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Section outline
Agreement in number
I run, you run, he or she runs Irregular verbs are less predictable; their forms must be
memorized. (Bedford 27a/Hodges' 7a) I am, you are, he or she is Basic subject-verb agreement calls for choosing the verb form that agrees with the number of persons or things that make up the subject. Problems can arise when we aren't sure of the number of people involved, as in collective nouns, a topic discussed below. Agreement where subject and verb are separated by other words (Bedford 21b/Hodges'6a.1) In sentences which offer a good bit of detail, the subject and verb are often separated by clauses, phrases or a single descriptive word. Sometimes these intervening words cause confusion about the choice of verb. In the following sentence, the verb is singular to agree with the singular subject: A band of gypsies dances at the campfire. Although the plural form gypsies might indicate that the verb should be "dance," as in "gypsies dance," note that "band" is the subject of the sentence, and "of gypsies" is a phrase that further describes the band. The prepositional phrase "of gypsies" tells us what kind of band. Agreement of compound subjects and their verbs (Bedford21c/Hodges' 6a4)
Compound subjects connected with coordinating conjunctions take a plural form of the verb UNLESS the two subject nouns clearly refer to the same individual. Here is a typical compound subject: Sara and Delaney care (not cares) about the future of the college. Exception: The president and founder of the college was named Josiah Reed. In the second sentence it is clear that the compound subject "president and founder" refers to one person, Josiah Reed. Either...or and neither...nor
compound constructions Compound subjects connected with "either...or" or "neither...nor" use the verb form that agrees with the subject closer to the verb: Neither Maisy nor her neighbors attend the City Council meetings. Neither the townspeople nor the mayor intends to compromise. Please note that "either" and "neither" can also serve as indefinite pronouns. For such uses, please follow the subject-verb agreement rules for indefinite pronouns, which appear as the next item in this section. Agreement of indefinite
pronouns and their verbs Like the constructions in which the subject and verb are separated by other words, indefinite pronouns often appear with words which confuse us regarding agreement. Indefinite pronouns include the following:
In most cases these words, when used as indefinite pronouns, use the singular form of the verb: Each of the dancers interprets the music differently. Any of the cantelopes will be fine. Agreement of collective nouns
and their verbs A collective noun presents a group of people or objects as a single unit. We use collective nouns to represent things that are not usually counted as single items: committee, family, class. Unless the sentence clearly draws attention to the individual members or parts of a collective noun, use the singular form of the verb. (Bedford 21e/ Harbrace 6a/8.) ex. Sometimes the class complains about the amount of reading. Agreement in sentences with elements reversed In a sentence beginning with "There is" or "There are," the sentence elements are reversed. The subject usually follows this phrase, as in the following: There are eleven rose bushes in full bloom. The subject of this sentence is bushes, so the correct verb form is the plural "are." If there were only one rose bush, the correct form would be "There is one rose bush in full bloom." In casual speech, we often hear, "There's ten people in line." This is incorrect. Another kind of reversal appears in the following sentence: A powerful group of consumers is children. Although it may sound correct to match the plural form children (or the plural form consumers) with the verb, as in "children are," the subject of the sentence is "group," a collective noun that calls for the singular form "is." Agreement in embedded sentence elements/who, which, that (Bedford 2i/Hodges'6a.6) Like the subject and verb in the sentence, the elements within every clause must also be in agreement. When you find a clause that begins with who, which or that, check the subject/verb agreement within the clause itself, not in terms of the larger sentence: As one of those students who read assignments over a quick breakfast, she wondered why her grades were so low. The introductory elements of this sentence include a phrase, "as one of those students who read assignments over a quick breakfast," and within that phrase the clause "who read assignments over a quick breakfast." This clause helps to describe which students read assignments over a quick breakfast. The verb read must agree with the number of students described in the pronoun who. Because there are several students, the plural form read is correct. If you look outside of the phrase, you will find the singular forms one and she. These pronouns are not related directly to the verb inside the clause, so they have no bearing on the form of the verb to read. Subject-verb agreement tutorialEach of the following sentences offers a choice of verb forms. Click on the form that agrees with its subject.
