his or their?

[tranlam1609]

Every student in those five rooms must bring..........own books to class.
A. one’s B. his C. their D. someone’s
I chose B but when I checked the key it said C. I am wondering if my choice is right or wrong. Please help me

 

[SoothingDave]

Every student in those five rooms must bring..........own books to class.
A. one’s B. his C. their D. someone’s
I chose B but when I checked the key it said C. I am wondering if my choice is right or wrong. Please help me

You are correct traditionally. The singular student matches with the singular pronoun. We use the male pronoun when the sex of the antecedent is unknown or mixed.

Nowadays, in order to avoid offending women by using "he" and "him" and "his" in this type of situation, people are tending to use "their" even though the number does not match. Because the previously-offered "politically correct" wording of "his or her" or "his/her" is cumbersome.

 

[tranlam1609]

Thank you so much!

 

[Rover_KE]

tranlam, your appreciation is welcome but there is no need to write a new post to say thank you. Simply click on the Like button on any posts you found helpful. It means that we don't have to open the thread again to read your new post and then find that it doesn't include any new information or an additional question.​