10 Questions
According to Rule 8, when two subjects are joined by 'or,' 'nor,' 'either,' or 'neither,' the verb must agree with which subject?
The subject closest to the verb
As per Rule 9, collective nouns are considered singular and must take a singular verb. Which of the following is a collective noun?
Team
In accordance with Rule 10, if 'there' is the first word in a sentence, where should the subject follow?
Before the verb
Rule 12 states that non-count nouns must take a singular verb. Which of the following is an example of a non-count noun?
Surroundings
As per Rule 14, when there is one subject and more than one verb, how should the verbs agree throughout the sentence?
The verbs should be singular
Which of the following sentences demonstrates correct subject-verb agreement?
The dog barks loudly when it's excited.
What form of the verb should be used with the plural subject 'friends'?
Friends are
Which of the following sentences demonstrates incorrect subject-verb agreement?
The birds sings beautifully in the morning.
What form of the verb should be used with the singular subject 'everyone'?
Everyone is
Subjects joined by 'and' must take which form of the verb?
Plural
Study Notes
- Subject-verb agreement refers to the agreement between a sentence's subject and its verb in number and person.
- A singular subject requires a singular verb, while a plural subject requires a plural verb.
- Rule 1: A singular subject noun takes an S form of the verb, e.g., "the lady walks to the grocery store" (Lady is a singular subject, and "walks" is its singular verb form).
- Rule 2: A plural subject noun must take the base form of the verb, e.g., "the victims run to the police station" (Victims is a plural subject, so "run" is the base form of the verb).
- Rule 3: Subject pronouns like he, she, and it must take the S form of the verb, e.g., "she eats a lot during breakfast."
- Rule 4: Subject pronouns like I, you, we, and they must take the base form of the verb, e.g., "they eat my favorite food" (Incorrect: "They it's my favorite food").
- Rule 5: Singular indefinite pronouns must take an S form of the verb when they are the sentence's subject, e.g., "everybody wants to attend the birthday party."
- Rule 6: Plural indefinite pronouns must take the base form of the verb when they are the sentence's subject, e.g., "only a few keep Lions as pets."
- Rule 7: Subjects joined by "and" must take the base form of the verb, e.g., "the president and its members write notes to the public."
- Rule 8: When two subjects are joined by "or," "nor," "either," or "neither," the verb must agree with the nearer subject, e.g., "neither the students nor the teacher is ready for today's oral defense" (Incorrect: "Neither the teacher nor the students are ready for today's oral defense").
- Rule 9: Collective nouns, words that imply more than one person but are considered singular, must take a singular verb, e.g., "the team meets every week for their activity."
- Rule 10: If "there" is the first word in a sentence, the subject follows the verb, e.g., "there are students who failed to submit their reports."
- Rule 11: Some countable nouns, such as "earnings," "Goods," "odds," "surroundings," "proceeds," and "valuables," have only a plural form, so a plural verb is required, e.g., "the surroundings of the cafeteria exceed my expectations."
- Rule 12: Non-count nouns, also called mass nouns, must take a singular verb, e.g., "heart attack is the leading cause of death in the country."
- Rule 13: When a phrase comes between the subject and the verb, the verb still agrees with the subject, e.g., "the family together with the relatives is planning to have a vacation" (Correct: "The family and the relatives are planning to have a vacation").
- Rule 14: When there is one subject and more than one verb, all verbs throughout the sentence must agree with the subject, e.g., "interviews are one way to collect data and allow researchers to gain an in-depth understanding of participants."
- Rule 15: Subjects that indicate an amount of money, time measurement, title of a book, story, organization, or country, even when in plural form, must take a singular verb or the S form of the verb.
Test your knowledge of subject-verb agreement with this quiz! Learn and practice the rules for matching subjects with verbs in number and person, including singular and plural subjects, pronouns, collective nouns, indefinite pronouns, and special cases like phrases coming between the subject and verb.
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