Agreement

General Rule

The subject and verb of a sentence MUST agree.

A singular subject must have a singular verb and a

plural subject must have a plural verb.

Always look for the REAL subject.

Subject – Verb
Agreement
Rules
3
The dog (growl, growls) when he is
angry.

4
Rule # 1

The dog (growl, growls) when he is
angry.

Subjects and verbs must agree in

number.

5
The language coach, as well as the team
leaders, (has, have) submitted the
report.

6
Rule # 2
The language coach, as well as the team
leaders, (has, have) submitted the
report.

Intervening words such as “along with,

together with, as well as, in addition to,
like, except etc.” do not affect the verb.

7
The colors of the rainbow (is,
are) beautiful.

8
Rule # 3
The colors of the rainbow (is,
are) beautiful.

Prepositional phrases between the

subject and verb usually do not affect
agreement.

9
Neither the agents nor Mr. Santos
(know, knows) about the news.

10
Rule # 4

Neither the agents nor Mr. Santos

(know, knows) about the news.

When compound subjects are joined by

“either, or”, “neither, nor”, and “not only,
but also”, the verb MUST agree with the
subject that is closest to the verb.

11
Neither of his brothers (is, are) kind.

12
Note :

Neither of his brothers (is, are) kind.

“Neither” means not one; therefore

requires a singular verb.

13
Either of us (is, are) going to the party.

14
Either of us (is, are) going to the party.

“Either” means either of the two

subjects; therefore requires a singular
verb.

15
None (is, are) left of the pie.

None (is, are) left of the candles.

16
None (is, are) left of the pie.

None (is, are) left of the candles.

“None” can either be singular or

plural depending on the subject.

17
The trainers, not the manager (check,
checks) your attendance.

18
Rule # 5

The trainers, not the manager (check,

checks) your attendance.

When both positive and negative

subjects are in the same sentence, the
verb should take after the positive
subject.
19
One half of the melon (is, are) eaten.
50% of the trainees (is, are) from NCR.

20
Rule # 6

One half of the melon (is, are) eaten.

50% of the trainees (is, are) from NCR.

For fractions and percentages, the

verb takes after the noun given after
them.

21
Everyone (is, are) attending the concert.

22
Rule # 7
Indefinite pronouns must be identified
as singular or plural.

Everyone (is, are) attending the concert.

Singular indefinite pronouns: each, either, one

, everyone, no one, nobody, someone etc.

23
A few (has, have) attended the training.

24
A few (has, have) attended the training.

Plural Indefinite Pronouns: both, few,

many, others and several.

25
All of the students (was, were) present.
All of the homework (is, are) due today.

26
All of the students (was, were) present.
All of the homework (is, are) due today.

Variable Indefinite Pronouns: some,

most, all, none, any.

27
“Suits” (are, is) my favorite TV series.

28
Rule # 8

“Suits” (are, is) my favorite TV series.

Titles of books, movies, TV series etc.,

always require a singular verb.

29
 Twenty meters (is, are) what Paolo
jogs everyday.
Two years (is, are) too long to wait for
you.

30
Rule # 9
Twenty meters (is, are) what Paolo
jogs everyday.
Two years (is, are) too long to wait for
you.

Amounts, distances, measurements always

require a singular verb.
31
An old friend and colleague of ours (is, are)
meeting me for dinner.
My mother and my best friend (is, are)
coming to the party.

32
Rule # 10
An old friend and colleague of ours (is, are)
meeting me for dinner.
My mother and my best friend (is, are)
coming to the party.

The word “and” when referring to the

same subject, requires a singular verb,
referring to different subjects requires a
plural verb.
33
 A number of trainees (has, have)
continually risen for the past months.
The number of trainers (is, are) increasing.

34
Rule # 11
A number of trainees (has, have)
continually risen for the past months.
The number of trainers (is, are) increasing.

“A number of” requires a plural verb.

“The number of” requires a singular verb.

35
Mathematics (is, are) not my favorite subject.

His politics (is, are) his own affair.

36
Rule # 12
Mathematics (is, are) not my favorite subject.

His politics (is, are) his own affair.

Watch out for words that appear to be plural
because they end in “s”, but are really singular and
require a singular verb.
(Physics, Politics, Mumps, Measles, etc.) But if
used otherwise, it should require a plural verb.

37
His Jeans (is, are) made of 100% pure
denim.

38
Rule # 13
His Jeans (is, are) made of 100% pure
denim.

Some words are plural and require a plural

verb even when used to refer to only one
object.

Jeans, scissors, pliers, pants, trousers

39
Much of the water supply (is, are) wasted
everyday.
A large space (is, are) needed for the
game.

40
Rule # 14
Much of the water supply (is, are) wasted
everyday.
A large space (is, are) needed for the
game.

Mass nouns like “water, air, wind, fire,

space” require a singular verb.

41
The class (come, comes) from different
regions.

42
Rule # 15
The class (come, comes) from different
regions.

Collective nouns like “family, army,

orchestra, crowd, audience, herd, flock,
staff, etc.” require a singular verb because
they are taken as a whole or collectively.

43
 The faculty (argue, argues) among
themselves about the value of general
education courses.

44
 The faculty (argue, argues) among
themselves about the value of general
education courses.

A collective noun is plural and agrees with

a plural verb when the group it names is
considered to be individuals with different
points of view and feelings.

45
Here (is, are) the book you ordered.
There (is, are) people in the room.

46
Rule # 16
Here (is, are) the book you ordered.
There (is, are) people in the room.

Here and There:

The words are called expletives and

cannot be subjects of sentences.

47
Under the desk (is, are) the lost balls.
Off the coast of North Carolina (lie, lies)
the Barrier Islands, a popular summer
resort area.

48
Rule # 17
Under the desk (is, are) the lost balls.
Off the coast of North Carolina (lie, lies)
the Barrier Islands, a popular summer
resort area.

Inverted Sentences

49
 The rich (is, are) not always happy.
The English (is, are) distant and the French (is,
are) humorous.

50
Rule # 18

The rich (is, are) not always happy.

The English (is, are) distant and the French (is,
are) humorous.

Generic references with ‘the’ require plural

verb. These are “the + adjective” structures.

51
Lisa is one of the students who (has, have) passed with
an A.

Lisa is the only one of my students who (has, have)

passed with an A.

52
Rule # 19
Lisa is one of the students who (has, have) passed with
an A.
(Many students passed with an A, Lisa is one of them.)
Lisa is the only one of my students who (has, have)
passed with an A.
(Only Lisa passed with an A.)

A relative pronoun takes a singular or plural verb

depending on which noun it modifies.
(who, that, which)
53
Rule # 20 - Final Rule

Remember, only the

subject affects the verb!