Subject-Verb Concord/ Agreement

When we construct the sentence, its verb and subject must agree in number and person.
Thus, if the subject is of the singular number, first-person, the verb must be of the singular
number. If the subject has a plural number, third person, the verb must be of the plural
number. There are some rules that governe the agreement of subject and verb:

Note: The subject is in bold and the verb is underlined.

Rule 1.
A singular subject takes the verb in the singular and a plural subject takes the verb in the
plural.
Note: All English verbs are plural, we make them singular by adding s or es to the verb.
Examples:
● Naina goes for a walk every day.
● The workers are on strike.

Rule 2. (Compound Subject)

Two or more singular nouns or pronouns joined by ‘and’ generally take a plural verb.
Examples:
● She and I were playing.
● Both, her books and pen, have been lost.
● Sugar and flour are needed for the recipe.
● Pepperoni and cheese are great on a pizza.

Rule 3.
When two singular nouns refer to the same person, the verb must be in the singular.
Examples:
● Her friend and classmate has won the prize. (when both refer to the same person)
● The actor and director has met with an accident.(when both refer to the same
person)

Rule 4.
When the nouns are compound in form, making one unit, the verb must be singular.
Examples:
● Bread and butter is their only food.
● Here comes my friend and philosopher.

Rule 5. When a singular subject is qualified by ‘each’, ‘every’, ‘neither’ or ‘either’, the verb
must be in the singular.
Examples:
● Each one has to attend the match.
● Neither of the teams was very strong.

Rule 6.
When two subjects are joined by either-or/neither-nor, the verb agrees with the subject
nearest it.
Examples:
● Neither the guru nor his disciples are present.
● Either the boys or the teacher is wrong.

Rule 7.
When a sentence begins with an introductory ‘there’, the verb must agree with the noun that
follows it.
Examples:
● There are ten apples in the basket.
● There is a swimming pool in my house.
Rule 8.
The nouns which are plural in form but singular in meaning take the verb in the singular.
Examples:
● The news is true.
● Mathematics is not an easy subject.
Rule 9.
Collective nouns take the verb in the singular but when the individuals are taken separately,
the verb can be in plural.
Examples:
● A herd of cattle is grazing.
● The jury were divided in their opinion.

★ Collective Nouns:
• The committee meets here every Thursday.(singular subject and
verb)
• The crowd is getting angry. (singular)
• The jury has finally reached a decision. (singular)
• The majority rules most of the time. (singular)
• The staff have gone for their holidays. (plural subject taking them as individuals)
[Note: Collective nouns, like “committee” and “audience”, can be singular or plural
depending on the context. In writing your sentence, you’ll need to consider whether the
group in question is acting as a unit or as a set of individuals. {Some writers prefer to make
collective nouns plural by adding extra words, such as “Members of”: - Members of the
committee were unable to reach a unanimous decision.}

Rule 10.
A plural noun referring to distance, weight, height, amount of money represents a single
figure or quantity, the verb must be singular.
Examples:
● Five kilometers is a long distance for a walk.
● She gives him an old five hundred rupee note.

Rule 11.
Nouns such as food, furniture, crockery, stationery, etc. are singular, so the verb must be
singular.
Examples:
● The furniture has been polished.
● The stationery is damaged during the transit.
Rule 12.
Phrases like—‘a lot of’, ‘plenty of’, ‘most of’ are used in the singular when they refer to the
amount or quantity, but they take a plural verb when they refer to a number.
Example:
● A lot of work needs to be done. (singular)
● Most of the flowers are fresh. (plural)

Rule 13:
In sentences that express a wish, request or contrary to fact, the word ‘were’ is used instead
of ‘was’
● I wish my sister were here.

SOLVED QUESTION BANK

1. Fill in the blanks with the appropriate verbs in agreement with its subject.

(a) A dog ………. a faithful animal.

(b) Neither my parents nor relatives ………………. present yesterday at the party.
(c) Each of the boys ………. Honest.
(d) The entire class as well as the principal, .............. agreed to the proposal.
(e) Neither Rasipa nor Reeta ..... present.
(f) His briefcase and wallet......... been lost.
(g) Politics ...........his bread and butter.
(h) The committee ............ issued its report.
(i) Three parts of the business …..... left for me to do.
(j) Either he or I …..... mistaken.

Ans. (a) is (b) were (c) is/was (d) has (e) is/are (f) have (g) is (h) has (i) is g) am

2. In each of the following sentences, there is an error. Find out the error and provide the
correction.
(i) Error Correction
The quality of apples are not good. e.g. are is
Many of them is rotten. (a)
Cause of worries are that the children (b)
does not know the fact. (c)

Ans, (a) is - are (b) are - is (c) does - do

(ii) Error Correction

Each century warm the earth. (a)
But in the last century there have been a (b)
phenomenon increases in the earth’s (c)
temperature.

