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Use "their" instead of "his/her"



 
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ESL Forums | English Vocabulary, Grammar and Idioms
"it suddenly dawns on my mind" = "I think out it"? | Sentence: It happens in our daily life, While i was studying M.S in X university
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Use "their" instead of "his/her" #1 (permalink) Mon Jun 16, 2008 7:03 am   Use "their" instead of "his/her"		  
Hi, please have a look at this:

For successful completion of this excercise, one must give his complete attention to the task at hand

=> One of the underlined phrases here is wrong, and the answer is "his". I'm so confused about this. Some say we should use "their" instead of "his/her", and some say vice versa. Now I don't know who to believe (+_+)

By the way, what does "at hand" mean in this sentence?

Many thanks
Nessie.
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Use "their" instead of "his/her" #2 (permalink) Mon Jun 16, 2008 7:23 am   Use "their" instead of "his/her"		  
1. his/her is better. 2. 'at hand' = which (the task) he/she faces, IMO.
Haihao
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Use "their" instead of "his/her" #3 (permalink) Mon Jun 16, 2008 7:58 am   Use "their" instead of "his/her"		  
Thanks a lot, Haihao Smile

I'd also like to know some native speakers' ideas
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Sad... something we never have again, I know... I guess I really really know.. Sad

Sorry seems to be the hardest word...
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Use "their" instead of "his/her" #4 (permalink) Mon Jun 16, 2008 10:18 am   Use "their" instead of "his/her"		  
Now I don't know who to believe (+_+)

Believe them all. Some prefer the prescriptive approach to grammar and others the descriptive. All, "his", "his/her" and "their", are used - the traditionalists prefer "his" in such contexts. You have to decide which you prefer in which context.
Molly
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Use "their" instead of "his/her" #5 (permalink) Mon Jun 16, 2008 10:31 am   Use "their" instead of "his/her"		  
And "his/her" is for nit-picker's usage. Smile
Haihao
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Use "their" instead of "his/her" #6 (permalink) Mon Jun 16, 2008 17:23 pm   Use "their" instead of "his/her"		  
What about "one must give one's complete attention to"?
Barb_D
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Use "their" instead of "his/her" #7 (permalink) Mon Jun 16, 2008 23:10 pm   Use "their" instead of "his/her"		  
nessie wrote:
For successful completion of this excercise, one must give his complete attention to the task at hand

I would agree with Barb here; "one" has its own possessive, "one's", which may explain why "his" is underlined. I would myself say "in hand", rather than "at hand" ("in progress" or "to be done"); but perhaps other forms of English would use the latter.

It seems to be redundant in either case, since "this exercise" has already focused on "the task". So you might say:

1. For successful completion of this exercise, one must give it one's complete attention.

Best wishes,

MrP
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Use "their" instead of "his/her" #8 (permalink) Mon Jun 16, 2008 23:20 pm   Use "their" instead of "his/her"		  
Quote:
other forms of English would use the latter.

Other forms apart from?

And how about this?

For successful completion of this exercise, one must give it complete attention.
Molly
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"it suddenly dawns on my mind" = "I think out it"? | Sentence: It happens in our daily life, While i was studying M.S in X university
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