Question

What does ‘it’ refer to? I put my coffee cup on the shelf next to the phone and now it's gone!

• A. Coffee cup
• B. Phone
• C. Shelf
• D. Both (A) and (B)

Hint:

When identifying a pronoun’s reference:
look for the nearest noun,
check which one logically fits the meaning. Context is more important than proximity.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is A

Step 1: Identify the pronoun. The word “it’s” (it is) is a pronoun referring back to a noun mentioned earlier.
Step 2: Find the most logical antecedent. Sentence: \[ \text{“I put my coffee cup on the shelf next to the phone and now it's gone!”} \] The thing that can logically be \emph{gone} is the coffee cup.
Step 3: Eliminate incorrect options.
Phone — phones do not normally disappear in this context.
Shelf — shelves are fixed objects.
Both (A) and (B) — only one logical antecedent fits.
Hence, ‘it’ refers to \[ \boxed{\text{Coffee cup}} \]