Ans. (a) warm - warms (b) have - has (c) increase - increase
3. Supply a verb in the blanks in agreement with its subject.

(a) No news …….. good news.

(b) The girl and the boy .... disappeared.

(c) One-third of the town ……….. flooded.

(d) “The Three Idiots” ......... . directed by Raju Hirani.

(e) Bhagwan Das, the writer and the poet, ………. passed away.

(f) Saffron, white and green ……………….. the colours of the Indian flag.

(g) Chicken and cheese ...... my favourite breakfast.

(h) The crew …........forced to get off the plane.

(i) The ship, with its crew, ……….not traceable.

(j) Nobody agreed. There ..........objections to the proposal.

Ans. (a) is (b) have / had -(c) was (d) is (e) has (f) are (g) is (h) was/were (i) was (j) were

4. In each of the following sentences, there is an error. Find out the error and provide the
correction.

(i) Error Correction

It were dark and cold in the garden. (a)
Rain is falling. A damp cutting wind (b)
were racing through the garden. (c)

(ii) Error Correction

Most of us has experienced prejudice (a)
in some way during our life. (b)
It may has been name calling or bullying. (c)

Ans. (i) (a) were was (b) is was (c) were was

(ii) (a) has have (b) life ~ lives (c) has -have
Exercise 1:
Fill in the blanks by choosing the correct option:

1. Tom, with dog, ……. here now.

a) is b) are c) was d) were

2. Tom as well as his dog, ….. here now.

a) is b) are c) was d) were

3. My old friend and colleague, John, ……… married.

a) has just got b) have just got c) just has got d) just have got

4. The singer and actor ……… coming now.

a) was b) were c) is d) are

5. The singer and the actor …… coming now.

a) was b) were c) is d) are

6. Mathematics ….. difficult.

a) is b) are c) is d) are

7. Two billion dollars …. not enough for the victims of the tsunami.
a) was b) were c) is d) are

8. Three years in a strange land ……. like a long time for lonely people.
a) is seeming b) are seeing c) seems d) were seemed

9. The film "Titanic" ….. very interesting.

a) is b) are c) was d) were

10. Cattle …… allowed to graze here now.

a) was b) were c) is d) are

11. None of this money ………. right now.

a) is b) are c) was d) were

12. None of them ……. right now.

a) is b) are c) was d) were

13. Every student ……… willing to join the picnic now.

a) is b) are c) was d) were

14. The number of students ………. increasing now.

a) are b) was c) were d) is

15. A number of students ……....playing table tennis now.

a) are b) was c) were d) is
16.Physics ….. my favourite subject.
a) are b) is c) was d) have been

17. The boy, with his two companions, ………. the cherry tree now.
a) has split b) have split c) is slitting d) are splitting

18. The writer and poet …… going to preside over this meeting.
a) are b) is c) have been going d) is to

19. Neither the mother nor the children …… aware of the danger.
a) were b) was c) is d) has been

20. She told me that she …... happy for what he …… .

a) is feeling / did b) was feeling / had done c) feels / did d) has felt / has been going

ANS:
1.a 2.a 3.a 4.c 5.d

6.a 7.c 8.c 9.a 10.d

11.a 12.b 13.a 14.d 15.a

16.b 17.c 18.b 19.a 20.b

Exercise 2

1. If anyone …….., tell him, I'll be back later.

a. was calling b. called c. call d. calls

2. Each of the boys …... a book now.

a. have b. has c. had d. are having

3. Two-thirds of the money …….mine now. .

a. is b. are c. was d. were

4. About 60% of students in this class……... from china.

a. was b. were c. are d. is

5. A number of sheep …… eating grass now.

a. are b. is c. was d. were

6. The number of books in this library ….. large.

a. are b. is c. was d.were
7. Either you or I …... wrong. .
a. am b. is c. are d. were

8. Neither my gloves nor my hat ….. With this dress.

a. is going b. are going c. goes d. go

8. The poor living…... her help.

a. is needing b. are needing c. need d. needs

10. Several of the students ……. absent yesterday.

a. has been b. had been c were d. was

11. The professor said that Vietnam …….. to South-East Asia.

a. has belonged b. had belonged c.belonged d. belongs

12. He …... he had read that story book before.

a. told b.has told c. had told d. said

13. His choice of “'words ……. very good.

a. are b. be c. is d. being.

