Question

which of the following contains a vague pronoun reference?

molly took the memory card out of the digital camera and put it in her desk drawer.

molly took the memory card out of the digital camera and put the card in her desk drawer.

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Explanation:

To determine a vague pronoun reference, we analyze the pronouns. In the first sentence, "it" is used. We need to check what "it" refers to. The sentence has "the memory card" and "the digital camera". While contextually "it" likely refers to the memory card, there's a slight ambiguity as "it" could potentially be misinterpreted (though in this case, context makes it clear, but compared to the second sentence which uses "the card" for clarity). Wait, actually, the first sentence: "Molly took the memory card out of the digital camera and put it in her desk drawer." The pronoun "it" here - let's see, the nouns before are "memory card" and "digital camera". But since she took the memory card out, "it" should refer to the memory card. However, the second sentence uses "the card" which is more explicit. Wait, maybe I made a mistake. Wait, the question is which contains a vague pronoun reference. Wait, no - wait, maybe the first sentence: "it" - is there any ambiguity? Let's re - examine. The first sentence: "Molly took the memory card out of the digital camera and put it in her desk drawer." The "it" here - the possible antecedents are "memory card" or "digital camera"? But since she took the memory card out, the logical antecedent is the memory card. But the second sentence uses "the card" which is a noun, not a pronoun, so no pronoun reference. Wait, maybe the question is actually that the first sentence has "it" - but is "it" vague? Wait, maybe the user made a typo, but looking at the two sentences:

First sentence: "Molly took the memory card out of the digital camera and put it in her desk drawer."

Second sentence: "Molly took the memory card out of the digital camera and put the card in her desk drawer."

The first sentence uses the pronoun "it", the second uses the noun "the card". A vague pronoun reference is when a pronoun could refer to more than one antecedent. In the first sentence, the antecedents for "it" could be "memory card" or "digital camera"? But since she took the memory card out, the context makes it clear, but technically, "it" is a pronoun, and the second sentence avoids the pronoun by using the noun. Wait, maybe the intended answer is the first sentence: "Molly took the memory card out of the digital camera and put it in her desk drawer." because it uses the pronoun "it" (even though contextually it's clear, but compared to the second sentence which is more explicit by using "the card").

Answer:

Molly took the memory card out of the digital camera and put it in her desk drawer.