errors
Steering Clear of ######ist Pronouns
In preparing to write this section, I typed “pronoun + gender” into a Web
search engine and then clicked “search.” I wanted a tidbit or two from the
Internet about the use of non######ist language. I got more than a tidbit. In fact,
I got over 700
newports cigarettes wholesale,000 hits. I can’t believe that so many people are talking about
pronouns! Actually, talking is not the appropriate word. Arguing, warring,
facing off, cursing
newport cigarettes for usa, and a few other less polite terms come to mind. Here’s the
problem. For many years, the official rule was that masculine terms (those
that refer to men) could refer to men only or could be universal, referring
to both men and women. This rule is referred to as the masculine universal.
Here’s an example. In an all-female gym class the teacher would say,
Everyone must bring her gym shorts tomorrow.
and in an all-male gym class the teacher would say,
Everyone must bring his gym shorts tomorrow.
Employing the masculine universal, in a mixed male and female gym class,
the teacher would say
newport red cigarettes,
Everyone must bring his gym shorts tomorrow.
Judging by the Internet, the battles over this pronoun issue aren’t likely to be
over in the near future. My advice? I think you should say he or she and his
or her when grammar requires such terms. The masculine universal excludes
females and may offend your audience.
To sum up: you may say
cheap marlboro cigarettes,
Everyone must bring his or her gym shorts.
or
Everyone must bring his gym shorts.
or
All the students must bring their gym shorts.
or
Bring your gym shorts, you little creeps
marlboro gold pack!
All these example sentences are grammatically correct.
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Chapter 10
Just Nod Your Head:
About Agreement
In This Chapter
? Distinguishing singular verb forms from plural verb forms
? Matching the subject to the verb
? Choosing the correct verb forms for questions and negative statement