Subject Verb Agreement

 

Subject Verb Agreement    

 1.  A singular subject takes a singular verb, and a plural subject takes a plural verb.

        ▶ Rita reads a book.

        ▶ The girls read newspapers.

 2.  We use a plural verb with two or more subjects when they are connected by conjunction and.

               ▶ Mona and Hari are my cousins.

               ▶ Priya and her friends are going for a walk.

3. When a plural and singular subjects are joined by ‘or’ or ‘nor’, the verb should agree with the           subject placed nearer to the verb.

            ▶ The man or his sons work in the field.

              ▶ The sons or their father works in the field.

 4. Two singular subjects connected by either/or, or neither/nor require a singular verb.

              ▶ Either Mahesh or Manish is boarding the bus.

             ▶ Neither Mala nor Shweta is present today.

5.  When two subjects are joined by phrases as well as, with or along with, the verb agrees with the first subject.

            ▶ The mother along with her children is waiting at the bus-stop.

              ▶ The children along with their mother are waiting at the bus-stop.

             ▶ The leader as well as his followers has stood against it.

              ▶ The followers as well as their lead have stood against it.

6. When two nouns are joined by ‘and’ but refer to the same person or thing or suggest one idea, we use a singular verb. For example:

             ▶ My mother and guide is a big influence in my life.

               ▶ The chairperson and secretary has published the list.

             But……….

              ▶ The chairperson and the secretary have published the list.

 7. When two nouns joined by "and" as a single unit or a single idea, the verb form will be singular.

              ▶ The horse and Tonga is waiting outside. 

                ▶ Rice and curry is his favorite dinner.

 8.  Use a singular verb with distances, periods of time, sums of money, etc., when considered as a unit. For example:

         ▶ Six miles is a long distance to cover in an hour

        ▶ Three hours is not enough time to complete the task.

        ▶ 500 rupees is a high price to pay.

                   BUT....

              ▶100 rupees (currency notes) were scattered on the floor.

 9.  Verbs used with the collective nouns such as group, jury, family, audience, population, might be singular or plural according to the context.

              ▶ The jury has given its decision. (Every member agrees on one thought.

              ▶ The jury have different opinions on this matter. (Members have different thoughts.)

10. The indefinite pronouns each, each one, either, neither, everyone, everybody, anybody, anyone, nobody, somebody, someone, no one, and many a …are singular and take a singular verb.

               ▶ Someone has taken my pen.

               ▶ Everyone is ready for the show.

              ▶ Many a man has succumbed to his temptation.

 11.  The subjects preceded by the words such as either, neither, every, each, no, or many a takes a singular verb.

             ▶ No student is allowed to play the game.

             ▶ Every candidate is provided with an identity card...

             ▶ Neither of the students has submitted the project.

 12.  Indefinite pronouns such as many, both, few, several always take plural verbs.

                         ▶ Many have given their consent to pass the bill.

                         ▶ A few are yet to come.

 13. None is a singular subject when it is used alone. However When used with prepositional phrase starting with of then the subject can be both singular and plural

            ▶ None has attended the meeting. (Alone) 

              ▶ None of the money has been used. (Singular)

             ▶ None of the bottles are clean enough to keep water. (Plural)

 14.  Similarly No + singular takes singular subject and No+ plural subject takes plural verb.

             ▶No man is present on the island.

            ▶No men are allowed in this club.

 15. The words such as some, a lot, majority and all indicate a portion of something. The use of a verb in such cases will be determined by the noun after of. A singular noun after of will take a singular verb, and a plural noun will take a plural verb.

                   ▶Half of the class is on the ground.

                   ▶Half of the students are on the ground.  

                                            ▶A lot of the cake is gone.

                   ▶A lot of the cakes are gone.

16. The subject of a sentence that starts with the words here or there follows the verb; the verb should be used accordingly.

                      ▶ There is a girl in the classroom.

                       ▶ There are some girls in the classroom.

            17. Ignore the prepositional phrases between the subject and the verb.

          ▶The house behind the trees has a big dining hall.

        ▶The girl standing between two boys is my sister.

18. A relative pronoun who, whom, which or that agrees with its antecedent.

                      ▶The boy who plays with his friends is my brother.

                 ▶Manas is one of the boys who play football.

19. Uncountable nouns such as water, tea, money, sugar, etc. take singular verbs.

          ▶Water is an essential element in our body.

        ▶Salt is obtained from seawater.

20. Titles of books, movies, novels, etc. always take singular verbs.

        ▶The Arabian Nights is a collection of tales. 

           ▶Three Sisters is my favourite novel.

 21. The nouns mathematics, news, physics look plural but take a singular verb e.g.

                ▶Physics is my favourite subject.

                ▶The news has been telecasted.

22. Some Nouns are always plural. These nouns have 2 parts – Scissors, Tongs, Eye glasses, Shorts, Pants Examples.

        ▶My pants are in the drawer.

        ▶Your eyeglasses are dirty.

        ▶These scissors are useless.

23. A number of + noun is a plural subject, and it takes a plural verb. The number of + noun is a singular subject, and it takes a singular verb.

  ▶A number of dancers are coming to the party. (Indefinite)

  ▶The number of dancers coming to the party is 12. (Definite)

  ▶ A number of people prefer cricket to football.

  ▶The number of days in this month is 28.

24. In sentences that express a wish, request or contrary to fact, the word ‘were’ is used instead of ‘was.’

    ▶I wish my sister were here.

    ▶I wish I were on a beach right now.