Subject-Verb Agreement (SB)

How to determine if a verb is singular or plural

Subject-Verb Agreement

Subject must agree with verb

The basic rule is that singular verbs must agree with singular nouns, while plural verbs must agree with plural nouns.

Noun: person, place, thing, or idea
Verb: shows action or act of being

​A singular verb is one that has an "s" added to it in the present tense, such as

writes, plays, runs,

and uses forms such as:

is, was, has, does.

​Singular Verbs

A plural verb does not have an "s" added to it, such as:
write, play, run,

and uses forms such as:

are, were, have and do.

​

Plural Verbs

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Subject-Verb Agreement

4

Singular Subjects

Plural Subjects

●Singular Subjects=ONE

●DO NOT end with ‘S’

■Cat

■Mall

■Tim

■Chris

○Test with – he

●Singular Verbs

○Generally DO end in ‘S’

■Runs

■Closes

■Laughs

○is/was- singular

●Plural Subjects=MORE THAN ONE

○Generally DO end with ‘S’

■Students

■Dogs

■Princesses

○Test with - they

●Plural Verbs

○Generally DO NOT end in ‘S’

■Eat

■Jump

■Smell

○are/were- plural

Examples

Jack (singular noun) enjoys (singular verb) playing golf every Sunday.

The members (plural noun) enjoy (plural verb) playing golf every Sunday.

Multiple Choice

Choose the correctly written sentence.

• The flowers is pretty.

• The flowers are pretty.

Multiple Choice

Choose the correctly written sentence.

• The Senate rarely complete its agenda before it adjourns.

• The Senate rarely completes its agenda before it adjourns.

Multiple Choice

Choose the correctly written sentence.

• Ben & Jerry's is the best ice cream.

• Ben & Jerry's are the best ice cream.

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Subject-Verb Agreement

7

Compound Subjects

Compound Subjects joined

with ‘AND’

●Usually take the plural verb.

●A compound subject that

names only one person or

thing takes the singular.

Compound Subjects joined by

‘OR’

●The verb should agree with

the subject nearest the

verb.(2nd subject)

Multiple Choice

Choose the correctly written sentence.

• Fireworks, firecrackers, or a sparkler lights the sky.

• Fireworks, firecrackers, or a sparkler light the sky.

Multiple Choice

Choose the correctly worded sentence.

• Neither the teacher nor the students was happy with the new schedule.

• Neither the teacher nor the students were happy with the new schedule.

Multiple Choice

Choose the correctly worded sentence.

• Neither the students nor the teacher was happy with the new schedule.

• Neither the students nor the teacher were happy with the new schedule.

Multiple Choice

Choose the correctly worded sentence.

• Your mother, father, and grandparents is here.

• Your mother, father, and grandparents are here.

Multiple Choice

Choose the correctly worded sentence.

• Fear of spiders and fear of heights run in my family.

• Fear of spiders and fear of heights runs in my family.

Multiple Choice

Choose the correctly worded sentence.

• A gaggle of geese and a flock of sheep was in the field.

• A gaggle of geese and a flock of sheep were in the field.

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Subject-Verb Agreement

9

Indefinite Pronouns as Subjects

pronoun that doesn't specifically identify what it is referring to

Singular

Plural

Both

anybody
anyone
anything

each
either

everybody
everyone
everything

neither
nobody
no one
nothing

one

somebody
someone
something

both
few
many
several

all
any
more
most
none
some

Word Cloud

List 3 SINGULAR verbs

Word Cloud

List 3 PLURAL verbs

Poll

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