SUBJECT VERB AGREEMENT
What is Subject ?
->
Subject is the person/people/thing(s) that do the activity.
-> I, you, they,
we, she, he, it, my dad and my mom, Linda, Sussi, Linda and Sussi, the bank,
the flight schedule, etc.
What is VERB ?
-> Verb is a word used to describe an action, state, or occurrence, and forming
the main part of the predicate of a sentence.
Kinds of VERB
(-) ACTION VERBS
(-) LINKING VERBS
(-)HELPING VERBS
ACTION VERB
-> Also known as MAIN VERB.
-> Action verbs are words that express action (give,
eat, walk, etc.) or possession (have, own, etc.).
-> Action verbs can be either transitive (with object) or intransitive
(without object).
LINKING
VERBS
(-) A linking verb connects the subject of a sentence to
a noun or adjective that renames or describes the subject.
(-) To Be: is, am, are, was, were
(-) Verb: seem, appear, become, grow, remain, get, prove, turn, look, sound,
smell, taste, feel.
HELPING
VERBS
(-) Helping verbs are used before action or linking
verbs to convey additional information regarding aspects of possibility (can,
could, etc.) or time (was, did, has, etc.)
(-) MODALS always function as Helping Verbs.
(-) MODALS: can, could, may, might, shall, will, ought to, should, would.
MAIN RULE
OF SUBJECT VERB AGREEMENT :
“Only the
subject affects the verb!”
è RULE
1
(-)
Subjects and verbs must agree in number. This is the
cornerstone rule that forms the background of the concept.
(-) Examples:
- The dog growls when it is angry.
- The dogs growl when they are angry.
è RULE
2
(-) Don’t get confused by the words that come between the
subject and verb; they
do not affect agreement.
(-) Examples:
- The dog,
who is chewing on my jeans, is usually very good.
è RULE
3
(-) Prepositional phrases between the subject and verb
usually do not affect
agreement.
(-) Examples:
- The colors of the rainbow are
beautiful.
è RULE
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.
(-) Examples:
- There is a problem with the balance
sheet. Here are the papers you requested
è RULE
5
(-) If two subjects are joined by and, they typically
require a plural verb form.
(-) Examples:
- The cow and the pig are jumping over the
moon.
è RULE
6
(-) The verb is singular if the two subjects separated by and
refer to the same
person or thing.
(-) Examples:
- Red beans and rice is
my mom's favorite dish.
è RULE
7
(-) If one of the words each, every, or no comes before
the subject, the verb is
singular.
(-) Examples:
- No smoking or drinking is allowed.
- Every man and woman is required to check in.
è RULE
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.
(-) Examples:
- Jessica or Christian is
to blame for the accident.
è RULE
9
(-) The only time when the object of the preposition
decides plural or singular verb forms is when noun and pronoun subjects like some,
half, none, more, all, etc. are followed by a prepositional phrase. In
these sentences, the object of the preposition determines the form of the verb.
(-) Examples:
- All of the chicken is gone.
- All
of the chickens are gone.
è RULE
10
(-) The singular verb form is usually used for units of
measurement or time.
(-) Examples:
- Four quarts of oil was required to get
the car running.
è RULE
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.
(-) Examples:
- Dogs
and cats are both available at the pound.
è RULE
12
(-) If one subject is singular and one plural and the
words are connected by the words or, nor, neither/nor, either/or, and not
only/but also, you use the verb form of the subject that is nearest the
verb.
(-) Examples:
- Either
the bears or the lion has escaped from the zoo.
- Neither
the lion nor the bears have
escaped from the zoo.
è RULE
13
(-) Indefinite pronouns (everything, anything,
everyone, someone, somebody, nothing, etc) typically take singular verbs.
(-) Examples:
- Everybody wants to be
loved.
- Everything
is gonna be alright.
è RULE
14
(-) Except for the pronouns (few, many, several, both,
all, some) that always take the plural form.
(-) Examples:
- Few
were left alive after the flood.
- Several
students understand the material.
è RULE
15
(-) If two infinitives are separated by and they take
the plural form of the verb.
(-) Examples:
- To
walk and to chew gum require great skill.
è RULE
16
(-) When gerunds are
used as the subject of a sentence, they take the singular verb
form
of the verb; but, when they are linked by and, they take the plural form.
(-) Examples:
- Standing in the water was a bad idea.
- Swimming in the ocean and playing drums are my hobbies.
è
RULE 17
(-) Collective nouns
like family, committee, herd, senate, class, crowd, etc. usually take a
singular verb form.
(-) Examples:
- The herd is
stampeding.
- Cooper family always attends the annual party.
è
RULE 18
(-) Titles of books,
movies, novels, etc. are treated as singular and take a singular
verb.
(-) Examples:
- The Burbs is a movie starring Tom Hanks.
- Harry Potter has reached Top 3 Best Seller books.
