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Difficulty: MediumPronouns and Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement

Which possessive pronoun correctly completes the sentence below in accordance with standard rules of pronoun-antecedent agreement?

Answer:The department heads each expressed 【their】 willingness to implement the new administrative guidelines.

Answer

their
The correct pronoun is 'their' because the syntactic antecedent is the plural noun phrase 'The department heads'. When 'each' appears after a plural subject in apposition, the subject retains its plural number, requiring a plural possessive pronoun to maintain proper pronoun-antecedent agreement.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the grammatical antecedent of the pronoun.
The subject of the sentence is the plural noun phrase 'The department heads'.
The possessive pronoun must agree in number and person with its antecedent.
2
Determine the syntactic position and function of the word 'each'.
'Each' is positioned in post-modifier apposition immediately following the plural subject.
When 'each' follows a plural noun phrase rather than preceding it, it functions appositively and does not make the grammatical subject singular.
3
Select the possessive pronoun that matches the plural antecedent.
The plural possessive pronoun 'their' correctly agrees with 'The department heads'.
Singular pronouns such as 'his' or 'his or her' are grammatically incorrect because the subject remains plural.

Key Concept

Pronoun-antecedent agreement with appositive 'each'
Estimated Time:1m 0s
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Topics

Pronouns and Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement

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