C2 Grammar Focus: Subject -Verb Agreement

Making Subjects and Verbs Agree1. When the subject of a sentence is composed of two or more nCIuns orpronouns connected by amd, use a plural verb.

She and her friends are at the fair"

2. When two or more singular nouns or pronouns are connected by or or nar,use a singular verb.

The haok or the pen is in the drawer.

3. When a compound subject contains both a singular and a plural noun orpronoun joined by or or rrer, the verb should agree with the part of the subjectthat is nearer the verb^

The boy or his friends run every day.His friends ar the hoy runs every day.

4. Don't be misled by a phrase that come$ between the subject and the verb.The verb agrees with the subject, not with a noun or pronoun in the phrase.

One af fhe boxes is openThe peaple who listen to that music are few.The team captain, as wellas hr's players, is anx.ious.The book, including allthe chapters in the first sectian, is boring.The woman with all the neighborhoad dogs walks down my street every day.

5. The words eacfi, eaeh one, either, neither, everye{re, everyhody,anybody, anyorre, nobody, somebody, saffieone and no orle are singularand require a singular verb.

Each of these hof dogs is juicyEverybody knows Mr. Jones.Either is correct.

6. Nouns such as civics, mathematics, dollars, measfes, and news requiresingular verbs.

The news is om at six.

Note: the nouns dollars, pounds, etc. are a special case. When talking aboutan amount of money, it requires a singular verb, but when referring to thedollars or pounds themselves, a plural verb is required.

Five dollars r.s a lot of money.Pounds are stillused in the UK.

?. Nouns such as scissors, tweezers, frousers, 3'eans, sforfs and pliersrequire plural verbs. (There are two parts to these things.)

These scr'ssors are dull.Ihose trousers are made of woal.

il. ln sentences beginning with "there r.s" or "the{e are" the subject followsthe verb. Since "there" is not the subject, the verb agrees with what follows.

There are many questions.There is a question.

8. Collective nouns are words thai imply more than one person but that areconsidered singular in American English and take a singular verb. Collectivenouns are nouns such as group, team, committee, band, class, and family.

The team runs during practice.The committee decides how to praceed.Thefamily has a long history.My family has never been able to agree.The crew is preparing to dock the ship.

This sentence is refenring to the individual efforts of each crew member.However, particularly in British English, the same nouns are often used witha plural verb.

The team have wan lhe game.

ts. Expressions such as with, together with, including, accompanied by,in addition to, or as well do not change the number of the subject. lf thesubject is singular, the verb is too.

The President, accompanied by his wife, is traveling to fndia"All of the books, inclading youts, are in that bax.

71, The numbervs. a number. Compare the examples:

*The numbcr i* s su&i*ct in {1}*ln tzl: A number of -an et(pressionof quantffy = "a lot of-*lt is followed by a Ftural noun and aplur*l re'rb.

I EXERCISE Subject-verbogreement,Directions: Choose the correct answer in parentheses.

1. The extent of Jane's knowledge on various complex subjects @astound) me.2. The subjects you will be studying in this course (is,are) listed in the syllabus.3. Letruce (is, are) good for you.4. Oranges) tomatoes, fresh strawberries, cabbage, and lettuce (is, are) rich in vitamin C,5. The professor and the srudent (agrees, agree) on that point.6. Almost every professor and student at the university (a1ryroaes, approae) of the choice

of Dr. Brown as the new president.7. Each girl and boy in the sixth-grade class (has, haae) to do a science project.8. Making pies and cakes (ar, are) Mrs. Reed's specialry.*9. Getring to know srlrdents from all over the world (is, are) one of the best parts of my job.

10. Annie had a hard time when she was coming homefrom the store because the bag of groceries (was, taere)too heavy for her to carry.

I i. lWhere (does, do) your parents live?12, '\Vhy (was,were) Susan and Alex late for the meeting?13. (Is,Are) having the responsibility for taking care of

pets good for young children?14. AIex, as well as his two older brothers, (hasrhaae) a

good full-time job.

SINGUI.ARYERB PLURALVERB(a) Some oJ the booh rs good.(c) A lot of thc equi?meflt i.s

new.(e) Two-third.s oJ the rnoney ismine.

(b) Some oJ the books aregood.(d) A lot of my friends arehere.(f ) Two-thirds of the penniesane mine.

In rnost expressions of quantiry, rhe verb isdetermined by the noun (or pronoun) thatfollows ol For example:ln (a): Somc of + singular noun = singular oerb.In (b): Sorne of + plural noun = plural wrb.

One of my fri*zds ls here.Each of m9 ftiends is here.Eoery one of rry friends ishere.

(e)(h)(i)

ExcErfIoNS: One of, each of, and eoery oneo/mke singular verbs.

one of \each of t1 + plural noun = singular aerb

etsetg one of )(i) None of the brys rs here. ( k ) Noze of the boys are here.(inforrnal) Subjects with none o./are considered singularin very formal English, but plural verbs are

often used in inforrnal speech writing"

(l) The nutnber of students inthe class rs fifteen.