Cheryl, one of 400 new freshmen at Meredith College, works/work all summer at the swim club.Correct answer: works The subject of the sentence is "Cheryl." In spite of the fact that 400 new freshmen are mentioned in the appositive phrase that follows her name, Cheryl is the only person who works all summer at the swim club. It is important to locate the subject of the sentence, especially when other words and word groups come between it and the verb. Return to tutorial questions
She is one of those students who leave/leaves home and family to live on a college campus.Correct answer: leave In this sentence the verb "leave" is not the main verb. It does not refer to "She," the subject of the sentence, but rather to "students." It is the verb of the clause "who leave home and family to live on a college campus," which in turn modifies "students." In other words, "leave" is the verb of an embedded clause. Because many students leave home (according to this sentence), the verb must agree with the plural subject. Return to tutorial questions
She is the only one of her high school classmates who is/are accepted at Meredith.Correct answer: is "Is" serves as the verb of the clause "who is accepted at Meredith." In order to choose the correct form, you need to draw meaning from the rest of the sentence to know what other sentence element this clause modifies. In this case it modifies "one." Emphasis is added by the adjective "only." When we know from the context of the larger sentence that only one person (she) has been accepted at Meredith, then we know that the verb of this clause must be singular. Contrast this sentence with the following modification: She is one of the Enloe high school graduates who are accepted at Meredith. Here the same kind of clause is modifiying the plural noun "graduates." Return to tutorial questions
Moving day and freshman orientation arrive/arrives like a surprise.Correct answer: arrive This sentence contains a compound subject: "day" and "orientation." Because both arrive, the plural form of the verb is used. Remember that the plural form of a verb does not end in "s." Return to tutorial questions
Cheryl, along with her parents and brothers, has/have spent hours lugging her treasured possessions to her third floor room.Correct answer: has The subject of the sentence is Cheryl. The phrase "along with her parents and brothers" is not a part of the subject. So the subject "Cheryl" must agree with the singular form "has spent." Return to tutorial questions
The majority of students is/are accustomed to living in comfort.Correct answer: is The subject of this sentence is "majority." Although this word refers to a group of people, in this case students, it is a collective noun and therefore takes the singular form "is." Return to tutorial questions
Recent data show/shows that most college students are willing to go into debt to buy appliances.Correct answer: show Data is actually the plural form of the word "datum." The word derives from the Latin word for "given." So the data (plural) would show (rather than shows). In conversational English we have begun to use "data" as a singular word. The distinction presented here may not work its way into your casual conversation, although you will find yourself in professional situations in which your knowledge of correct usage will make a difference. Return to tutorial questions
Cheryl and her roommate each show/shows up with a microwave, a television, a refrigerator, and a cordless telephone.Correct answer: show The confusing element of this sentence is the relative pronoun "each." When used as the subject of a sentence, "each" calls for a singular verb, even if it is followed by a sentence element in the plural. For example, it is correct to write Each of the roommates shows up. In this sentence, however, "Cheryl and her roommate" serves as the subject of the sentence. This compound subject calls for the plural form "show." "Each" serves the function of emphasizing that both of the students did the same thing. Return to tutorial questions
Neither of the students wants/want to sacrifice her personal possessions for the sake of space or neatness.Correct answer: wants In this sentence the pronoun "neither" serves as the subject. When neither or either takes this function, it is singular, even if followed by a prepositional phrase that includes a plural noun. The prepositional phrase "of the students" helps to clarify who the "neither" is. But the plural form "students" has no impact upon the choice of the verb for the subject "neither." Return to tutorial
A sense of harmony between Cheryl and her roommate seem/seems unlikely at first.Correct answer: seems The subject of this sentence is "sense." It is singular and therefore calls for the corresponding verb form "seems." The confusing element of this sentence is the prepositional phrase "between Cheryl and her roommate." This phrase helps to modify the sense of harmony: what kind of harmony? The phrase does not determine the form of the sentence's main verb. Return to tutorial
Peace and harmony is/are the aim in these living situations.Correct answer: are This sentence contains a compound subject: "peace and harmony." Connected with the conjunction "and," both are given equal weight in the sentence. Contrast this arrangement with the following: Cheryl, along with her friends, likes to water ski. In this sentence, Cheryl is the singular subject. The friends appear in a prepositional phrase, but they do not participate fully in the action of this sentence. Cheryl is given top billing, while the friends are added after the subject has been named. Return to tutorial
The outcome of their long discussions remain/remains unknown.Correct answer: remains The singular subject "outcome" calls for the corresponding form "remains." The confusing element of this sentence is the prepositional phrase "of their long discussions," which includes the plural noun "discussions." The discussions do not remain unknown; the outcome does. You can often determine the correct verb form by considering the content of the sentence. Return to tutorial questions
Waiting for a decision about moving the appliances is/are the families of the two students.Correct answer: are The sentence elements of this sentence are reversed. The choice of a verb would be made simpler by rearranging the sentence as follows: The families of the two students are waiting for a decision about moving the appliances. The plural form "families" serves as the subject of the sentence and therefor takes the plural verb "are." Return to tutorial questions
There is/are many unanwered questions.Correct answer: are The plural form of the "to be" verb is needed to accompany the plural form of "questions." Essentially the elements of this sentence are reversed. We are actually saying or writing, "Many unanswered questions are there." Code for Intrakal course:
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