Collins Cobuild English Grammar (21 page)

We
all need money.
This survey gives
us
 insight into our attitudes and behaviour as a nation.
No other language has ever advanced as far, as fast, as 
ours
.
We
need a change of government; just ridding 
ourselves
 of the prime minister isn’t enough. 

they
,
them
,
theirs
and
themselves

1.123
  You can use
they
to refer to people in general.

Isn’t that what
they
call love?

They
can also refer to a group of people whose identity does not need to be stated. For example, in the sentence
They’ve given John another pay rise
it is clear that
they
refers to John’s employers.

‘Don’t worry’, I said to Mother, ‘
they
are moving you from this ward soon.’

You can also use
they
in subject position, or
them
in object position, to refer to an individual when you do not know, or do not want to specify, whether the individual is male or female. The possessive form
theirs
and the reflexive form
themselves
can also be used in this way. This use is very common after:

the
indefinite pronouns
anyone
,
anybody
,
someone
and
somebody
. These are explained in paragraphs
1.128
to
1.141
.

singular nouns such as
person
,
parent
and
teacher
, which do not specify whether the person is male or female

If
anyone
wants to be a childminder,
they
must attend a course.
If I think
someone
is having problems, I will spend hours talking to
them
.
A person
’s body fat determines how long
they
can withstand cold water.

Note that the plural form of the verb is always used after
they
, even when it refers to only one person.

You can also use
they
,
them
,
theirs
and
themselves
to refer to:

the
indefinite pronouns
everyone
,
everybody
,
no one
and
nobody
. These are explained in paragraphs
1.128
to
1.141
.

noun phrases with the determiners
each
,
every
and
any

In these cases, although the pronouns or noun phrases are grammatically singular, they refer to groups of people.

I never avoid my obligations and I expect 
everyone
else to meet
theirs
.
Each parent
was sent an individual letter informing
them
of the situation.
We want
every player
to push
themselves
to get into the team.

Another way is to use
he or she
instead of
they
,
him or her
instead of
them
,
himself or herself
instead of
themselves
and
his or hers
instead of
theirs
. This is often used in formal or written English.

Would a young person be able to get a job in Europe? That would depend on which country
he or she
wanted to go to.
The student should feel that the essay belongs to
him or her
.

Some people use
he
and
him
in general statements or after indefinite pronouns, but many people object to this use because it suggests that the person being referred to is male.

Referring to a particular person or thing:
this
,
that
,
these
and
those

1.124
  When
this
,
that
,
these
, and
those
are used as pronouns, they are called
demonstrative pronouns
. They are used as the subject or the object of a clause, or the object of a preposition.

Demonstrative pronouns are rarely used as the indirect object of a clause, because the indirect object is usually a person, and demonstrative pronouns normally refer to things.

this
and
that

1.125
  
This
and
that
are usually used as pronouns only when they refer to things. You use them instead of a singular countable noun or an uncountable noun.
This
refers to something that is close to you in place or time, and
that
refers to something that is more distant in place or time.

This
is a list of the rules.
This
is the most important part of the job.
The biggest problem was the accent.
That
was difficult for me.
That
looks interesting.

1.126
  
This
and
that
are used as pronouns to refer to a person when you are identifying someone or asking who they are.

Who’s
this
?
He stopped and looked at a photograph that stood on the dressing table. Is
this
your wife?
Was
that
Patrick on the phone?

When you are introducing people, you can say
This is Mary
or
This is Mr and Mrs Baker
. Note that you use
this
even when you are introducing more than one person.

these
and
those

1.127
  
These
and
those
can be used as pronouns instead of a plural countable noun. They are most often used to refer to things, although they can be used to refer to people.
These
refers to a number of people and things that are close to you in place or time, and
those
refers to a number of people and things that are more distant in place or time.

‘I brought you
these
.’ Adam held out a bag of grapes.
Vitamin tablets usually contain vitamins A, C, and D.
These
are available from any child health clinic.
These
are no ordinary students.
It may be impossible for them to pay essential bills, such as
those
for heating.
Those
are easy questions to answer.
There are a lot of people who are seeking employment, and a great number of
those
are married women.

This
,
that
,
these
, and
those
can also be
definite determiners
. For more information, see paragraphs
1.184
to
1.193
. See also
Referring back
and
Referring forward
in
Chapter 10
.

Referring to people and things in a non-specific way:
someone
,
anyone
,
everyone
, etc.

1.128
  When you want to refer to people or things but you do not know exactly who or what they are, or their identity is not important, you can use an
indefinite pronoun
such as
someone
,
anyone
, or
everyone
. An indefinite pronoun shows only whether you are talking about people or about things, rather than referring to a specific person or thing.

I was there for over an hour before
anybody
came.
Jack was waiting for
something
.