ENGLISH VERB AGREEMENT

BASIC SUBJECT –VERB AGREEMENT :

 

SINGULAR VERB.	PLURAL VERB.
(a) My friend lives in Boston.	(b) My friends live in Boston.	verb     Verb+s / -es  =  third person singular in the simple present tense.       noun + -s / -es  =  plural.
(c) That book on political parties is interesting.	(d) The ideas on that book are interesting.	A prepositional phrase that comes between a subject and a verb does not affect the verb.
	(e) My brother and sister live in Boston.	Two (or more) subjects connected by and take a plural verb.
(f) Every man, woman and child needs love. (g) Each book and magazine is listed in the card catalog.		EXCEPTION: Every and each are always followed immediately by singular nouns. In this case, even when there are two (or more) nouns connected by and, the verb is singular.
(h) Growing flowers is her hobby.		A gerund used as the subject of a sentence takes a singular verb.

 

II ) SUBJECT –VERB AGREEMENT :

 

USING EXPRESSIONS OF QUANTITY .

 

SINGULAR VERB.	PLURAL VERB.
(a) Some of the book is good. (c) A lot of the equipment is new. (e) Two third of the money is mine	(b) Some of the books are good (d) A lot of my friends are here. (f) Two-thirds of the pennies are mine.	The verb is determined by the noun (or pronoun) that follows of in most expression of quantity.       Notice: in (a) and (b) : Some of + singular noun + singular verb. Some of + plural noun + plural verb.
(g) One of my friends is here. (h) Each of my friends is here. (i) Everyone of my friends is here.		EXCEPTION : One of, each of ,and every one of, take singular verbs.  One of+plural noun+singular verb.  Each of+plural noun+singular noun  Every one of +   plural noun  +  singular noun.
(j) None of the boys is here.	(k) None of the boys are here. (informal)	Subjects with none of are considered singular in very formal English, but plural verbs are often used in informal speech and writing.
(l) The number of the students is fifteen.	(m) A number of students were late for class.	COMPARE : In (l): The number is the subject. In (m): A number of is an expression of quantity meaning “a lot of.” It is followed by a plural noun and plural verb.

 

 

 

 

II) SUBJECT –VERB AGREEMENT :

USING THERE  +  BE.

 

(a) There is a book on the shelf.

(b) There are some books on the shelf.

The subject follows be when there is used.*       In (a): the subject is book.       In (b): the subject is books.

 

I)                  SOME IRREGULARITIES.

 

1) SINGULAR VERBS

(a) The news is interesting. (b) The united states is big. (c) The Philippines consists of more than 7,000 islands. (d) The United Nations has its headquarter in New York City (e) Sears is a department store. (f) Mathematics is easy for her. Physics is easy for her, too.	Sometimes a noun that ends in -s is singular.       Notice the examples: If the noun is changed to a pronoun, the singular pronoun it is used (not the plural pronoun they) because the noun is singular.       In (a): news = it (not they).       In (b): the United States = it (not they).       Note: Fields of study, as in (f), that ends in -ics take singular verbs.
(g) Eight hours of sleep is enough. (h) Ten dollars is too much to pay. (i) Five thousand miles is too far to travel.	Expressions of time, money, and distances usually take a singular verb.

 

2) PLURAL VERBS / VERB AGREEMENT

(j) Those people are from Canada. (k) The police have been called.

People* and police do not end in -s but are plural nouns and take plural verbs.

 

3) SINGULAR VERBS          - PLURAL VERBS

(l) English is spoken in many countries. (n) Chinese is his native language.	(m) The English drink tea. (o) The Chinese have an interesting history.	In (l): English = language       In (m): the English =  people from England.       Some nouns of nationality that end in -sh, -ese, and -ch can mean either language or people; e.g., English, Spanish, Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese,  Portuguese, French.
	(p) The poor have many problems. (q) The rich get richer.	A few adjectives can be proceeded by the and used as a plural noun (without a final -s) to refer to people who have this quality. Other examples: The young, the old, the living, the dead, the blind, the deaf, the handicapped.

 

* The word people has a final –s (people) only when it is used to refer to nations or ethnic groups: All the peoples of the world desire peace.

 

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