Examkin

Question

Difficulty: MediumPronoun-Antecedent Agreement

Which pronoun correctly completes the sentence below to ensure proper pronoun-antecedent agreement?

Answer:Although the scientific coalition of climate researchers published a unified statement, each of the individual member organizations retained 【its】 right to release independent data.

Answer

its
The singular indefinite pronoun 'each' acts as the subject and antecedent of the clause. Therefore, the singular possessive pronoun 'its' is required to maintain correct agreement. The plural noun 'organizations' is part of an intervening prepositional phrase and does not affect the number of the pronoun.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the antecedent of the pronoun to be filled in the blank.
The antecedent is the singular indefinite pronoun 'each'.
In the clause 'each of the individual member organizations retained...', the grammatical subject and antecedent is 'each', not the plural noun 'organizations' which is the object of the preposition.
2
Select a pronoun that matches the singular number and neutral gender of the antecedent.
The singular possessive pronoun 'its' is correct.
Because 'each' is a singular indefinite pronoun referring to neutral organizations, the possessive pronoun must be 'its'.

Key Concept

Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement with Indefinite Pronouns
Rate this question

Topics

Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement

More questions from this topic