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Subject Verb Agreement1
Subject Verb Agreement1
Choose the correct form of the verb that agrees with the subject.
1. Annie and her brothers (is, are) at school.
2. Either my mother or my father (is, are) coming to the meeting.
3. The dog or the cats (is, are) outside.
4. Either my shoes or your coat (is, are) always on the floor.
5. George and Tamara (doesn't, don't) want to see that movie.
6. Benito (doesn't, don't) know the answer.
7. One of my sisters (is, are) going on a trip to France.
8. The man with all the birds (live, lives) on my street.
9. The movie, including all the previews, (take, takes) about two hours to watch.
10. The players, as well as the captain, (want, wants) to win.
11. Either answer (is, are) acceptable.
12. Every one of those books (is, are) fiction.
13. Nobody (know, knows) the trouble I've seen.
14. (Is, Are) the news on at five or six?
15. Mathematics (is, are) John's favorite subject, while Civics (is, are) Andrea's favorite subject.
16. Eight dollars (is, are) the price of a movie these days.
17. (Is, Are) the tweezers in this drawer?
18. Your pants (is, are) at the cleaner's.
19. There (was, were) fifteen candies in that bag. Now there (is, are) only one left!
20. The committee (debates, debate) these questions carefully.
21. The committee members (leads, lead) very different lives in private.
22. The Prime Minister, together with his wife, (greets, greet) the press cordially.
23. All of the CDs, even the scratched one, (is, are) in this case.
EXERCISE #2
A.
Underline the subject (or compound subject) and then identify the verb that
agrees with it.
Everyone in the telecom focus group (has/have) experienced problems with
cell phones
1. Your friendship over the years and your support (has/have) meant a great
deal to us.
3. The main source of income for Trinidad (is/are) oil and pitch.
6. Neither the professor nor his assistants (was/were) able to solve the mystery of
7. Many hours at the driving range (has/have) led us to design golf balls with
8. Discovered in the soil of our city garden (was/were) a button dating from the
9. Every year, during the midsummer festival, the smoke of village bonfires
10. The story performers (was/were) surrounded by children and adults eager to
EXERCISE 2: B
2. Not until my interview with Dr. Chang were other possibilities opened to me.
3. Batik cloth from Bali, blue and white ceramics from Cambodia, and a bocce
ball from Turin has made Hannah’s room the talk of the dorm.
4. The board of directors, ignoring the wishes of the neighbourhood, has voted to
6. The presence of certain bacteria in our bodies are one of the factors that
7. Leah is the only one of the many applicants who has the ability to step into this
job.
8. Neither the explorer nor his companions was ever seen again.
Exercise #3:
Exercise #5
SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT
There is an old saying: “Opposites attract.” The rule for singular and plural verbs is just the opposite of the rule for singular and plural nouns. Remember
this when you match subjects and verbs. You might guess that stays and smells are plural verbs because they end in s. They aren’t. Both stays and smells
are singular verbs.
RULE 2 – The number of the subject (singular or plural) is not changed by words that come between the subject and the verb.
One of the eggs is broken. Of the eggs is a prepositional phrase. The subject one and the verb is are both singular. Mentally omit the prepositional phrase
to make the subject verb-agreement easier to make.
Direction: Circle the correct verb in each of the sentences below. Check your answers on the following page.
6. That red-haired lady in the fur hat (live-lives) across the street.
10. The center on the basketball team (bounce-bounces) the ball too high.
Exercise #6
Directions: Write four sentences of your own illustrating the first two subject-verb agreement rules.
_________________________________________________________________________
RULE 1 _________________________________________________________________________
RULE 2 _________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
RULE 3 – Some subjects always take a singular verb even though the meaning may seem plural.
each someone either anyone neither nobody one somebody no one anybody everyone everybody
Someone in the game was (not were) hurt. Neither of the men is (not are) working.
RULE 4 – The following words may be singular or plural, depending upon their use in a sentence, some, any, all, most.
Most of the news is good. (singular) Most of the flowers were yellow. (plural) All of the pizza was gone. (singular) All of the children were late. (plural)
Exercise# 7
Directions: Circle the correct verb in the sentences below. Check your answers on the bottom of this page.
Directions: Write four sentences of your own illustrating rules 3 and 4.
_________________________________________________________________________
Rule 3 _________________________________________________________________________
Rule 4 _________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
RULE 5 – Subjects joined by and are plural. Subjects joined by or or Nor take a verb that agrees with the last subject.
RULE 6 – There and here are never subjects. In sentences that begin with these words, the subject is usually found later on in the sentence.
There were five books on the shelf. (were, agrees with the subject book)
Here is the report you wanted. (Is agrees with subject report)
RULE 7 – Collective nouns may be singular or plural, depending on their use in the sentence.
A collective noun is a noun used to name a whole group. Following are some common examples:
army crowd orchestra audience flock public class group swarm club herd team committee jury troop
United States
The orchestra were asked to give their musical backgrounds. (Orchestra is considered as separate individuals—plural)
Directions: Circle the correct verb in each of the sentences below. Check your answers at the bottom of this page.
6. Here into the main ring of the circus (come-comes) the trained elephants.
11. Here (is-are) the nails you need for the projects.
_________________________________________________________________________
RULE 5 _________________________________________________________________________
RULE 6 _________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
RULE 7 _________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
RULE 8 – Expressions of time, money, measurement, and weight are usually singular when the amount is considered one unit.
Five dollars is (not are) too much to ask. Ten days is (not are) not nearly enough time.
RULE 9 – Some nouns, while plural in form, are actually singular in meaning.
mumps home economics social studies economics measles calisthenics statistics civics physics gymnastics phonics news acrobatics aesthetics thesis
mathematics
RULE 10 – Don’t and Doesn’t must agree with the subject. Use doesn’t after he, she, it.
Doesn’t he (not don’t) know how to sail? They don’t (not doesn’t) make movies like that anymore.
Exercise #9
4. Twenty minutes (is-are) the amount of time it takes me to get home from work.
Direction: Write six sentences of your own illustrating rules 8, 9, and 10.
_________________________________________________________________________
RULE 8 _________________________________________________________________________
RULE 9 _________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
RULE 10 _________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
Directions: Write the correct verb in the blank to the left of each sentence. See the instructor for answers.
3._________________ Sixty days (is-are) not enough time to complete the project.
9._________________ Either the pitcher or the base runners (was-were) caught napping.
11._________________ Have you ever heard the expression, “No new (is-are) good news?”
9 8
17._________________ Some of the job applicants (is-are) expected to pass the difficult screening test.
22._________________ Thirty minutes (is-are) the time limit for the test.
Exercise 10
EXERCISE: - In each sentence below, underline the verb that with its
subject.
3. A chocolate chip cookie, as well as some ice cream, (is, are) a good dessert.
12.Isabella, along with her brothers, (wants, want) to learn to make pasta.