Subject and Verb Agreement

1. Subject and Verb Agreement

2. Agreement • A verb should always agree in number with its subject • Number: the form a word takes to indicate whether the word is singular or plural. A word that refers to one person, place, thing, or idea is singular. A word that refers to more than one is plural in number.

3. Agreement Singular subjects take singular verbs Examples: My grandfather trains dogs. The senator is in favor of the bill. She owns and operates a video store. That is beautiful

4. Agreement Plural subjects take plural verbs Examples: My grandparents train dogs. Many senators are in favor of the bill. They own and operate a video store. Those are beautiful.

5. Agreement In a verb phrase, the first helping verb agrees in number with the subject. Example: This song was performed by J.Cole. These songs were performed by J. Cole.

6. Indefinite Pronouns Some indefinite pronouns are singular, some are plural, and some can be singular or plural, depending on how they are used. Singular indefinite pronouns: anybody, anyone, anything, each, either, everybody, everyone, everything, neither, nobody, no one, nothing, one, somebody, someone, and something

7. Indefinite pronouns Plural indefinite pronouns: both, few, many, and several Singular or plural, depending on their meaning in a sentence: all, any, more, none, and some

8. Examples • Everyone in the Pep Club is wearing the school colors. • Both of the games were postponed. • Many of our words derive from Latin. • All of the vegetable garden has been planted. • All of the vegetables have been planted. • None of the equipment was damaged.

9. Collective Noun Common collective nouns: army, club, congregation, assembly, audience, family, group, team, staff, herd, band, etc. A collective noun is singular when it refers to the group as a unit and is plural when it refers to the individual members or parts of the group.

10. Collective Noun The tour group is already on the bus. (one unit) The tour group are talking about what they expect to see. (The members of the group are talking to one another.)

11. Expression of an amount The rule for collective nouns also applies to expressions of an amount (a measurement, a percentage, or a fraction) Five thousand bricks is a heavy load for this truck. Five thousand bricks are scattered on the lot.

12. Practice • The stage crew (is, are) working together to make a rapid scene change. • Many of the recipes in this cookbook (is, are) adaptable to microwave cooking. • Several quilters, gathering at one person’s home for a quilting bee, often (work, works) on a quilt together.