Subject – Verb Agreement
(Also, the dreaded Pronoun –
Antecedent Agreement)
S – V Agreement
• A singular subject has a singular verb – He
walks, the dog lives, our school rocks
• A plural subject has a plural verb – they
walk, the dogs live, our fans rock, children
play
(Notice the singular verb ends in “s” and the
plural verb doesn’t)
Intervening phrases
• The previous page’s rules are not changed by
intervening phrases. The subject is the subject
so don’t be tricked by Warriner’s evil – They’ll
make you think something in a prepositional
phrase is the subject of the verb.
• An addition to those codes have been found.
• The problems of the freshman is numerous.
• Do exercise 1 pg. 87
Indefinite pronouns as subjects
• Most common cause of errors involving S-V Agreement
• These pronouns are singular, so when they are the
subject, the verb is singular: each, either, neither, one,
no one, nobody, every one, everyone, anyone, someone,
anybody, somebody, everybody
• Always plural – several, few, both, many
• Can be singular or plural, depending on use (Thanks
English Language!) some, any, none, all, most
• Exercise 2 + 4
• Exercise 3 is for homework
Compound Subjects
• Subject and subject = plural verb
The dog and the cat like the same food.
Singular Subject or/nor singular subject = singular
verb
The dog nor the cat likes its food.
Singular Subject or/nor Plural Subject = plural verb
Plural Subject or/nor singular subject = singular
verb.
Homework : Page 93 -95 The great and famous
“Cheese” Exercise (Exercise 5)
Other S-V Agreement Problems
• Collective Nouns – These are words that
name a group: crowd, committee,
audience (there’s a list on pg. 95) These
take a plural verb when the sriter is talking
about individuals in the group and it takes
a singular verb when the writer refers to
the group as a unit.
• The crowd were battling for their lives.
• The crowd was well behaved.
continued
• All amounts are singular (time, money,
measurement, weight, volume, fractions)
Ten dollars is not enough. Five pounds is a
lot of chocolate to eat.
• Titles are singular – The Adventures of
Huckleberry Finn is a fine book.
• Mumps, measles, civics, economics,
mathematics, physics are all singular.
• “Every a” + “Many a” = singular
continued
• The first verb after the phrase “one of
those” is always plural.
• Homework – do Exercise 6 pg. 98 -99
Pronoun – Antecedent Agreement
• A pronoun agrees with its antecedent in gender and
number.
• Antecedent?
• Gender?
• Mrs. Smith worked her magic.
• One of the boys lost his compass.
• The dog ate its food.
• The dog and the cat ate their food.
• If anyone calls, tell them I’ll call back.
• Homework: Review Exercise B pg 104
• Agreement Quiz – Monday