SUBJECT AND VERB AGREEMENT

RULES OF SUBJECT VERB

What are the rules?

1. Subjects and verbs must agree in number. This is the cornerstone rule that forms the background of the concept.
2. The dog growls when it is angry. The dogs growl when they are angry.
3. Don’t get confused by the words that come between the subject and verb, they do not affect agreement.
4. The dog, who is chewing on my jeans, is usually very good.
5. Prepositional phrases between the subject and verb usually do not affect the agreement.
6. The colors of the rainbow are beautiful.
7. 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.
8. There is a problem with the balance sheet. Here are the papers you requested.
9. Subjects don’t always come before verbs in questions. Make sure you accurately identify the subject before deciding on the proper verb form to use.
10. Does Lefty  usually eat grass? Where are the pieces of this puzzle?
11. If two subjects are joined by ‘and’, they typically require a plural verb form.
12. The cow and the pig are jumping over the moon.
13. The verb is singular if the two subjects are separated by ‘and’ refer to the same person or same thing.
14. Red beans and rice is my mom’s favorite dish.
15. If one of the words each, every or nocomes before the subject, the verb is singular.
16. No smoking or drinking is allowed. Every man and woman is required to check in.
17. If both the subjects are singular and are connected by the words or, nor, neither/nor, either/or, and not only/but also the verb is singular.
18. Jessica or Tristan is to blame for the accident.
19. The only time when the object of the preposition factors into the decision of 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.
20. All of the chicken is gone. All of the chickens are gone.
21. The singular verb form is usually used for units of measurement or time.
22. Four quarts of oil was required to get the car running.
23. If both subjects are plural and are connected by the words or, nor, neither/nor, either/or, and not only/but also, the verb is plural.
24. Dogs and cats are both available at the pound.
25. If one subject is plural and one is singular and 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.
26. Either the bears or the lion has escaped from the zoo. Neither the lion nor the bears have escaped from the zoo.
27. Indefinite pronouns typically take singular verbs.
28. Everybody wants to be loved.
29. *Except for the pronouns (few, several, both, many, both, all, some) that always take plural form.
30. Few were left alive after the flood.
31. If two infinitives are separated by ‘and’ they take the plural form of the verb.
32. To walk and to chew gum require great skill.
33. 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.
34. Standing in the water was a bad idea. Swimming in the ocean and playing drums are my hobbies.
35. Collective nouns like herd, senate, class, crowd, etc. usually take a singular verb form.
36. The herd is stampeding.
37. Titles of books, movies, novels, etc.  are treated as singular and take a singular verb.
38. The Burbs is a movie starring Tom Hanks.
39. Final Rule – Remember, only the subjects affects the verb!

Few more rules:

1. A subject will come before a phrase beginning with ‘of’. This is a key rule for understanding subjects. The word ‘of’ is culprit in many, perhaps most, subject – verb mistakes.

Hasty writers, speakers, readers and listeners might miss the all-too-common mistake in the sentence:

Incorrect: A bouquet of yellow roses lend color and fragrance to the room.

Correct: A bouquet of yellow roses lends … (bouquet lands, not roses lend)

• The verb in an or, either/or, neither/nor, sentence agrees with the noun or pronoun closest to it.

Examples:

Neither the plates nor the serving bowl goes on that shelf.

Neither the serving bowl nor the plates go on that shelf.

• Sometimes the subject is separated from the verb by such words as along with, as well as, besides, not, etc. These words and phrases are not part of the subject. Ignore them and use a singular verb when the subject is singular.

Examples:

The politician, along with the newsmen, is expected shortly.

Excitement, as well as nervousness, is the cause of her shaking.

• With the words that indicate portions – a lot, a majority, some, all, etc. RULE 1 given earlier is reversed, and we are guided by the noun after ‘of’. If the noun after ‘of’ is singular, use a singular verb. If it is plural, use plural verb.

Examples:

A lot of pie has disappeared.

A lot of pies have disappeared.

A third of the city is disappeared.

A third of the population are unemployed.

All of the pie is gone.

Some of the pie is missing.

Some of the pies are missing.

In sentences beginning with here or there, the true subject follows the verb.

         Examples:

         There are four hurdles to jump.

         There is a high hurdle to jump.

          Here are the keys.

• Some collective nouns, such as family, couple, staff, audience, etc. may take either a singular or plural verb, depending on their use in the sentence.

Examples:

The staff is in a meeting.

Staff is acting as a unit.

The couple disagree about disciplining their child.

The couple refers to two people who are acting as individuals.

• The word ‘were’ replaces ‘was’ in sentences that expresses a wish or are contrary to fact:

Example:

If Joe were here, you’d be sorry.

I wish It were Friday.