Subject-Verb Agreement
If your teacher marks "SV" or "Agr," identify which of the following errors you made.
1. Subjects must agree with verbs. Few errors sound more awkward to English speakers:
WRONG: Angry rebels storms the palace.
RIGHT: Angry rebels storm the palace.
2. Intervening words. Errors often occur when words intervene between subject and verb:
WRONG: Babies who are hungry cries. RIGHT: Babies who are hungry cry. WRONG: One of the babies cry. RIGHT: One of the babies cries. Grammar Tip: The subject of a verb can never appear in a prepositional phrase (in the sample sentence above, of the babies).
3. Compound subjects. When two or more subjects are linked by and, the verb is plural.
Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness are basic human rights.
4. Or and nor. When or or nor links subjects, the verb agrees with the subject closest to it.
Either they or I am wrong. Either you or she is wrong. Neither he nor they skate. Neither they nor he skates.
5. Subject after verb. If the subject follows the verb, they still must agree:
There goes my GPA. There go my hopes of graduating. Never has she seen such talent. Never have they seen such talent.
6. Indefinite pronouns. Some pronouns that may seem plural are singular: any, anyone, each, either, every, everyone, no one, none.
WRONG: None of us are going.
RIGHT: None of us is going.
A few (all, any, some) can be singular or plural, depending on the word to which they refer:
All of the students eat pizza.
All of the pizza is gone.
7. Complements. If a linking verb (to be) joins two noun phrases, the verb agrees with the subject (the phrase that comes before the verb):
Grammar Tip: The word to the right of the verb is called the predicate noun, predicate nominative, or subjective complement (because it completes the subject).
8. Phrases like as well as and in addition to. If an interrupting phrase like as well as joins two nouns, the verb agrees with the noun(s) before the interrupting phrase:
Salad as well as a choice of desserts is complimentary with the meal.
My parents, especially my father, approve of my decision.
9. Phrases that can be singular or plural. The context determines which is right:
The majority rules. The majority vote without understanding the issues.
10. Collective nouns, numbers, titles. Some phrases that may seem plural are usually not:
COLLECTIVE NOUNS: The news is good. The data is incomplete.
NUMBERS: Ten dollars is a good price.
TITLES: War and Peace is Tolstoy's masterpiece.