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SUBJECTVERB Selectfromthefollowing

AGREEMENT

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BasicPrinciple:Singularsubjectsneedsingularverbspluralsubjectsneedpluralverbs.My
brotherisanutritionist.Mysistersaremathematicians.

SeethesectiononPluralsforadditionalhelpwithsubjectverbagreement.

Theindefinitepronounsanyone,everyone,someone,noone,nobodyarealways
singularand,therefore,requiresingularverbs.

Everyonehasdonehisorherhomework.
Somebodyhasleftherpurse.

Someindefinitepronounssuchasall,somearesingularorpluraldependingonwhatthey're
referringto.(Isthethingreferredtocountableornot?)Becarefulchoosingaverbtoaccompany
suchpronouns.

Someofthebeadsaremissing.
Someofthewaterisgone.

Ontheotherhand,thereisoneindefinitepronoun,none,thatcanbeeithersingularorpluralit
oftendoesn'tmatterwhetheryouuseasingularorapluralverbunlesssomethingelseinthe
sentencedeterminesitsnumber.(Writersgenerallythinkofnoneasmeaningnotanyandwill
chooseapluralverb,asin"Noneoftheenginesareworking,"butwhensomethingelsemakesus
regardnoneasmeaningnotone,wewantasingularverb,asin"Noneofthefoodisfresh.")

Noneofyouclaimsresponsibilityforthisincident?
Noneofyouclaimresponsibilityforthisincident?
Noneofthestudentshavedonetheirhomework.(Inthislastexample,thewordtheir
precludestheuseofthesingularverb.

SomeindefinitepronounsareparticularlytroublesomeEveryoneandeverybody
(listedabove,also)certainlyfeellikemorethanonepersonand,therefore,studentsare
sometimestemptedtouseapluralverbwiththem.Theyarealwayssingular,though.

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Eachisoftenfollowedbyaprepositionalphraseendinginapluralword(Eachofthecars),thus
confusingtheverbchoice.Each,too,isalwayssingularandrequiresasingularverb.

Everyonehasfinishedhisorherhomework.

Youwouldalwayssay,"Everybodyishere."Thismeansthatthewordissingularandnothingwill
changethat.

Eachofthestudentsisresponsiblefordoinghisorherworkinthelibrary.

Don'tlettheword"students"confuseyouthesubjectiseachandeachisalwayssingularEach
isresponsible.

Phrasessuchastogetherwith,aswellas,andalongwitharenotthesameasand.The
phraseintroducedbyaswellasoralongwithwillmodifytheearlierword(mayorin
thiscase),butitdoesnotcompoundthesubjects(asthewordandwoulddo).

Themayoraswellashisbrothersisgoingtoprison.
Themayorandhisbrothersaregoingtojail.

Thepronounsneitherandeitheraresingularandrequiresingularverbseventhough
theyseemtobereferring,inasense,totwothings.

Neitherofthetwotrafficlightsisworking.
WhichshirtdoyouwantforChristmas?
Eitherisfinewithme.

Ininformalwriting,neitherandeithersometimestakeapluralverbwhenthesepronounsare
followedbyaprepositionalphrasebeginningwithof.Thisisparticularlytrueofinterrogative
constructions:"Haveeitherofyoutwoclownsreadtheassignment?""Areeitherofyoutaking
thisseriously?"Burchfieldcallsthis"aclashbetweennotionalandactualagreement."*

Theconjunctionordoesnotconjoin(asanddoes):whennorororisusedthesubject
closertotheverbdeterminesthenumberoftheverb.Whetherthesubjectcomes
beforeoraftertheverbdoesn'tmattertheproximitydeterminesthenumber.

Eithermyfatherormybrothersaregoingtosellthehouse.
Neithermybrothersnormyfatherisgoingtosellthehouse.
Areeithermybrothersormyfatherresponsible?
Iseithermyfatherormybrothersresponsible?

