Choose the sentence that uses pronouns correctly to refer to the antecedent "the nurse and her patients."

• A. Each nurse should bring his or her stethoscope.
• B. The nurse should bring his stethoscope and her patients' stethoscope.
• C. The nurse and her patients should bring their stethoscopes.
• D. Each nurse should bring their stethoscope.

Answer: (A)

Pronoun-antecedent agreement is being tested. When the subject uses a determiner like each, the noun it refers to is treated as singular, so the pronoun should also be singular and gender-neutral if needed. In this sentence, because each nurse is acting individually, the pronoun should refer to that nurse. Using his or her with the singular subject correctly matches one nurse at a time and makes clear that each nurse is bringing her own stethoscope, regardless of the patients.

The other constructions mix number and reference in less precise ways. One option tries to assign ownership to the nurse and the patients together, which shifts the focus from individuals to a group. Another option uses a plural pronoun with each nurse, which is common in everyday writing but often flagged in formal contexts as less precise for a singular subject. The intended precision here is achieved by treating each nurse separately and using a singular, gender-neutral pronoun.