SUBJECT - VERB AGREEMENT

 

The agreement between a subject and a verb is essential in grammar. Let us clarify first what a subject is and what a verb looks like.

The subject of a sentence is that thing or person being talked about performing the action to complete the sentence. The subject can either be a noun or  a pronoun.

The verb on the other hand is the word that expresses the action done by the subject (action verbs). If not action, it could simply just links the subject to the rest of the sentence with the intention of presenting solely a state of being (be verbs). Other verbs also function as aids to the main verb.  thus are called the helping verbs.

Here goes the basic rules:

Plural subjects could mean nouns or pronouns. Here are the list of nouns to help you identify whether they are singular or plural especially when used as subjects 

Add –s to pluralize most nouns.
computer - computers	solution – solutions
solo - solos	alto – altos
chief - chiefs	proof - proofs

 

Add –es to pluralize nouns ending in x, s, z, sh, ch and some words ending in o.
box - boxes	echo - echoes
class - classes	hero - heroes
church - churches	potato - potatoes

 

Some words ending in o can either be added with –s or –es to form their plural.
cargo – cargos / cargoes	motto – mottos / mottoes
halo – halos / haloes	tornado – tornados / tornadoes
mango – mangos / mangoes	tuxedo – tuxedos / tuxedoes
volcano – volcanos / volcanoes	flamingo – flamingos / flamingos
banjo – banjos / banjos	memento – mementos / mementoes

Nouns ending in y preceded by consonants form their plural by changing y to i, then adding     –es.
candy - candies	dairy - dairies
fairy - fairies	lady - ladies
nanny - nannies	baby - babies

Nouns ending f or fe form their plural by changing f or fe to v, then adding –es.
scarf -scarves	half -halves
knife - knives	life - lives
wife - wives	leaf - leaves

 

Nouns ending f or fe form their plural by changing f or fe to v, then adding –es.
scarf -scarves	half -halves
knife - knives	life - lives
wife - wives	leaf - leaves

 

Some nouns ending in f or fe form their plural by adding either –s or -es
wharf – wharfs / wharves	calf – calfs / calves
dwarf – dwarfs / dwarves	hoaf – hoafs / hoaves

 

Irregular nouns change in spelling when pluralized.
man - men	mouse - mice
louse - lice	goose – geese
child – children	ox - oxen

Some nouns have the same singular and plural forms.
sheep - sheep	headquarters - headquarters
moose - moose	species - species
salmon - salmon	swine – swine
shrimp - shrimp	barracks - barracks

Some nouns are indivisible pairs and thus always have a plural form.
jeans	forceps
shorts	goggles
pajamas	scissors
shears	tights

Some nouns are always plural in form and in meaning.
clothes	savings
groceries	belongings
remains	goods

  

Some nouns may be plural in form and are singular in meaning.
news	cards
politics	physics
mumps	Phonetics
Billiards	mathematics

 

There are nouns that could either be singular or plural depending on use.
statistics	politics
acoustics	gymnastics
economics	ethics
athletics	phonetics

Nouns with Greek and Latin origins retain their foreign plural form.
fungus - fungi	medium - media
curriculum - curricula	forum - fora
stimulus - stimuli	syllabus - syllabi
thesis - theses	alumna - alumnae

 

Some nouns with Greek and Latin origins can either be pluralized by adding –s or –es or just by retaining their foreign plural forms.
radius – radii / radiuses	formula – formulae / formulas
matrix – matrixes / matrices	apex – apexes / apices

  

To decide whether a verb or verb phrase agrees with its subject:

1. Find the verb of verb phrase. 
     Martina speaks so fast.

     VERB: speaks

2. Ask Who? or What? before the verb to find the 

    subject.
     WHO SPEAKS?   Martina

3. Use a singular verb with a singular and a plural verb with a plural subject.

IMPORTANT: The verb needs to agree with only the subject, not with any other word in the sentence.

TRY THIS!

1. People (are, is) using video-sharing websites to 
    post their own videos.
2. Even my grams (enjoy, enjoys) online videos.

A prepositional phrase is a phrase introduced by a preposition. Examples of prepositions are of, in, around, with, to, at, under and many others.

Check out the details of the example above: 

The wings of a monarch butterfly are orange and black.

SUBJECT :                  wings
PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE:    of a monarch butterfly
VERB:                      are

The verb "are" is plural because the subject, "wings" is plural. The noun butterfly which is part of the prepositional phrase does not affect the verb.

TRY THIS!

3. A butterfly in the early stages (are, is) called a  
    caterpillar.
4. Insect lovers around the world (collect, collects) 
    moths and butterflies.

A compound subject is composed of two or more subjects that use the same verb. So when this happens a plural verb must be used.

In the sentence, "Neither the coach nor the players have the trophy", the verb used is have which is plural because the nearest subject to the verb is players which is also plural.

In the sentence, "Neither the players nor the coach has the trophy", the closest subject is coach which is singular, thus the verb should also be singular.

TRY THIS!

5. Highway signs and calculators (use, uses) solar 
    panels.
6. Either Mrs. Stanley or Mr. Cruz (are, is) teaching 
    our Physics class tomorrow.

TRY THIS!

7. There (are, is) many different kinds of bowling 
    balls.
8. (Do, Does) anybody know the date tenpin bowling 
    started?

In the sentence, "Each one of the girls has new Barbie doll", the verb used is singular because the verb agrees to the pronoun "each" which is singular and not to the word "girls".

In the sentence, "Most of the fruit is ripe", the closest to the verb or the noun in the "of phrase" is "fruit" which is singular thus the verb used is singular as well, "is".

In the sentence, "Most of the apples are crisp", the closest to the verb is "apples" which is plural thus the verb "are" is used.

TRY THIS!

9. Neither of my parents (have, has) bowling ball.
10. Some of the beginners (develop, develops) their 
    own style. 

You can watch this video to learn how the rules of subject and the verb agree with subject pronouns.

 

Reference:

Grammar for Writing. (2009). 

New York: William H. Sadlier, Inc. 

Originally published at jeanillec.blogspot.com

in 2020.