(m) A nurnber of studentsanerelate for class.

coMpARE: ln (l): The number is the subject.In (m): A nutnber o1f is an expression ofquantiry meaning "a lot of." k is followed bya plural noun and a plural verb.

*Specialty = American English; speciality = Brirish Engiish.

Sublect-Verb Agreement

tr EXERCISE Using expressions of quontity. (Chort 6-3)Directions: Choose the correct answer in parenfheses.

l. Some of the fruit in this bowl (is, are) rotten.2. Some of the apples in that bowl (ls, are) rotten.3. Half of the students in the class (as, are) from Arabic-speaking countries.4- Half of this money (israre) yours.5. A lot of the students in the class (zs, are) from Southeast Asia.6. A lot of clothing in those stores (is, are) on sale this week.7. One of my best friends (is, are) coming to visit me nexr month.8. Each boy in the class (has, haue) his own notebook.9. Each of the boys in the class (has, haae) his own notebook.

10. Every one of the students (is, are) required to take the final test.I l. None of the animals at the zoo (is, are) free to roam. Al1 of them (is, ar") in enclosures.12. A number of students (is, are) absent today.13. The number of employees in my company (is, are) approximately ten thousand.14. One of the chief materials in bones and teeth (is, are) calcium.15. (Does, Do) all of the children have their books?16. (Daes, Do) all of this homework have to be finished by tomorrow?17. Why (was, were) some of the students excused from the examination?18. Why (was,were) one of the students excused from the examination?19. What percentage of the people in the world (is, are) illiterate?20. What percentage of the earth's surface (is, are) covered by water?21. (Does, Do) any of you know the answer to that question?

(a) There are t:iilenty students in my class.(b) There's a fly in the room.

In the structure there + be, there is called an"expletive," It has no meaning as a vocabulary word.It introduces rhe idea tleat something exisrs in aparticular place.Pattern: there * be + subject * expression of plau

(c) Therc are seven continents. Sometimes the expression of place is omitted whenthe meaning is clear. In (c): The implied expressionof place is clearly in the anrld.

(e) There are some books onthe shelf.

The subject foilows be when ,Irere is used,In (d): The subiect is book.In (e): The subfect is books.

(f) nm'onuar: There's some books on the shelf. In very informal spoken English, some native speakersuse a singular verb even when the subject is plural,as in (0. The use of this form is fairly frequent but isnot generally considered to be grammatically correct.

SINGUI-AR\rERB(a) The United States is big.(b) The Philippines consrsds of more than 7,000 islands.(c) The United Nations lras its headquarters in

NewYork City.( d ) Sears is a department store.

Sometimes a proper noun that ends in -s is singular, Inthe examples, if the noua is changed to a pronoun, thesingular pronoun l't is used (not the plural pronounrlrqy) because the noun is singular. In (a): The UniudStates = it (not the!).

( e ) The news is interesdng. Nerps is sing::iar.(f ) Marhematics is easy for het. Plqtsics rs easy for her

too.Fields of srudy that end in

-r'cs require singular verbs.

(g) Diabetes rs an iilness. Certain illnesses thar end in -s are singular: diabeus,measles, lnumps, rabies, ritkex, shinglzs.

(h) Eight hours of sleep zs enough,( i ) Ten doilars is too much to pay.( i ) Fiae thousand. miles is roo far to travel.

Expressions of time, mon4), and distance usually requirea singular verb.

(k) Two and rwo rs four.Two and nlo equals four.Two plus ruo islequals four.(l) Fixe rimes five rs twenry-five.

Arithmetic expressions require singular verbs.

PLURALVERB(m) Those people are from Canada.(n) The police hazte been called.(o) Canle are domesdc animals.

Peoplc,* police, and, cdttlc do not end in -s, but areplural nouns and require plural verbs-

SINGUII\R VERB PLLIRALVERB(p) English rs spoken in

many countries.(r) Chinese rs his nativelanguage.

The English drink tea.The Chinese haue arrinreresting history.

(q)(s)

In (p): English = Ianguage. In (q): The English=people from England. Some nouns of nationality thatend in -$ht -eset and -ch can mean either languageor people, e.9., English, Spanish, Chinese, Japanese,Vie mamese, Portu gles e, French.

{t) The poor hatse maayproblems.(u) The ich get richer.

A few adiecrives can be preceded by the and used as aplural noun (without fural -s) to refer to people whohave that qualiry. Odrer examplesl- tfu young, the elder$t,rfu hting,the deal,tfu blind,the deat, thz disabled

rThe word "people" has a final -s (peopks) only when it is used to refer to ethnic or nadonal groups: ld the peapks of rfuz::orw dcsire peace,

X EXERCISE ' lrregulorities in subieci-verb ogreement. (Chort 6-5)Directions: Choose the correct answer in parentheses.

l. The United States (has, haae) a population of around 250 million.2. Ttie news about Mr. Hogan (is, are) surprising.3. Massachusetts (is, are) a state in the northeastern part.of the United States.4. Physics (seeks, seek) to understand the mysteries of the physical world.5. Statistics (is, are) a branch of mathematics.6. The statistics in ttrat report on oil production (is, are) incorrect.*7. Fifry minutes (is, are) rhe rnaximum length of dme allowed for the exam.8. Twenry dollars (is, are) an unreasonable price for the necklace.9. Six and seven (is, ere) thirteen.

