Subject-Verb Agreement Subject-Verb Concord While forming sentences we essentially have to pay attention to the agreement between the two most fundamental components of a sentence - the Subject and the Verb. In a sentence, the subject can be a common noun, a proper Noun or an abstract noun. It can also be a pronoun. In order to form a grammatically correct sentence, the subject must always agree with the verb in two aspects - in_number and in_person. This agreement principle is called "Subject-Verb Agreement’ or ‘Subject verb Concord’. There are few basic rules that must be followed in order to maintain the agreement between the two components. While writing sentences, we can encounter subject-verb agreement error quite often. This error can be rectified by keeping in mind the following rules involved in ‘subject- verb agreement: ‘Subject-Verb Agreement Rules 1. The first and fundamental rule is quite simple. For every singular subject, a sentence should have a singular verb and for every plural subject, a sentence should have a plural verb. eg. lamin the library. They are in the library. He goes to the park. They go to the park. Justice is hard to get. Chairs are kept there. When we make a sentence we tell something about a person or thing. The part of the sentence which names this person or thing is called the ‘subject’. This part always agrees with the ‘verb’ used in the sentence. When two or more singular subjects are joined together by a conjunction ‘and’, the sentence always carries a plural verb. These two subjects always carry distinct meanings. e.g. Mr. and Mrs. Sharma are going to the market. Gold and Silver are precious metals. When two subjects are joined together by a conjunction ‘and’ but express one idea together, then the ‘subject of the sentence is singular. The sentence always carries a singular verb. e.g. Bread and butter is necessary for one's survival. Slow and steady wins the race. When two singular subjects, each carrying article ‘the’, are joined together by conjunction ‘and’, the sentence carries a plural verb. e.g. The actor and the director of the movie were awarded, Scanned with CamScanner10. 1. 12, 13, 14. 15. ‘the’ is placed only once When two si Ps ion ‘and’, but article singular subjects are joined together by conjunction ‘a nce will carry a singular before the first subject, then the subject of the sentence is singular. The sente verb, €.g. The actor and director of the movie was awarded. Nouns such as trousers, scissors, archives, shoes, etc. that are plural in form but take plural verbs. singular in meaning @.g. Scissors were kept there. These shorts wore bought from the new market. When a sentence uses a phrase ‘a pair of with any subject of plural nature, the subject is considered to be singular, not plural. The sentence will always take a singular verb. e.g. These days a pair of spectacles costs you a lot. Nouns such as Economics, news, Billiards, etc. that are uncountable in nature but plural in form take singular verbs. e.g. Civics is my favourite subject. The news is at eight. Proper nouns, whether for a singular subject or a collective unit, always take a singular verb. e.g. The Soviet Union was not easily disintegrated. Uncountable nouns like media, stationery, progress, scenery, justice, advice, weather, luggage, equipment are all considered as singular. They always take a singular verb. e.g. His progress has been impressive. A singular verb is used when a plural noun denotes some specific quantity or amount. e.g. Two-thirds of this book is uninteresting. Three kilometers was a long distance from there. If two subjects are joined together by conjunctions like ‘either-or’, ‘neither-nor’, ‘not only-but also’, then the following three sentence structures are possible: () When two singular nouns are used, then the verb is singular. e.g. Either the master or the servant is to be blamed for the robbery. (i) When two plural nouns are used, then the verb is plural. e.g. Neither the computers nor the fax machines need repair. (ii) When both singular and plural nouns are used, then the verb takes the form of the adjacent subject. e.g. Not only the flower plants but the grass has also withered. When a plural noun comes between a singular subject and its verb, the verb takes the form of the singular subject. e.g. Either of the candidates is preferred. Collective nouns like jury, committee, team, etc., can take either a singular or a plural verb depending upon the context of the seritence, (@) Ifthe sentence expresses a unified idea, where the members of the group are acting as a combined unit, then the collective noun is considered as a united group. The sentence carries a ‘singular verb. ‘e.g. The jury has unanimously decided to punish the criminal. (i) Ifthe sentence expresses a divided idea, where members of the group are not acting as a wholesome Unit, then the collective noun is considered as a divided group. The sentence carries a plural verb. ‘e.g. The committee have divided opinions over the matter, Everybody, somebody, nobody, anybody, anyone, each and many a, always take a singular verb. e.g. Nobody knows anything about the robbery. Scanned with CamScanner16. 17. 18. 19. 20. Nouns that are joined together by phrases like ‘as well as’, ‘in addition to’, ‘along with’, ‘together with” etc. are not to be considered as plural subjects. These phrases do not add up subjects. They are parenthetical. They just add additional information to the main subject. The subject of the sentence is always the one that comes before the parenthetical phrase, whether singular or plural. @.g. The teacher, along with her students, was felicitated at the Annual Day ceremony. The title of a book, story, play, etc. even if it ends with suffix -s or -es', always take a singular verb. eg, The Heidi Chronicles is a compelling read with an engrossing storyline. uh two nouns qualified by ‘each’ and ‘every’ are joined by ‘and’, then the sentence takes a singular @.g. Each parent and each guardian was invited to the convocation. ‘None’ is used as both singular and plural, depending upon the context of the sentence. e.g. None are so deaf as those who will not hear. | asked for a service boy, but none was available. Few plural nouns do not end with ‘-s' or es’. They still always use a plural verb. Words like people, children, feet, teeth, phenomena are always plural. Similarly, ‘police’ is always considered to be plural. It takes only a plural verb. e.g. Police have finally nabbed the absconding robbers. People have gathered in huge number to listen to the Chief Minister's speech. EXERCISE Directions : Fill in the blanks with the correct verb form. A 1 ase 10. 