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Difficulty: Very hardPronoun-Antecedent Agreement

Neither the field technicians nor the lead conservationist who monitored the nesting habits of the endangered condors expected their data to be cited in the new environmental legislation.

Which option is the grammatically correct pronoun to replace the underlined word?

  1. A
    NO CHANGE
  2. his or herAnswer
  3. C
    him or her
  4. D
    they're

Answer

The correct option is 'his or her' because it is a singular possessive pronoun that correctly agrees with the closer singular antecedent 'lead conservationist' in a compound subject joined by 'neither... nor...'.
The pronoun must agree with the closer antecedent in a compound subject joined by 'neither... nor...'. The closer antecedent is the singular noun 'lead conservationist'. Therefore, the pronoun must be singular. Since the pronoun must show possession over the noun 'data', the singular possessive pronoun 'his or her' is the correct choice.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the compound subject and its connectors.
The subject is 'Neither the field technicians nor the lead conservationist'. The connector is 'neither... nor...'.
This determines the agreement rule to apply.
2
Apply the proximity rule for 'neither... nor...' constructions.
The pronoun must agree in number with the closer antecedent, which is 'the lead conservationist' (singular).
In a compound subject joined by 'neither/nor', the pronoun agrees with the closer antecedent, ignoring the earlier plural noun 'field technicians' and the intervening relative clause.
3
Determine the gender and case of the pronoun.
The antecedent is a person ('conservationist'), and the pronoun modifies the noun 'data', requiring a possessive pronoun.
A singular possessive pronoun referring to a person is 'his or her'.

Key Concept

Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement with Compound Antecedents and Intervening Clauses
Estimated Time:1m 0s
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Topics

Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement

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