10. Many people in the world (doeE do) not have enough to eat.11. The police (is, are) prepared in case there is a riot.12. Rabies (is, are) an infectious and often fatal disease.13. The English (is, are) proud, independent people.14. English (is, are) not my native language.15- Many Japanese (commuus, commuu) to their places of work.16. Portuguese (zb are) somewhat similar to Spanish, (isn't, aren't) it?17. The poor (rs, are) helped by government programs.18. Theeffectof ahoneybee'sstingonahumanbeing (depends,depend) onthatperson's

susceptibility to the bee's venom. Most people (is, are) not in danger if ttrey are snrng,but there (has, haoe) been instances of allergic deaths from a single honeybee sting.

tr EXERCISE . Review: subject-verb ogreement. (Chorts 6-2 * 6-5)Directinns: rVork in pairs, in groups, or as a class.Speaker A: Your book is open. Read the cue.Speaker B: Your book is closed. Respond with rs at are.Examples:srEAKER e, (book open): Some of my classmates . . . .sPEA.I(ER n (book clased): . . . aresrEAKER t (book open): Some of that information . . . .sPEAKER n (book clased): . . . is1. His idea . . . .2.Hisideas....3. People....4. Each of the students . . . .5. Most of the fruit. . . .6. Most of the students . . . .7. The United States . . . .

10. French....11. TheVietnamese....12. Two-thirds of the food . . . .13. The number of students . . . .14. Some of the people. .. .15. Ninety-three rnillion people . . . .16. The story about his adventures . . . ,

8. The news in this morning's paper . . . . 17. Alot of the chairs . . . .9. One of the girls . . . . 18" A lot of the furniture . . . .

*Suristits is singular when it refers to a feld of study: e.g., Stalrsf,r'cs is at interuting fuld of sudy. When it refers toparticular numbers, it is used as a count rorn: singular = one statktic (no final -s); pfural = run statistics,. Forexample: This statistb is cmrect. Those stat*tics are incorrect.

Subject-Verb Agreemenl

15.

16.

Unless rhere are a profound and extensive reform of government policies in tlle near

future, the economic conditions in that country will continue to deteriorate.

Whiie I was in Paris, some of the best food I found were not at the well-known eating

places, but in small out-of-the-way cafes.

17. rJThere's my gloves? Have you seen them anywhere? I can't find them.

18. lWhere's Kenya? Can you find it for me on the map?

19. Approximately 80 percent of all the datar in computers around the world is in Engiish.

20. tX/hy are the police here?

21. Studying a foreign language often lead students to learn about the culture of the

countries where it is spoken.

22. Turo hours is too long to wait, don't you think?

23. Some of the movie about the gangsters were surprisingly funny.

*Datais an irreguiar plural noun. (See Chart 7-1, p. 100.) Even rhough it is grammatically plural, it typicallytakes a singular verb, but a plural verb is also used, especially in very forrna.l English:

The data in the census repmt, is atry interesting. clx The dats in the cerxus report ate oery interesting.

I Id

Subject-Verb Agreemeni

i9. Everyone in the English classes. . . . 27. Over half of the books by that20. Theclothesinthatstore.... author.'..21. Most of the information in those 28. A million dollars . . . .

books.... 29. Therich....22- The news from home. . . . 30. His method of doing things . . . .23" Fitry percent of the people in the 31. A number of people . . . .

world.... ?2. Mostof thesroresinthisciry....24. FiW percent of the worid's 33. Mathematic$ . . . ,population.... 34. Thepolice....25. The clothing in those stores . . . . 35. Everybody in the whole world . . . .26. H.er husband's relatives . . . .

f EXERCISE Error cnolysis: subject-verb ogreement. (Chorts 6-2 -- 6-5)Dir;;:tions: Correcr the errors in subject-verb agreernent. Some sentences contain no errors-

AYE1. The books in my office is very valuable to me.

2. Nl of the windows in our house were broken in the earthquake . (no errors)3. Nl of the employees in that company is required to be proficient in a second language.4. A 1ot of the people in my class works during the day and attends class in the evening.

5. Listening to very loud music at rock concerts have caused hearing loss in some teenagers.

6. Many of the satellites orbiting the earth is used for communications.

7. The news about the long-range effects of air pollution on the development of

children's lungs is disturbing.

B. Chinese have more than fifty thousand written characters.

9. About two-thirds of theVietnamese works in agriculture.

10. A number of planes were deiayed due to the snowstorm in Denver.

11. The number of passengers affected by the delays was great.

l2- More men than women are left-handed.

13. Every girl and boy are required to have certain immunizations before enrolling in

public school.

14. Sevenry-five percent of the people in NewYork City lives in upstairs apartments, not

on the ground floor.