Reference Words: English Ep M.1 Kru News

English EP M.
1 Kru NewS |1
Reference Words
You may understand all of the words in a sentence and still not understand what the writer
wants to say. This might be because you did not pay attention to words which connect the
ideas. We will call these reference words because they refer us to other parts of the text.
Instead of repeating the same noun over and over again, writers use pronouns to replace it.
The pronoun must agree in number (singular / plural) with the noun it replaces and, if it is a
personal pronoun, also in gender (masculine / feminine).
Some of the most common pronouns used are: it, they, him, her, one, ones, another, others.
Look at the example below.
- Modern technology has dramatically changed the way we view the world.
- With air travel, satellite communication and computers, it seems a much smaller
place these days.
What does ‘it’ refer to? In this context, the pronoun ‘it’ refers back to ‘the world’ in the
previous sentence, that is, ‘the world’ is the referent for ‘it.’
Look at another example. The words in parentheses are the referents for the words in italics.
- I lose so many things that I’m sure that they (things) just get up and walk away. I
am jealous of people who are so orderly that they (orderly people) never lose
anything.
Notice here that the plural pronoun ‘they’ replaces a plural noun (things, people).
If it were replacing a woman, the pronoun used would be ‘she.’
Now continue with the rest of the paragraph.

English EP M.1 Kru NewS |2
Pens and pencils are never there when I need them (_______________). I try to keep
a pen near the telephone so that I will use it when the phone rings. But it is never there
when I need it (_______________). The situation was getting so bad that I decided to
do something about it. I bought a large cupboard with a number of shelves. I then put
ten boxes on them (_______________). I put a label on each box: one
(_______________) I labeled “Pens and Pencils,” another (_______________) I
labeled “Tools,” another “Needles and Pins.” I also bought an address book and put it
in the corner of the cupboard. Before this, I always lost all the addresses and phone
numbers I needed. Now I felt very proud of myself. But things did not change. Pens
began to disappear, and one day I found my hammer under the bed. There was only
one solution. I locked the cupboard and put the key on top of it (_______________).
The cupboard was always locked and I was the only one who knew where the key
was. Then I lost it (_______________) . . .
****************************************
Exercise 1: Understanding personal pronoun references

Part A. Read the paragraphs below. Find out what the underlined pronouns refer
to. Look for the underlined pronouns and write their referent in the line
provided.
1. In the United States, about 10 million computers are thrown away every year!
Because most unwanted computers are sent to a dump, they (1) have caused a
problem. The computer industry and the government are working on ways to solve it
(2). They (3) have concluded that there must be changes in the way computers are
built. They (4) must be made in ways that will allow their parts to be recycled. These
parts include the electronic parts, the glass screen of the monitor and parts of the
printer.
1. they ____________________ 3. they _____________________
2. it ____________________ 4. they _____________________
2. A pedicab is a small cab which is pulled by a bicycle. This human-powered

transportation has been popular in Asian countries for many years. Two years ago, a
local businessman decided to introduce it (1) in Denver, Colorado. So far, he (2) has
four of them (3) on the road. He explained that they (4) do not take the place of taxis,
because people use them (5) for short rides. The passengers are often people who
don’t want to walk because they (6) are dressed in evening clothes.
1. it ____________________ 4. they _____________________
2. he ____________________ 5. them _____________________
3. them ____________________ 6. they _____________________
Part B. Read the story. Then decide what part of the text each underlined
pronoun refers to.
APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA
Somerset Maugham
There was a merchant in Baghdad who sent his (1) servant to the market to buy provisions
and in a little while the servant came back, white and trembling, and said, “Master, just now
when I was in the market-place, I (2) was jostled by a woman in the crowd and when I
turned, I saw it was Death that jostled me. She (3) looked at me and made a threatening
gesture. Please lend me your (4) horse and I will ride away from this city and avoid my fate.
I will go to Samarra and there Death will not find me.”
The merchant lent him his horse and the servant mounted it (5) and he dug his (6) spurs into
its flanks and as fast as the horse could gallop he went.
Then the merchant went down to the market-place and he (7) saw Death standing in the
crowd and he came to Death and said, “Why did you (8) make a threatening gesture to my
servant when you saw him this morning?” “That was not a threatening gesture,” Death said.
“It was only a start of surprise. I was astonished to see him in Baghdad, for I had an
appointment with him (9) tonight in Samarra.”
1. his refers to:

A. the servant B. the merchant C. Baghdad D. the market
2. I refers to:
A. the servant B. the merchant C. the reader D. the market
3. She refers to:

A. the servant B. the merchant C. Death D. Baghdad
4. Your refers to:

A. the servant B. the merchant C. the horse D. the woman
5. it refers to:
A. the servant B. the merchant C. Death D. the horse
6. his refers to:

A. the servant B. the merchant C. the horse D. the woman
7. he refers to:
A. the servant B. the merchant C. the market D. the woman
8. you refers to:

A. the servant B. the merchant C. Death D. the horse
9. him refers to
A. the servant B. the merchant C. Death D. the woman
Part C. Read the selection and answer the questions.
Thomas Jefferson’s liberal views of democracy were first proposed in his draft of the
Bill of Rights in 1776. Unfortunately, the Virginia Convention used only the preamble of
this draft in the more conservative document that they accepted, which had been drafted by
George Mason. Much of what Jefferson wanted was, however, obtainable as ordinary
legislation and when he took his seat in the new legislature, it was with a view of putting
through a definite program of reforms. In this he had the support of such men as Mason,
George Wythe, and James Madison, against the strenuous opposition of such leaders of the
old order as Edmund Pendleton and Robert Nicholas Carter. These men had much to lose if
Jefferson’s ideas were carried out.
1. The words ‘this draft’ in line 3 refer to ___.

A. the draft Jefferson wrote B. the draft that George Mason wrote
C. the preamble D. the draft that was accepted
2. The pronoun ‘he’ in line 5 refers to ___.

A. George Mason B. Thomas Jefferson
C. a member of the Virginia Convention D. a member of the legislature
3. The pronoun ‘this’ in line 6 refers to ___.

A. the implementation of the Bill of Rights
B. the acceptance of Jefferson’s original draft
C. putting through a program of definite reforms
D. carrying out Jefferson’s liberal views

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English EP M.

Now continue with the rest of the paragraph.

Exercise 1: Understanding personal pronoun references

2. A pedicab is a small cab which is pulled by a bicycle. This human-powered

1. his refers to:

3. She refers to:

4. Your refers to:

6. his refers to:

8. you refers to:

Part C. Read the selection and answer the questions.

1. The words ‘this draft’ in line 3 refer to ___.

2. The pronoun ‘he’ in line 5 refers to ___.

3. The pronoun ‘this’ in line 6 refers to ___.

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