Subject-Verb Agreement

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What is Subject-Verb Agreement?

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Subject-Verb Agreement is the grammatical rule that the subject and verb in a sentence must agree in number (singular or plural).

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When do you use a singular verb?

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A singular verb is used when the subject is singular (e.g., 'The cat runs').

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When do you use a plural verb?

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A plural verb is used when the subject is plural (e.g., 'The cats run').

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What is a collective noun?

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A collective noun refers to a group of individuals or things considered as a single unit (e.g., 'team', 'group').

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How does a collective noun affect verb agreement?

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A collective noun usually takes a singular verb when the group acts as a single unit (e.g., 'The team wins').

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What is an intervening phrase?

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An intervening phrase is a phrase that comes between the subject and the verb and does not affect the subject-verb agreement (e.g., 'The dog, along with its puppies, barks').

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What is a compound subject?

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A compound subject consists of two or more subjects joined by a conjunction (e.g., 'Tom and Jerry').

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How do you determine the verb for a compound subject?

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When using 'neither/nor' or 'either/or', the verb agrees with the nearest subject (e.g., 'Neither the teacher nor the students are here').

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What is the rule for subjects joined by 'and'?

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When subjects are joined by 'and', they typically take a plural verb (e.g., 'The cat and dog are playing').

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What is the rule for subjects joined by 'or'?

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When subjects are joined by 'or', the verb agrees with the subject closest to it (e.g., 'Either the teacher or the students are responsible').