Pronouns: Right Case, Clear Reference

English · Grammar & Punctuation · ages 11-13

Name ______________________ Date ____________

Which sentence correctly uses an intensive pronoun for emphasis?
- I myself finished the puzzle.
- Me myself finished the puzzle.
- Myself finished the puzzle.
Which sentence uses the correct pronoun case?
- Between you and I, this is our secret.
- Between you and me, this is our secret.
- Between you and he, this is our secret.
True or false: 'If a player wants to win, you must practice every day' keeps the pronoun person consistent.
Circle one: True False
What is unclear about 'Ana told Mia that her essay had won'?
- 'Her' could mean Ana's essay or Mia's essay.
- The sentence has no pronoun problem.
- 'Her' should be replaced with 'she'.
Which rewrite fixes the pronoun shift in 'When a player scores a goal, you feel proud'?
- When a player scores a goal, they feel proud.
- When a player scores a goal, we feel proud.
- When a player scores a goal, you feel proud.
Choose the pronoun that correctly completes the sentence: 'The prize was given to Sam and ___.'
- I
- me
- myself
Which rewrite fixes the vague pronoun in 'When the coach spoke to the player, he was nervous'?
- When the coach spoke to the player, he himself was nervous.
- When the coach spoke to the player, they were nervous about it.
- When the coach spoke to the player, the player was nervous.
A student wrote: 'If you study every night, a student will pass the test.' What is wrong with it?
- It shifts from second person to third person.
- It shifts from third person to first person.
- Nothing is wrong with it.

Answer key

For grown-ups. Fold this page away before handing over the rest.

I myself finished the puzzle. · Intensive pronouns like 'myself' add emphasis next to the pronoun they point back to: 'I myself finished it.'
Between you and me, this is our secret. · After the preposition 'between,' pronouns switch to the objective case: me, not I.
False · The sentence starts with 'a player' (third person) then switches to 'you' (second person). That is a shift.
'Her' could mean Ana's essay or Mia's essay. · Since 'her' could point to either girl, naming her directly, as in 'that Mia's essay had won,' clears up the confusion.
When a player scores a goal, they feel proud. · The sentence starts in third person ('a player'), so 'they' keeps it consistent all the way through.
me · 'To' is a preposition, so the pronoun after it takes the objective case: 'to Sam and me.'
When the coach spoke to the player, the player was nervous. · Naming 'the player' removes the ambiguity. Adding 'himself' or swapping in 'they' still does not say who was nervous.
It shifts from second person to third person. · It starts in second person ('you') then jumps to third person ('a student'). Keeping one person throughout fixes it.