Relative and Intensive Pronouns — Answer Key
Part A: Fill in the Blank
Write the missing word or number on each line.
1. Maya baked the entire cake by herself for the bake sale.
Reflexive pronouns show the subject performed the action alone or to themselves.
2. The principal himself handed out the awards at the ceremony.
Intensive pronouns emphasize the antecedent and can be removed without changing meaning.
3. The students cleaned the classroom themselves before vacation began.
Reflexive pronouns must agree in number and gender with their antecedent.
4. I made this birdhouse myself during woodworking class.
Intensive pronouns add emphasis but are not needed for the sentence's meaning.
5. The cat groomed itself in the warm patch of sunlight.
'Itself' refers to one nonhuman antecedent receiving the action of the verb.
6. We promised ourselves that we would finish the project early.
Reflexive pronouns serve as the object when subject and object are the same.
7. The author herself signed every copy of her newest novel.
Intensive pronouns intensify the antecedent and can be removed without losing meaning.
8. You should be proud of yourself for finishing the marathon.
Reflexive pronouns rename the subject when it receives the action.
9. The mayor himself visited the school to thank the volunteers.
Intensive pronouns emphasize identity and are placed beside the noun they modify.
Part B: Matching
Match each item on the left to the correct answer on the right.
1. Match each item to its correct answer.
Reflexive pronoun
→ Refers back to subject and is needed for meaning
Refers back to subject and is needed for meaning
Intensive pronoun
→ Adds emphasis and can be removed without losing meaning
Adds emphasis and can be removed without losing meaning
Antecedent
→ The noun the pronoun refers back to
The noun the pronoun refers back to
Object of the verb
→ The role a reflexive pronoun fills in a clause
The role a reflexive pronoun fills in a clause
Reflexive pronouns are essential objects, while intensive pronouns simply emphasize an antecedent.