Pronoun-antecedent agreement with indefinite pronouns
16a. Anyone who requests a copy of the game may have it for their video library.
16b. Anyone who requests a copy of the game may have it for his or her video library.
My answer is 16b
This is similar to 13 or 14, I don't remember which number, but the one with the presenters and the notes. So, I would suggest 16 a.
The correct answer is b. The antecedent is ANYONE, so the pronoun must must also be singular.
Sorry, I haven't done grammar in years! :)
You've been doing pretty well, though, LC. :-)
Great! Your answer is correct. In sentence 16b, "his or her" is used to maintain pronoun-antecedent agreement with the indefinite pronoun "anyone." This is because the word "anyone" is a singular indefinite pronoun, so the pronoun that refers back to it should also be singular. In this case, "his or her" is a gender-neutral phrase that ensures inclusiveness.
To arrive at your answer, you correctly identified that the use of "their" in sentence 16a creates a lack of agreement. However, it is important to understand the rule behind it. The pronoun "their" is plural, while the antecedent "anyone" is singular. Therefore, using a plural pronoun with a singular antecedent creates a disagreement.
When encountering indefinite pronouns like "anyone," "someone," or "everyone," it's important to be mindful of maintaining agreement with gender-neutral pronouns like "his or her" to avoid any confusion or ambiguity.