An indefinite pronoun doesn’t specify anything about its
antecedent except for number. This category of pronouns has the most pronouns;
some common ones are anyone, no one (and other words ending in –one) nobody,
somebody, (and other words ending in -body), everything, anything, (and other
words ending in –thing), many, few, both, all, either, neither several, each,
and none.
Indefinite pronouns can be singular or plural. Sometimes,
they can be either one, depending on what they refer to. Here are the common
indefinite pronouns categorized into singular, plural, or both.
·
Singular: everyone, someone, anyone, everybody, nobody,
somebody, anybody, everything, nothing, something, anything, each, either, neither,
one, other, little, much, another
·
Plural: few, both, several, many,
·
Singular or plural: any, all, more, most, some, none
For example:
Singular: Nothing was
wrong with the pipes, but Sam felt something just was not normal.
Here, the singular indefinite pronoun “nothing” requires the
singular verb “was”. In the second independent clause, the singular indefinite
pronoun “something” requires the singular verb “was”.
Plural: Few trees die
in the new sanctuary.
In this sentence, the plural indefinite pronoun “few” requires
the plural noun "trees" and the plural verb “die”.
Singular or plural: Most
of the shelter was completely destroyed, but few animals were hurt. Most
of the people at the shelter were very friendly.
Whether or not these indefinite pronouns are singular or
plural depends on the noun they refer to. If the noun is singular, the
indefinite pronoun is singular, and if the noun is plural, the indefinite
pronoun is plural.
In the first example, the indefinite pronoun “most” is
referring to the noun “shelter”; since “shelter” is singular, “most” is also
singular. Therefore, the singular verb “was” is used.
In the second example, the indefinite pronoun “most” is
referring to the noun “people”; since “people” is plural, “most” is also
plural. Therefore, the plural verb “were” is used.