A pronoun without a clear antecedent can cause which problem?

A pronoun without a clear antecedent can cause which problem?

• A. Vague Pronoun Reference
• B. Ambiguity
• C. Cohesion issue
• D. Run-on sentence

Answer: (A)

A pronoun needs a clear antecedent—the noun or noun phrase it refers to. When that antecedent isn’t specific, the pronoun’s reference becomes vague, so readers can’t tell who or what is being talked about. This directly creates confusion and disrupts clarity in the sentence. For example, in a sentence like “The coach praised the players because they were diligent,” it’s not clear who “they” refers to, which is exactly the issue of a vague pronoun reference. While ambiguity can arise in some cases, the specific problem described here is the lack of a clear antecedent, leading to vague pronoun reference. The other options describe different issues (cohesion problems or run-on sentences) that aren’t about the pronoun’s unclear reference.

A pronoun needs a clear antecedent—the noun or noun phrase it refers to. When that antecedent isn’t specific, the pronoun’s reference becomes vague, so readers can’t tell who or what is being talked about. This directly creates confusion and disrupts clarity in the sentence. For example, in a sentence like “The coach praised the players because they were diligent,” it’s not clear who “they” refers to, which is exactly the issue of a vague pronoun reference. While ambiguity can arise in some cases, the specific problem described here is the lack of a clear antecedent, leading to vague pronoun reference. The other options describe different issues (cohesion problems or run-on sentences) that aren’t about the pronoun’s unclear reference.