3.11 Pronouns Naming Nonspecific People or Things
A pronoun is often used to refer to
unnamed, nonspecific persons or things.These pronouns refer to people, places, or things in general.
By looking at their form, you can see whether these pronouns
refer to one or many.
Singular pronouns refer to a person or thing: each,somebody,
something, or anything.
Plural pronouns refer to more than one person or thing: both,
several,few, or many.
There are many different pronouns in this category. Only a few
are listed here. Look at the examples to understand what they
all have in common: They refer to people or things without
naming them.
PART TWO
What Jobs Can Pronouns Do?3.12 Overview: Subject Pronouns, Object Pronouns,
and Possessive Pronouns
The roles pronouns can play divide them into three distinct
groups: subject pronouns, object pronouns, and possessive
pronouns.
Somebodyalways takes the flippers.Thepronounsomebodyrefers to an unnamed
person. We don’t know if it is a boy or a girl.Somethinghappened at the pool.Thepronounsomethingcan refer to an accident
or a celebration. We don’t know which.Severalcame to the swim meet.Thepronounseveralindicates unspecified
people attending the swim meet.or