Clarify pronoun references
See this course’s project requirements
A sentence-editing portfolio with before/after examples, named repairs and a final paragraph checked for meaning, grammar and clarity.
Keep your working files in your own notebook or software. Save a private description, checklist, and work link in My Proof.
What to include
- Classify independent/dependent clauses and phrases.
- Repair a fragment and a comma splice with preserved meaning.
- Annotate agreement, tense and ambiguous pronouns.
- Explain three structural punctuation choices.
- Submit the full paragraph edit and cause-based revision log.
Review and revise
Use these criteria to check your work and choose what to improve.
- Method: applies the course-specific rules to the supplied cases with visible intermediate work.
- Accuracy: results agree with the stated facts, units, boundaries and independent checks.
- Reasoning: explains why the result follows and identifies a limitation or unresolved question.
- Transfer: completes changed cases and revises the final project when a relevant assumption changes.
Want more background?
The idea in everyday life
Practice sentence: Nia told Jo that she would bring the poster. Supplied intention: Jo will bring it. Another sentence: The sign fell onto the chair, but it was not damaged. Supplied intention: The chair was not damaged.
A pronoun should have an identifiable referent. When two possible people or things fit, a name or noun may be clearer than another pronoun. Agreement alone does not resolve ambiguity; retain the intended meaning instead of guessing.
Clarify pronoun references — worked practice
A pronoun should have an identifiable referent. When two possible people or things fit, a name or noun may be clearer than another pronoun. Agreement alone does not resolve ambiguity; retain the intended meaning instead of guessing.
Practice sentence: Nia told Jo that she would bring the poster. Supplied intention: Jo will bring it. Another sentence: The sign fell onto the chair, but it was not damaged. Supplied intention: The chair was not damaged.
Original practice material
Paste at A1.
| AMaterial | BSupplied text |
|---|---|
| Case | Practice sentence: Nia told Jo that she would bring the poster. Supplied intention: Jo will bring it. Another sentence: The sign fell onto the chair, but it was not damaged. Supplied intention: The chair was not damaged. |
Copy as plain text
1. 1. Find ambiguity
List possible referents of she.
You should see: Nia or Jo.
2. 2. Repair
Name the intended person without changing the message.
You should see: Nia told Jo that Jo would bring the poster.
3. 3. Second repair
Name the intended object in the damage clause.
You should see: The sign fell onto the chair, but the chair was not damaged.
4. 4. Check
Confirm why asking for intention matters.
You should see: Without the supplied intention, both readings could be possible.
What to finish
A referent chart and two meaning-preserving sentence revisions.
Watch for this
Ambiguity is not evidence for one preferred reading. A responsible edit keeps the unresolved meaning visible rather than making an unsupported choice.
How can I tell I understand it?
Clarify a new pronoun reference without assuming the nearest noun must be intended.
Quick knowledge check
Answer all 3 questions. Get at least 2 right and the lesson completes automatically.
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Answer all 3 questions above and get at least 2 right. You can review the explanations and try again.
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