Lesson · G.1.1
Nouns and pronouns
How the HESI A2 Grammar section tests nouns and pronouns, with the four noun types and the pronoun cases you need to tell apart on test day.
By the end of this lesson you can
- You can sort a noun into common, proper, abstract, or collective.
- You can pick the correct pronoun case for subject, object, and possessive positions.
- You can spot a vague pronoun reference and fix it.
Nouns and pronouns anchor most HESI A2 Grammar items, so a clean grasp of both pays off across the whole section, not just the questions that name them directly.
What a noun is, and its four types
A noun names a person, place, thing, or idea. The HESI splits nouns into four types, and the test likes to check whether you can tell them apart.
| Type | What it names | Capitalised? |
|---|---|---|
| Common | a general person, place, or thing (nurse, clinic, chart) | No |
| Proper | the official, specific name (Sarah, Riverside Clinic) | Yes |
| Abstract | a quality or idea you cannot touch (patience, trust, urgency) | No |
| Collective | a group treated as one unit (team, staff, family) | No |
What a pronoun is, and why the antecedent matters
A pronoun takes the place of a noun so you are not repeating it. The noun a pronoun stands in for is called its antecedent, and the HESI tests whether that antecedent is clear.
Here, "she" and "them" are pronouns, and "the technician" and "the samples" are their antecedents. Read the sentence again without the antecedents and it falls apart, which is exactly why a missing or unclear antecedent is a grammar error, not a style choice.
Vague reference. "The doctor told the intern that his notes were incomplete." Whose notes, the doctor's or the intern's? Rewrite it: "The doctor told the intern, 'Your notes are incomplete.'"
Personal pronoun case: subject, object, possessive
Personal pronouns change form depending on the job they do in the sentence. This is the case system, and it has three parts.
- Subject (nominative) case: the pronoun does the action. I, you, he, she, it, we, they.
- : the pronoun receives the action or follows a preposition. Me, you, him, her, it, us, them.
- A noun names a person, place, thing, or idea; a pronoun stands in for one.
- Proper nouns are capitalised; the other three noun types are not.
- Pronoun case depends on the job the pronoun does in the sentence, not on what sounds polite.
- Possessive pronouns never take an apostrophe: hers, its, and theirs are already correct.
- If a pronoun could point to more than one noun, rewrite the sentence rather than guess.
Check yourself
0 / 51Which statement best describes what a noun does in a sentence?
2Of the four noun types (common, proper, abstract, collective), which one is always capitalised?
3What is an antecedent?
4Read this sentence: 'The nurse told the aide that her badge was missing.' Why does this count as a vague pronoun reference?
5A learner cannot decide between 'the respiratory therapist and I reviewed the treatment plan' and 'the respiratory therapist and me reviewed the treatment plan.' What quick check settles this?