The subject of a sentence should always match the verb describing its action.

This
helps your reader understand who or what is doing something and makes your writing
easier to read.

First, identify the subject (the person or thing doing the action) and the verb (the action
word) in a sentence. If the subject is singular, the verb describing its action should be
singular. If the subject is plural, the verb should be plural.

Be The result is significant. The results are significant.

Do The student does her best. The students do their best.

Become The child becomes happier. The children become happier.

Cause That tree causes hay fever. Those trees cause hay fever.

Analyze The author analyzes the The authors analyze the text.
text.

While subject-verb agreement is easy in simple sentences like these, it can become
tricky in more complex sentences. This article teaches you the most important rules and
common mistakes.

Table of contents

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Compound subjects
Sometimes two or more subjects are linked to one verb. These are called compound
subjects. To decide whether to use a singular or plural verb, consider how the subjects
are linked.

Subjects linked with “and”

When subjects are linked with and, use a plural verb.
A bicycle and a pedestrian wereinvolved.
The goose and the chickens eat early in the morning.

Exception: When the two nouns don’t refer to separate things but to a single entity, use
a singular verb.

The new bed and breakfast opens this week.

Macaroni and cheese is a delicious meal.

Subjects linked with “or”

When singular subjects are linked with or,either…or, nor, neither…nor, use a singular
verb.

Just a card or a balloon is enough.

Either the measurement or thecalculation has created a problem.

If all the subjects are plural, use a plural verb.

Either the measurements or thecalculations have created a problem.

If the compound subject contains both singular and plural nouns, the verb takes the
form of the closest subject.

Neither the batteries nor the machineoperates as intended.

Subjects separated from verbs

Often the verb does not directly follow the subject, which can lead to agreement
mistakes. Make sure to match the verb with the correct subject, especially in long
sentences with phrases or clauses in between subject and verb.

 Critics of the  Critics of the

study highlights its study highlight its errors.
errors.

 A basket of  A basket of
puppies were in the puppies was in the
kitchen. kitchen.

 Twelve organizations,  Twelve organizations,

each of which is an
expert in its field and a
key stakeholder in the
negotiation
process, is participating
in the conference.
each of which is an
expert in its field and a
key stakeholder in the
negotiation
process, are participating
in the conference.
 “As well as” and other tricky phrases
The phrase as well as is not the same as the conjunction and. Subjects linked
byand always take a plural verb. In contrast, phrases like as well as, in addition to,
oralong with are not linked to the verb. If the subject is singular, the verb should stay
singular.

 The candidate and  The candidate and

her hersupporters leave the
supportersleaves the building.
building.

 The candidate, along  The candidate, along

with her with her
supporters, leave the supporters, leaves the
building. building.

 The employees of  The employees of the

the organization, as organization, as well as
well as the the CEO, have an
CEO, has an interest interest in the project’s
in the project’s success.
success.

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Indefinite pronouns
These refer to non-specific persons, places, and things
(e.g. someone, other, anyone,anything, somewhere, every, none).

Most indefinite pronouns are treated as singular subjects. However, some are always
treated as plural, as they refer to multiple items or amounts.

Certain indefinite pronouns may be treated as either singular or plural, depending on

whether they refer to multiple items or to a proportion of a single item.
Always Pronouns ending in –thing, –where, –body or – Something falls from the table.
singular one (e.g. somewhere, anybody), every, one,each, another… Each of the
participants responds promptly.
Anyone is able to use the
software.

Always Many, few, several, both, others Both of the twins are lazy.
plural Few know what really
happened that day.

May be None, all, some, most, more, any, either All of the cookies are gone.
singular All of the cookie is gone.
or
plural

Subjects that come after the verb

Sometimes the subject follows the verb, especially when the sentence begins
withthere or here. In this case, there is not the subject – the true subject should be
identified and matched with the correct verb form.

There are many gaps in the literature.

Here is the answer.

Note: Identifying the true subject can be difficult when using these phrases in a long
sentence, which can be confusing for your readers, so be careful when starting a
sentence in this way.

Numbers and amounts

When using numbers, percentages or proportions, the correct form of verb agreement
depends on exactly what you’re referring to. It’s helpful to look beyond the numbers and
find the true subject.

If you’re referring to a specific number or amount of something, match the verb with the
noun rather than the number.

Only 25% of the measurements arereliable.

Three meters of wire surrounds the core.
Over 300 civilians reside in the area.

This also applies when the number refers to an unnamed noun.

I invited 10 people to the party, but only nine are coming.
30% say they will vote in the next election.

If the subject of the sentence is a number referring to a unified quantity of something,

use a singular verb.

One thousand dollars is too much.

In fact, 63% is a better result than expected.

Proportions
Terms that describe a proportion of something are usually followed by “of” (such
as most of). First look at the noun you are describing to determine if it’s singular or
plural, then match it to the verb.

The majority of the samples arecontaminated.

The majority of the sample iscontaminated.
One third of the participants weregiven the placebo.

Collective and uncountable nouns

It can be hard to work out whether to treat collective and uncountable nouns as singular
or plural.

Collective nouns
A collective noun refers to a group of people or things as a singular whole
(e.g.population, team, committee, staff). The form of verb depends on the style of
English you are using. US English tends to use a singular verb, while UK English tends
to use a plural verb. This also applies to the names of companies and organizations.

However, in both styles of English, this rule is somewhat flexible depending on whether
you want to emphasize the actions of the collective as a whole or the individual actions
of its members.

The team usually wins. The team usually win.

The herd migrates in The herd migrate in

summer. summer.

The WWF invites its The WWF invite their

members to a meeting. members to a meeting.
Walmart is the world’s Walmart is the world’s
largest company. largest company.*

The staff argue with each The staff argue with each
other.** other.

*A singular verb makes more sense here, as the emphasis is on the company as a
unified entity.

**A plural verb makes more sense here, as the emphasis is on the individual staff
members.

Uncountable nouns
These nouns describe abstract concepts or masses that can’t be counted
(e.g.research, power, water and vegetation). They take a singular verb.

This equipment is unusable.

The research goes smoothly.
Water flows through the streets.

Note: Data is technically a plural noun, but it is widely treated as an uncountable noun,
so it is acceptable to use either the singular or plural verb form.

This research aims to gather additionaldata on bee behaviour, which iscurrently lacking.
Data were collected over a period of three months.

Abbreviations and acronyms

Abbreviations and acronyms usually take a singular verb. If you’re unsure, check if the
full version of the acronym or abbreviation is a singular, plural or collective noun, and
refer to the rules above. It’s most important to use one form of agreement consistently.

The country’s GDP correlates with its birth rate.

The RPM falls rapidly.
In addition to oil, HNS are a common form of cargo.

In the examples above, RPM (“revolutions per minute”) refers to a stand-alone number,
so it takes a singular verb. HNS(“hazardous and noxious substances”), on the other
hand, is used to describe multiple things, so it takes a plural verb.