Rules for Subject-Verb Agreement
· Nouns joined with “and” take a plural verb.
· Singular nouns joined with “or” or “nor” take a singular verb.
· When a singular and a plural noun are joined by “or,” the one closest to the verb tells you whether the verb is singular or plural.
· “Don’t” is plural and “Doesn’t” is singular.
· If a subject is followed by a prepositional phrase, cross out the prepositional phrase before you decide what the verb should be. Example: One of the students (a. is / b. are) absent.
o Prepositions include at, by, for, from, in, of , on, to, with and others.
· Sometimes groups of words beginning with the words “who. . . ,” “as well as. . . ,” or “including. . . . ,” or others come between the subject and the verb. Cross them out before you decide what the verb should be.
o Examples: My aunt, who loves to eat raw tomatoes, (a. grow / b. grows) a huge garden.
§ My aunts and uncles, including Aunt Hermione, (a. live / b. lives) in Utah.
§ My Aunt Hermione, as well as Uncles Ron and Harry, ((a. live / b. lives) in Orem.
· Some words that end in “s” are singular, such as mathematics, civics, dollars, measles, and news.
· Some words that end in “s” are plural, such as scissors, tweezers, shears, and trousers.
· The words each, each one, either, neither, everyone, everybody, anybody, anyone, nobody, somebody, someone, and no one are singular and require a singular verb.
· Stop that pen! Don’t cross out the prepositional phrase if it goes with these words:
o All, any, half, most, none, and some are plural unless they are followed by a prepositional phrase with a singular noun.
§ Most have already been eaten.
§ Most of the pies have already been eaten.
§ Most of the pie has already been eaten.
· When a sentence begins with “here” or “there,” turn the sentence around in your mind so the subject comes first. Example: There (a. was /b. were) bats living in the ceiling. Change it to “Bats were living in the ceiling.”
