Finding References

Finding References

​1. Pronouns and Adjectives

he, she, it, they, we, him, her, them, us, his, hers, its, theirs, etc.

Example

Tom loves drinking coffee. He drinks it every day.

Fill in the Blanks

Tom loves drinking coffee. He drinks it every day.

What does 'He' refer to?

Fill in the Blanks

Tom loves drinking coffee. He drinks it every day.

What does 'it' refer to?

Tom loves drinking coffee. Tom drinks coffee every day

But it is more natural and common in English to use ‘He’ and ‘it’ instead.

I read in the newspapers that there are about 200 fires in American schools each year and more than half of them are started by boys under the age of 16.

Fill in the Blanks

I read in the newspapers that there are about 200 fires in American schools each year and more than half of them are started by boys under the age of 16.

What does "them" refer to?

​2. Relative Pronouns

that, which, who, whom, whose, where, when, why

Fill in the Blanks

Horses, which originate in North America and then become extinct, were reintroduced in the 1500’s.

What does "which" refer to?

3) Deleted nouns

one, another, the other, others, some, those, etc.

Fill in the Blanks

Octopuses are easily tamed and can be trained to take food from your hand. Some will even pull your hand open to get at tightly held bit of food.

What does "Some" refer to?

4) Synonymous terms

Synonymous is a word that has the same meaning as another word (or nearly the same meaning. For example, beautiful and attractive are synonymous of each other because they both refer to someone or something that looks good.

Fill in the Blanks

Natacha worked so hard that she could afford to buy a diamon ring. This precious gem costs ฿25,000.

5) Pro-clauses

so, that, it, this, etc.

Fill in the Blanks

She said she was ready to field questions from the audience, but I don’t think so. She did not know much about the topic.

Fill in the Blanks

Mandy has to work on Sundays. This disappoints her.

6) Arithmetic pronoun

one, two, three, first, second, third, etc.

Fill in the Blanks

I can’t differentiate this girl from that one. Do you think they are Siamese twins?

7) Sequence of two items

the former, the latter

Fill in the Blanks

Some students read slowly and know it; other read slowly and don’t know it. The former can be helped more easily than the latter.

Fill in the Blanks

Some students read slowly and know it; other read slowly and don’t know it. The former can be helped more easily than the latter.

8) Grammarical subject and ojbect 'it'.

Fill in the Blanks

It is not a good practice in Thai society to show affection in public.

Fill in the Blanks

It is difficult to follow the instructions.

Exercise A: Write what the italicized reference word refers to.

Multiple Choice

1.      There were, broadly, two interrelated reasons for this, the first relating to Britain's economic and Imperial difficulties, the second to the internal dissension in all three parties.

1.1   ‘the first’ refers to ________________________

• difficulty

• reason

• party

Multiple Choice

1.      There were, broadly, two interrelated reasons for this, the first relating to Britain's economic and Imperial difficulties, the second to the internal dissension in all three parties.

1.1   ‘the second’ refers to ________________________

• difficulty

• reason

• party

Multiple Choice

1. 2. A surprising fact about sailboats is that they can move against the wind. No matter which way the wind blows, you can move your boat in any direction you like. This is possible because of the shape and action of the sails.

2.1 ‘they’ refers to ____________________________________________

• shapes

• directions

• sailboats

Multiple Choice

1. 2. A surprising fact about sailboats is that they can move against the wind. No matter which way the wind blows, you can move your boat in any direction you like. This is possible because of the shape and action of the sails.

2.2 ‘this’ refers to ____

• boat

• direction

• sailboat

• moving in any direction

Multiple Choice

3. Some families have long histories. Some of them know everything about their ancestors while others know very little about theirs.

3.1 ‘them’ refers to __________________

• families

• ancestors

• histories

Multiple Choice

3. Some families have long histories. Some of them know everything about their ancestors while others know very little about theirs.

3.2 ‘their’ refers to ____________

• families

• families'

• histories

• ancestors

Multiple Choice

3. Some families have long histories. Some of them know everything about their ancestors while others know very little about theirs.

3.3 ‘others’ refers to ______

• families

• families'

• histories

• ancestors

Multiple Choice

3. Some families have long histories. Some of them know everything about their ancestors while others know very little about theirs.

3.4 ‘theirs’ refers to ___________

• families

• families'

• histories

• ancestors'

Multiple Choice

4.    Last July we spent our holiday at Denpasar, Bali. It was the best holiday we ever had there.

4.1 ‘It’ refers to _______________

• July

• Spending holiday at Denpasar, Bali

• Holiday

Multiple Choice

4.    Last July we spent our holiday at Denpasar, Bali. It was the best holiday we ever had there.

4.2 ‘there’ refers to ________

• July

• Spending holiday at Denpasar, Bali

• Holiday

• Denpasar, Bali