Subject/Verb Agreement Rule 1: When the subject of a sentence is composed of two or more nouns or pronouns connected by and, use

a plural verb.

She and her friends are at the fair. Rule 2: When two or more singular nouns are connected by or or nor, use a singular verb. The same rule applies if the singular nouns are connected by either/or or neither/nor.

The book or the pen is in the drawer. Either the book or the pen is in the drawer. Neither the book nor the pen is in the drawer Rule 3: When a compound subject contains both a singular and a plural noun (or pronoun) joined by or or nor (or either/or and neither/nor), the verb should agree with the part of the subject that is nearer the verb.

The boy or his friends run every day. Neither his friends nor the boy runs every day. When either or neither are subjects, they always take a singular verb. Either is fine. Rule 4: Doesnt is a contraction of does not and should only be used with a singular subject.

Dont is a contraction of do not and should only be used with a plural subject. There is an exception to this rule. When using I and you, always use the contraction dont. He doesnt like it.

They dont like it. I dont like it. You dont like it. Rule 5: Find the verb, and then find the subject. Dont be misled by a phrase that comes between a subject and a verb. In addition, the main subject will never follow a preposition.

Incorrect: One of the boxes are open. Correct: One of the boxes is open. Incorrect: The team captain, as well as his players, are anxious. Correct: The team captain, as well as his players, is anxious Rule 6: The following words are considered singular:

Each Each one Either Neither Everyone Everybody Anybody Anyone Nobody Somebody Someone No one They require a singular verb. Each of these hot dogs is juicy. Everybody knows Mr. Jones Either is correct.

Rule 7:

Some nouns that look like plurals are considered to be singular:

Mathematics Measles News The word dollars is a special case. When talking about an amount of money, it uses a singular verb. When talking about the dollars themselves, it requires a plural verb. Five dollars is a lot of money. Dollars are often used instead of rubles in Russia. Periods of time are also singular. Five minutes goes by quickly. Rule 8: Some nouns that seem to be singular require plural verbs. There are two parts to these things:

Scissors Tweezers Trousers Pants Rule 9: In sentences beginning with there is or there are, the subject follows the verb. Since there is not the subject, the verb agrees with what follows.

There are many questions. There is a question. Rule 10: Collective nouns are words that talk about more than one person, but are considered singular:

Group Team Class Family

The only exception is when the individuals in the group are specifically referred to: The family has a long history. My family have never been able to agree. Rule 11: Portion and measurement words (some, all, none, percent, fraction, etc) require you to look at the noun in the of phrase (the portion or measurement of what) to determine if you should use a singular or plural verb.

Some of the dishes are dirty. Some of the cake is gone. Rule 12: Countable nouns can be singular or plural. Uncountable nouns take singular verbs.

The toy is blue. The toys are on the floor. The traffic is heavy. The milk is in the refrigerator. Rule 13: Clauses that have their own subjects and verbs can appear in the middle of a sentence. The pronouns who, which, and that often act as the subject in these types of clauses. In determining whether the verb that follows the pronoun is singular or plural, look at the word that precedes the pronoun.

The child who sees the toy gets to keep it. The children who see the toys get to keep them.

Subject-Verb Agreement Exercise #1

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. 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 (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.