Some Helpful Tools
Subject-Verb Agreement
Indefinite Pronouns and Verb Agreement
Compound Subjects
Inverted Order
Interrupting Phrases
Rules for Subject - Verb Agreement
If you are unsure of which verb form to use when a sentence contains two subjects, simply substitute both subjects for the pronoun they.
However, if you are one of the subjects, then substitute the subjects with the pronoun we.
Some indefinite pronouns are singular while a few others are plural.
When phrases are placed between the subject and the verb, choosing the correct form of the verb can be difficult.
To make the choice easier, try taking out the phrase. Then match the subject and
verbs as usual.
The interrupting phrase has been underlined to help make the choice easier.
Sometimes the verb may come before the subject in a sentence. In order to match the correct verb with the subject, ask who or what of the subject.
If compound subjects are connected by and, then a plural verb should be used.
This section will show how to make the verb match with the subject of the sentence.
A verb must agree with its subject in number. The gender of the subject does not determine which verb should be used as in pronoun agreement.
I sing
you sing
he, she, it sings
Harry sings on the bus.
Megan sings in the choir.
The bird sings in the morning.
If you substitute a proper or exact noun in the place of the third person pronoun, you will have:
we sing
you(plural) sing
they sing
Now let's make our subjects plural as shown in our examples below.
The boys sing on the bus.
They sing on the bus.
The girls sing in the choir.
They sing in the choir.
The birds sing in the morning.
They sing in the morning.
Notice that our singular verb sings changes to the plural verb sing.
This is done by substituting The boys for the third-person plural subject they.
Janet and Paul (has or have) tickets to the musical on Thursday night.
Janet and Paul can be substituted with the pronoun they since have is used with the pronoun they.
The sentence will now read:
Janet and Paul have tickets to the musical on Thursday night.
The interrupting phrases can be temporarily omitted to make subject and verb agreement easier.
The students in the class are working very hard.
Horses, like most animals, enjoy fresh air.
Silvia, unlike her sisters, likes vegetables.
The phrase can be removed so that Silvia matches the verb likes.
Burt, as well as Fred and John, eats at that table all the time.
The phrase can be removed so that Burt matches the verb eats.
(Is, Are) your hat and gloves in the drawer?
What is in the drawer? your hat and gloves
Since the subject hat and gloves is plural, use the plural form of the verb. The sentence will now read:
Are your hat and gloves in the drawer?
(Has, Have) Jane returned?
Who has returned? Jane
Since the subject Jane is singular, use the singular form of the verb. The sentence will now read:
Has Jane returned?
Over the fireplace (hang, hangs) their family portrait.
Mentally rearrange the sentence so that the subject appears first and the verb appears second.
Over the fireplace (hang, hangs) their family portrait.
Their family portrait (hang, hangs) over the fireplace.
Since the subject portrait is singular, we will choose the singular verb hangs.
Over the fireplace hangs their family portrait.
Singular or Plural
(depending on their use)
all any more most none some
no one
nobody
someone
somebody
everyone
everybody
either
neither
one
each
Singular
Plural
both
few
many
several
Water is the object of the preposition In the prepositional phrase of the water. Since water is singular, the verb is also singular.
Neither cookies nor ice cream is sold there.
Neither ice cream nor cookies are sold there.
Everyone is going on the picnic.
Many of the students are staying after school for the pep rally.
None is versus None are
The verb that is closest to the subject should agree.
If the object of the preposition is singular, use a singular verb. If the object of the preposition is plural, use a plural verb.
None of the boys are going to the baseball game.
Boys is the object of the preposition In the prepositional phrase of the boys. Since boys is plural, the verb is also plural.
None of the water is drinkable.
Numbers that represent single units use a singular verb.
Seventeen hours is a long time to drive without taking a break.
Collective nouns such as group, team chorus, and committee use a singular verb.
Their team is winning.
Words like: there, here, where, who, which, and what are never subjects of a sentence.
There are too many planes taking off at the same time.
In the example above, the subject is in italics and the verb is in boldface.
When using singular and plural subjects connected by conjunctions either-or, neither-nor, nor, or or, the verb that is closest to the subject should agree.
Neither grapefruit nor bananas were on the list.
Neither bananas nor grapefruit is on the list.
Singular subjects connected by conjunctions either-or, neither-nor, or, or nor use a singular verb.
Neither Eric nor Sean is going to the baseball game.
Janet and Fred are married.
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Language Arts: Subject - Verb Agreement - Tutorial