Becauseasentencelike"Neithermybrothersnormyfatherisgoingtosellthehouse"sounds
peculiar,itisprobablyagoodideatoputthepluralsubjectclosertotheverbwheneverthatis
possible.

Thewordsthereandhereareneversubjects.

Therearetworeasons[pluralsubject]forthis.
Thereisnoreasonforthis.
Herearetwoapples.

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Withtheseconstructions(calledexpletiveconstructions),thesubjectfollowstheverbbutstill
determinesthenumberoftheverb.

Verbsinthepresenttenseforthirdperson,singularsubjects(he,she,itandanything
thosewordscanstandfor)havesendings.Otherverbsdonotaddsendings.

Helovesandshelovesandtheylove_and....

Sometimesmodifierswillgetbetwenasubjectanditsverb,butthesemodifiersmust
notconfusetheagreementbetweenthesubjectanditsverb.

Themayor,whohasbeenconvictedalongwithhisfourbrothersonfourcountsof
variouscrimesbutwhoalsoseems,likeacat,tohaveseveralpoliticallives,isfinallygoing
tojail.

Sometimesnounstakeweirdformsandcanfoolusintothinkingthey'repluralwhen
they'rereallysingularandviceversa.ConsultthesectiononthePluralFormsof
NounsandthesectiononCollectiveNounsforadditionalhelp.Wordssuchasglasses,
pants,pliers,andscissorsareregardedasplural(andrequirepluralverbs)unless
they'reprecededthephrasepairof(inwhichcasethewordpairbecomesthesubject).

Myglasseswereonthebed.
Mypantsweretorn.
Apairofplaidtrousersisinthecloset.

Somewordsendinsandappeartobepluralbutarereallysingularandrequire
singularverbs.

Thenewsfromthefrontisbad.
Measlesisadangerousdiseaseforpregnantwomen.

Ontheotherhand,somewordsendinginsrefertoasinglethingbutarenonethelesspluraland
requireapluralverb.

Myassetswerewipedoutinthedepression.
Theaverageworker'searningshavegoneupdramatically.
Ourthanksgototheworkerswhosupportedtheunion.

Thenamesofsportsteamsthatdonotendin"s"willtakeapluralverb:theMiamiHeathavebeen
looking,TheConnecticutSunarehopingthatnewtalent.Seethesectiononpluralsfor
helpwiththisproblem.

Fractionalexpressionssuchashalfof,apartof,apercentageof,amajorityofare
sometimessingularandsometimesplural,dependingonthemeaning.(Thesameis
true,ofcourse,whenall,any,more,mostandsomeactassubjects.)Sumsandproducts
ofmathematicalprocessesareexpressedassingularandrequiresingularverbs.The
expression"morethanone"(oddlyenough)takesasingularverb:"Morethanonestudenthas
triedthis."

Someofthevotersarestillangry.
Alargepercentageoftheolderpopulationisvotingagainsther.
Twofifthsofthetroopswerelostinthebattle.

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Twofifthsofthevineyardwasdestroyedbyfire.
Fortypercentofthestudentsareinfavorofchangingthepolicy.
Fortypercentofthestudentbodyisinfavorofchangingthepolicy.
Twoandtwoisfour.
Fourtimesfourdividedbytwoiseight.

Ifyoursentencecompoundsapositiveandanegativesubjectandoneisplural,the
othersingular,theverbshouldagreewiththepositivesubject.

ThedepartmentmembersbutnotthechairhavedecidednottoteachonValentine's
Day.
Itisnotthefacultymembersbutthepresidentwhodecidesthisissue.
Itwasthespeaker,nothisideas,thathasprovokedthestudentstoriot.

Quiz on Subject/Verb Agreement

Second Quiz on Subject/Verb

Agreement

Third Quiz on Subject/Verb

Agreement

*TheNewFowler'sModernEnglishUsageeditedbyR.W.Burchfield.ClarendonPress:Oxford,England.1996.Used
withthepermissionofOxfordUniversityPress.p.242.

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