Pronouns with no antecedents

Question

Hi guys In some official questions, I have come across sentences such as:- There has been a growth in number of..... It is assumed that... Now, I don't remember the exact sentences but the pronouns "there" and "it" in the above sentences do not have any antecedents, but we often use sentences like those mentioned above in our regular writing and conversations. My question is that does GMAT have any kind of bias against these sentence structures? Would be great if you could establish the point with an official question. Thanks a lot!

EducationAisle · Answer

No  bias against such sentences at all!

By the way, in the sentence:

It is assumed that...

It  actually  does  have an antecedent; just that the antecedent is used  after  the pronoun.  It  refers to  that.... .

For example:

It is assumed that hard work is good.

The sentence is equivalent to:

(that hard work is good) is assumed .

Hence,  it  refers to  that hard work is good .

By the way, many  indefinite  pronouns (such as  no one, everyone  etc.) will  not  have any antecedents and that's  fine .

p.s. Our book    EducationAisle Sentence Correction Nirvana    discusses the cases where  Pronouns are used before the antecedent , their application and examples in significant detail. If you or someone is interested, PM me your email-id; I can mail the corresponding section.

willacethis · Answer

Hi EducationAisle

Thanks for responding!

Could you please shed some light on the sentence structure and the use of "it" in the part "makes it likely to miss signs of incipient trouble or misinterpret them when they do appear" of Option A of the below-mentioned question?

https://gmatclub.com/forum/heavy-commit ... 10136.html

Thanks!

EducationAisle · Answer

The problem with A in the above sentence is that it is  not  at all clear  who  is likely to miss signs of incipient trouble.

So, the sentence should have been:

....makes   it     an executive  likely to miss signs of incipient trouble

Now it is clear that  an executive  is likely to miss signs of incipient trouble.

p.s. Note that  it   cannot  refer to  an executive , since  it  can only refer to  non-persons .

himanshu0077 · Answer

I have a doubt--

In many official sentences there is no antecedent for pronouns used. For ex-- personal pronouns ( we, you, etc).

How to decide whether antecedent is required or NOT? 
Ex: scientists declared that we need pure environment. ( In this "we" does not have any antecedent).

Due regards.

Posted from my mobile device

EducationAisle · Answer

Hi Himanshu, there are almost zero chances that you will get a sentence on GMAT that uses a pronoun such as  we ,  you  etc. Sentences on GMAT are almost exclusively in  third  person ( they, them, it, he, she  etc.).

So, if you can cite an official sentence, it will make the discussion more contextual.

So, the correct sentence would be:

Scientists declared that  they  needed a pure environment.

Here,  they  would refer to  scientists .

If the intent is to refer to general public, then the sentence would be:

Scientists declared that  people  needed a pure environment.

In any case, I don't see a role for  we  here.

himanshu0077 · Answer

For ex - Aristotle SC:

Menlo university's range of graduate programmes has been developed to fulfil your needs whether you intend to pursue a career in industry, business, govt, NGOs or academia, and whatever your background.

In above ex: there is no antecedent for "you".

I am not able to remember where I have seen the official question.

Due regards

Posted from my mobile device

EducationAisle · Answer

Yeah, would prefer a discussion on an  official  question Himanshu.

himanshu0077 · Answer

Ok. I will try to find it out.

Thanks a lot.

Posted from my mobile device

GmatKnightTutor · Answer

This Official Question may be a type you're looking for: https://gmatclub.com/forum/although-she ... 08881.html

himanshu0077 · Answer

In this clear antecedent is there. ( Name is given).
(And as mentioned in above replies, it is in third person too).

Posted from my mobile device

Pronouns with no antecedents

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