I hope this will help whoever is preparing for the GMAT. I made these slides for my Sentence Correction class at Studies in American Language at San Jose State University. I would like to thank you Danielle Pelletier. She is a great teacher. You can find her on LinkedIn.

1. GMAT
SENTENCE CORRECTION
PRONOUN REFERENCE
Firat Sekerli
GMAT Sentence Correction
Instructor: Danielle Pelletier
11/18/2009

2. What Is a Pronoun?
 A word that takes the place of a noun, so that
we do not have to repeat that noun
elsewhere in the sentence.
Gasoline has become so expensive that
IT now consumes as much as 16% of
personal income in some rural areas.
Manhattan GMAT Prep

3. The Antecedent Must Exist
 Find the antecedent
 Watch out for nouns used as adjectives!!!
 The park rangers discussed measures to prevent
severe wildfires, which would be devastating to
IT.
 The rangers discussed measures to prevent
severe wildfires, which would be devastating to
THE PARK.
Manhattan GMAT Prep

4. The Antecedent & Pronoun Must Make
Sense Together
 Although the term “supercomputer” may sound
fanciful and exaggerated , IT is simply an
extremely fast mainframe that can execute
trillions of calculations every second.
 Although the term “supercomputer” may sound
fanciful and exaggerated , IT simply REFERS TO
an extremely fast mainframe that can execute
trillions of calculations every second.
Manhattan GMAT Prep

5. The Antecedent Must Be Unambiguous
 Researchers claim to have developed new
“nano-papers” incorporating tiny cellulose
fibers, which THEY allege give THEM the
strength of cast iron.
 Researchers claim to have developed new
“nano-papers” incorporating tiny cellulose
fibers, which allegedly give THESE
MATERIALS the strength of cast iron.
Manhattan GMAT Prep

6. The Antecedent & Pronoun Must Agree in
Number
 Confronted by radical changes in production and
distribution, modern Hollywood studios are
attempting various experiments in an effort to
retain ITS status as the primary arbiter of movie
consumption.
 Confronted by radical changes in production and
distribution, modern Hollywood studios are
attempting various experiments in an effort to
retain THEIR status as the primary arbiter of
movie consumption.
Manhattan GMAT Prep

7. Pronoun Case
Subject Object Possessive
Pronouns Pronouns Pronouns
I Me My/Mine
You You Your/Yours
He Him His
She Her Her/Hers
It It Its
We Us Our/Ours
They Them Their/Theirs
Who Whom Whose

8. Pronoun Case
 A pronoun in subject position in one clause
may often be presumed to refer to the
subject of a parallel clause
- Supernovas destroy their immediate
environments in vast explosions, BUT by
synthesizing heavy chemical elements, THEY
provide the universe with the possibility of
biochemistry-based life as we know it.
Manhattan GMAT Prep

9. The Deadly Five: It, Its, They, Them, Their
 Find the antecedent, and check its viability.
 Sensible
 Unambiguous
 In agreement with the pronoun
 Whenever a student calls, take down THEIR
information.
 Whenever a student calls, take down HIS or HER
information.
 Whenever students call, take down THEIR
information.
Manhattan GMAT Prep

10. This, That, These, and Those
 Do not use this or these in place of nouns.
 Do not use that or those in place of nouns.
(unless you modify that or those)
 Use it, they or them.
Wrong: Her products are unusual; many
consider THESE unique.
Right: Her products are unusual; many
consider THEM unique.
Manhattan GMAT Prep

11. Sample GMAT Question-1
 Although the term “low-fat” is used by nutritionists
and dieticians to describe a food item that meets
any of a wide variety of criteria, legally it is a product
that is scientifically verified to contain less than
three grams of fat per serving.
a) it is a product that is
b) it refers to a product that is (correct)
c) it is in reference to products
d) it is a product
e) they are products that are
www.knewton.com

12. Sample GMAT Question-2
 The tallest structure in Paris, the designer and engineer of the Eiffel Tower were
two brilliant architects, Maurice Koechlin and Gustave Eiffel, whose innovative
safety precautions would earn him credit for saving many lives.
a) The tallest structure in Paris, the designer and engineer of the Eiffel Tower were
two brilliant architects, Maurice Koechlin and Gustave Eiffel, whose innovative
safety precautions would earn him credit for saving many lives.
b) The tallest structure in Paris, two brilliant architects, Maurice Koechlin and
Gustave Eiffel, whose innovative safety precautions would earn him credit for
saving many lives, were the designer and engineer of the Eiffel Tower.
c) The tallest structure in Paris, the Eiffel Tower was designed and engineered by two
brilliant architects, Gustave Eiffel, whose innovative safety precautions would earn
him credit for saving many lives, and Maurice Koechlin. (correct)
d) The Eiffel Tower was designed and engineered by two brilliant architects, Maurice
Koechlin and Gustave Eiffel, whose innovative safety precautions would earn him
credit for saving many lives, and is the tallest structure in Paris.
e) The designer and engineer being two brilliant architects, Maurice Koechlin and
Gustave Eiffel, whose innovative safety precautions would earn him credit for
saving many lives, the Eiffel Tower is the tallest structure in Paris.
www.knewton.com

13. Sample GMAT Question-3
 Iguanas have been an important food source in
Latin America since prehistoric times, and it is
still prized as a game animal by the campesinos,
who typically cook the meat in a heavily spiced
stew.
a) it is still prized as a game animal
b) it is still prized as game animals
c) they are still prized as game animals (correct)
d) they are still prized as being a game animal
e) being still prized as a game animal
GMAT Verbal Review 2nd Edition

14. THANK YOU!
GOOD LUCK ON YOUR TEST. =)