14. Anybody who, ……. my keys will be given a candy.

a. find b. finds c. are finding d. found

15. The Browns ………..here since 1950.

a. are living b. have lived c. have been living d. has been living

16.John, as well as I, …... a student.

a.are b. were c. as d. has been

17. Not only John but his brothers …… also in debt

a. is b. have c. was d. were

18. The majority of the TOEFL tests ….. difficult.

a. are b. is c. be d. being

19. Local news ……. on TV every night at 7:30.

a. were b. was c. is d. are

20. A number of sheep ……. died from a strange illness.

a. have b. has c. is d. are

Exercise 3

1. The science classes at this …….. difficult.

a. schools are b. school is c. school are d. school’s is
2. One of the ….. from Italy.

Worksheets:
https://www.eslprintables.com/grammar_worksheets/sentence_construction/subject_v
erb_agreement/SUBJECT_AND_VERB_AGREEMENT_MC_281028/

SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT

Here are some examples of subject-verb agreement

(the subject is bolded and the verb underlined):
● My dog always growls at the postal carrier.
● Basketballs roll across the floor.
● I don't understand the assignment.
● These clothes are too small for me.
● Peter doesn't like vegetables.

★ Compound subjects:
• Sugar and flour are needed for the recipe.
• Pepperoni and cheese are great on a pizza.
• Corned beef and cabbage is a traditional meal in Ireland. (popular
usage)
• The creator and producer is arriving soon. (both refer to the same
person)

★ Examples of compound subjects using ‘neither-nor’ and ‘either-or’:

If two or more subjects are joined with “or”, use the closest to the verb for agreement.

● Either Jack or the children are too loud.

Is “are” the correct verb to use here, even though Jack is singular? Yes, it is, because the
closest subject to the verb is “the children”.

Let’s rewrite the sentence:

● Either the children or Jack is too loud.
Here, “is” is correct, because “Jack” is the closest subject to the verb.
In both of these cases, you may feel the sentence reads slightly awkwardly. If so, you
might want to rewrite or reconsider the sentence so that the verb can agree with both
subjects:
● Either Jack or one of the children is too loud.

• My mom or dad is coming to the play. (singular - any one of them will come)
• Neither gray nor white is my favorite color. (singular - None of it is my choice)
• Either Grandpa or my sisters are going to the park. (the closest subject is plural)
• Either my sisters or Grandpa is going to the park. (the closest subject is singular)
• Neither she nor I am going to college. (the closest subject is singular)

★ Singular Indefinite Pronouns

• Each gets a trophy for playing.
• Somebody will pay for this.
• Anybody is more fun than you.
• Something is very wrong here.
• Everybody enjoys a good book.
• Nothing has been determined as of now.

★ Plural indefinite Pronouns

(Some indefinite pronouns, take the plural form. These include few, many, several,
both, all, and some when used as pronouns.)
• Both are qualified for the job.
• Many went to the beach and got sunburned.
• Few know what it really takes to get ahead.
• Several are already on location.
• Some sugar is required for taste. (sugar is uncountable so singular verb used)
• Most of the cookies were eaten. (cookies are countable so plural verb used)

★ Collective Nouns:
• The committee meets here every Thursday.(singular subject and
verb)
• The crowd is getting angry. (singular)
• The jury has finally reached a decision. (singular)
• The majority rules most of the time. (singular)
• The staff have gone for their holidays. (plural subject taking them as individuals)
[Note: Collective nouns, like “committee” and “audience”, can be singular or plural
depending on the context. In writing your sentence, you’ll need to consider whether the
group in question is acting as a unit or as a set of individuals. {Some writers prefer to make
collective nouns plural by adding extra words, such as “Members of”: - Members of the
committee were unable to reach a unanimous decision.}

★ Inverted Subjects
Here are some examples of subject-verb agreement with inverted subjects where the
subject follows the verb:
• There are seven clean plates on the shelf.

★ A Clause between the Subject and Verb will not change the Verb.
• The child with no friends plays at the park.
[“The child” is still the subject of the sentence, and “plays” is still the verb. Although the
clause “with no friends” has the plural noun “friends,” this does not change the verb –
because the verb still applies to “child”.
Tip: If you’re struggling with this, read the sentence aloud without the clause between the
subject and the verb, and see if it still makes sense.]

Subject-Verb Agreement Quiz

In each sentence, choose the correct form of the verb.

1. Either the dog or the puppies ___ too loud.

a) is b) are ( the closest subject to the verb is “the children” - plural)

2. Everyone ____ chocolate.

a) loves b) love

3. My sister, along with her children, ___ visiting me next month.

a) is b) are (Clause between the Subject and Verb will not change the Verb.)

4. Neither my mother nor my father ___ going to call me today.

a) are b) is