Subject
Verb Agreement
Subject is the person/people/thing(s) that do the
activity.
Ex: I,You,We,They,She,He,It
Verb
Verb is a word used to describe an action,state,or
occurrence and forming the main part of the predicate of sentence.
Kinds
of Verb:
Action
verbs
Can be either transitive (with objective) or intransitive
(without object)
Ex: Rei raises his hand.
Link
Verb
A linking verb connects the subject of a sentence to a
noun or adjective that renames or describes the subject
Helping
Verbs
are used before action or linking verbs to convey
additional information regarding aspects of possibility
Main
Rule of “Subject Verb Agreement”
1. Subject
and Verbs must agree in number.
2. Dont
get confused by words.
3. Prepositional phrases between the subject and verb
4. When sentences start with “there” or “here,” the
subject will always be placed after the verb, so care needs to be taken to identify
it correctly.
5. two subjects are joined by and, they typically require a plural verb form.
6. The verb is singular if the two subjects separated by and refer to the same person.
7. every, or no comes
before the subject, the verb is singular.
8. If the subjects are both singular and are connected by
the words or, nor,neither/nor, either/or, and not only/but also the
verb is singular.
9. when noun and pronoun subjects like some, half,
none, more, all, etc. are followed by a prepositional phrase.
10. The singular verb form is usually used for units of
measurement or time
11. If the subjects are both plural and are connected by
the words or, nor, neither/nor, either/or, and not only/but also, the verb
is plural
12. one subject is singular and one plural and the words
are connected by the words or, nor,
13. Indefinite pronouns (everything, anything,
everyone, someone, somebody, nothing, etc) typically take singular verbs.
14. Except for the pronouns (few, many, several, both,
all, some) that always take the plural form.
15. If two infinitives are separated by and they take
the plural form of the verb
16. When gerunds are used as the subject of a sentence,
they take the singular verb form of the verb.
17. Collective nouns like family, committee, herd, senate,
class, crowd, etc. usually take a singular verb form.
18. Titles of books, movies, novels, etc. are treated as
singular and take a singular Verb.
Exercise : Subject and Verb
Agreement Exercise
Choose
the correct form of the verb that agrees with the subject.
1. Annie and her brothers (is, are) at school.
Answer : Annie and her brother are at school.
2. Either my mother or my father (is, are) coming to the meeting.
Answer : Either my mother or my father is coming to the meeting.
3. The dog or the cats (is, are) outside.
Answer : The dog or the cats are outside.
4. Either my shoes or your coat (is, are) always on the floor.
Answer: Either my shoes or your coat is always on the floor
5. George and Tamara (doesn't, don't) want to see that movie.
Answer: George and Tamara don’t want to see that movie.
6. Benito (doesn't, don't) know the answer.
Answer: Benito doesn't know the answer.
7. One of my sisters (is, are) going on a trip to France.
Answer: One of my sisters are going on a trip to France.
8. The man with all the birds (live, lives on my street.
Answer: The man with all the birds lives on my street.
9. The movie, including all the previews, (take, takes) about two hours to
watch.
Answer: The movie, including all the previews, takes about two hours to watch.
10. The players, as well as the captain, (want, wants) to win.
Answer: The players, as well as the captain, want to win.
11. Either answer (is, are) acceptable.
Answer: Either answer is acceptable.
12. Every one of those books (is, are) fiction.
Answer: Every one of those books are
fiction.
13. Nobody (know, knows) the trouble I've seen.
Answer: Nobody knows the trouble I've seen.
14. (Is, Are) the news on at five or
six?
Answer: Is the news on at five or
six?
15. Mathematics (is, are) John's favorite subject, while Civics (is, are)
Andrea's favorite subject.
Answer: Mathematics is John's favorite subject, while Civics is Andrea's favorite
subject.
16. Eight dollars (is, are) the price of a movie these days.
Answer: Eight dollars is the price of a movie these days.
17. (Is, Are) the tweezers in this
drawer?
Answer: Are the tweezers in this
drawer?
18. Your pants (is, are) at the cleaner's.
Answer: Your pants are at the cleaner's.
19. There (was, were) fifteen candies in that bag. Now there (is, are) only one
left!
Answer: There were fifteen candies in that bag. Now there is only one left!
20. The committee debates these questions carefully.
Answer: The committee debates these questions carefully.
21. The committee (leads, lead) very different lives in private.
Answer: The committee lead very different lives in private.
22. The Prime Minister, together with his wife, (greets, greet) the press
cordially.
Answer: The Prime Minister, together with his wife,greets the press
cordially.
23. All of the CDs, even the scratched one, (is, are) in this case.
Answer: All of the CDs, even the scratched one, are in this case.