1. 12. 13. 14, 15. 16. Richard and his cousins (visit) each other often. Either the cups or the glass (be) in the dishwasher. There (be) a dog, a cat, and a bird in that house. Neither Riya nor her sisters (be) at the party last night. There into the main ring of the circus (come) the trained elephants. Either the technicians or the architect (deliver) the presentation. The family (be) occupied with their individual problems. The United States (be) a country of contrast. Interesting news (be) what sells our papers. A pound of bread (cost) about twenty rupees. In a marathon, few of the starters (finish) the race. Beyond the mountains__(be) a fertile valley. The value of motorcycles and cars__ (be) increased. Neither his grandparents nor his brother alive. ‘The supervisor and treasurer of the committee invited for the lunch party. The rising concer over the right to free education a matter worth consideration. Scanned with CamScanner17. The congregation issued its report. 18. Everyone asked to bring his/her official documents. 19, Many a local citizen worried for his/her safety. 20. There many reasons to oppose the plan. report at the 21. The manager, as well as his team members, __ been asked to complete the reps earliest. | guidelins 22. The cooperative banks and the financing fms _ been asked to follow the new RBI guidelines. 23. Gulliver's Travels one of Jonathan Swifts best creations. 24. Most states in India hundreds of biodegradable handicraft items like the delicate woodwork of Bastar, the bamboo products from North-East, Terracotta from West Bengal, etc. 25. |, as well as my friends, willing to pitch in for the charity. Directions: The following passage has not been edited. Each sentence carries a grammatical mistake of subject. verb agreement. Write the error and its correction in the space given next fo each line. Incorrect Correct ‘Supposing you has to make a payment of % 100, you can does so in rupee-coins, but it would be cumbersome to pay in nickel or copper coins, not only because they is heavy to carry but also because it take much time to count them. The government therefore permit you to make the payment in rupee-notes. What is these rupee-notes really? They are a kind of money; right enough, although they has made of paper instead of metal. SN OMe ON a You can use them in just the same way that you will uses ordinary money. 9. The reason why they are made of paper and used are that they save 10. the trouble of carrying metal coins about - of course, paper have lighter 11. than metal - and they also saves using silver and other 12. metals when they was scarce. Directions : Fill in the blanks with the correct verb form to complete the passages. c. According to legend, Santa Claus is a fat old man who (visit) every house on our planet in about eight hours on one of the coldest nights of the year. Santa, as everybody knows, __2 (stop) for a glass (prefer) to work unnoticed, so he wears 2 luminous red suit and travels with a pack of bel-jangling reindeer, For reasons that most people __4 _ (do) Not understand, this jolly old man enters each house not by the front door but through the chimney, whether you __§__ (be) a chimney or not. He customarily gives generously to children in wealthy families, and he of milk and a cookie at each house along the route. He __3 usually (‘emind) poorer children that i's the thought that counts, Santa Claus is one of the earliest beliefs that parents tr to instil in their children, After this absurdity, its a wonder that any child ever (believe) in anything again. Scanned with CamScannerMy family __1 (enjoy) scuba-diving, so nearly every vacation, we go on a diving trip. We have noticed that there __2__ (be) three completely different kinds of divers. We call them the “nature lovers", the “pool guys", and the “seals”. The people whom we call ‘nature lovers” _3__ (enjoy) getting in the water for a short swim to look at the rocks, seaweed and underwater creatures, which (be) swimming around. The “pool guys”, who wear the latest hi-tech equipment, __5 (come) for a short while to have a swim and test how good their equipment _6 __ (be). The “seals", who wear only their swimsuits, dive in the water and disappear for what _7__ (seem) like hours. Each of the divers __8 _ (enjoy) the ocean in a different way. Riya and Sakshi __1__ (be) really bored. Both of the girls (be) a ton of homework, but neither of them __3__ (want) to do it. Instead, they __4 _ (decide) to head to the mall. When the girls arrive at the mall, they notice that some of the stores __5 (offer) refreshments to their customers. They enjoy a few treats, but many of the shoppers __ (seem) too busy to stop. After a little while, Riya _7 (want) to check out Kiddyland, but Sakshi is tired. Since they can't agree on what to do, they just go home. They 8 __ (be) homework to do. I bought a new computer game yesterday. It _1__ (seem) very easy, but! _2 (bet) the game _3 (Get) harder. Rohan and Varun, my computer buddles, (want) to come over and play it this aftemoon. My mom says that they __5 (be) to ask their mother first. Their mom _6 (think) itis okay, and she __7__ (be) bringing them over to my house. | hope they get here soon. Rohan just _8 _ (know) that he is going to beat Varun and me. However,! _9 _ (disagree) with him. Everybody _10__ (know) that | am the best. My sister lives on the ground floor of a two-story apartment and hates living there. For one thing, many cat in her neighbourhood __1 (howl) right below her bedroom window all night and knock over her garbage cans. One cat waits patiently outside her door until she opens it and then _2 (pounce) on her feet, tuining her stockings. But the people living upstairs __3_ (be) even worse than the cats. The mother starts a fire almost every month because she forgets to turn off the stove when she leaves the kitchen, and the daughter faithfully __4__ (practice) her gymnastics every evening just as my sister sits down to study. Even more annoying, the father parks his car in my sister's parking space and __5 _ (peek) in every time he goes past her front window, so she always has to keep her curtains closed. All in all, living there has not been a pleasant experience for my poor sister. Scanned with CamScanner