Subject- Verb Agreement

Stephanie Paige-Hubbard

Bell work

• Choose the sentence that is written with the correct subject- verb agreement.

• A. Everything on the racks were on sale.• B. Neither the radio nor the television are

working.• C. A few of the nails in the can are rusted.• D. Your term paper on the importance of

insects were very interesting.

Subject Verb Agreement

• Most important facts to remember about Subject -Verb Agreement & Pronoun- Antecedent Agreement are:

• 1. Subject and verb MUST AGREE IN NUMBER.

• 2. Pronoun and antecedent MUST AGREE IN NUMBER AND GENDER.

• Key Terms. Write down the meaning of each of the key terms and provide an example of each.

• Subject-• Verb-

• Pronoun-• Antecedent-

• Singular-• Plural-

• A verb should agree in number with its subject.• A singular subject MUST HAVE a singular verb. A

singular verb will end in -s.• YOU MUST FIND THE SIMPLE SUBJECT FIRST, THEN

FIND YOUR VERB.Examples:• He washes the dishes.• A girl in my neighborhood plays in the band.• Our princess dances every night.

• A plural subject MUST HAVE a plural verb. A plural verb will not end in –s

Examples:• The twelve princesses dance every night.• They will wash the dishes.• The girls in my neighborhood were playing

in the band.

Practice 1: Now let’s practice by circling the correct verb to agree with the subject.

• 1. The children (walks/ walk) to the playground every afternoon.

• 2. My friend (gives/give) me his potato chips at lunch.

• 3. She always (sings/sing) that song.• 4. He (takes/ take) pride in his work.• 5. Gregory (fishes/ fish) for bass in the lake.• 6. We (is/are) tired and hungry.

• BE CAREFUL- Do not confuse the object of preposition as the subject! The subject of a sentence will NEVER be found in a prepositional phrase.

Example: • One of my friends is going.

Practice 2: Circle the correct verb, and mark out the prepositional phrase.

• 1. The tiles in the corner (is/are) broken.• 2. Which type of pens (was/were) your favorite?• 3. The letters from Cale (has/ have) been found in

the drawer.• 4. The forks in the drawer (was/ were) bent?• 5. My interest in crafts (keeps/keep) me busy.• 6. Two colors of the flag (has/ have) been

changed.

BE CAREFUL- The subject does NOT always come at the beginning of

the sentence. Sometimes the subject follows the verb.

1. A phrase may come at the beginning of the sentence. Example: Behind the door was a prize.2. With questions, the verb, or part of it, can come before the subject. Example: Does Rose go to camp? (____________________) Do her sisters go to camp. (___________________)3. If a sentence begins with there or here, the subject will come after

the verb. Example: Here comes the parade. (_____________________) There go the floats. (__________________________)

Practice 3: Underline the subject and the circle the correct verb.

• 1. There (was/were) ten gifts left.• 2. Down in the forest (was/were) two rope

swings.• 3. Why (was/were) the young girl still on the

bus?• 4. Here (comes/come) the band leader.• 5. (Does/Do) those men have shelter?

Compound subjects & Subject-verb agreement

• Compound subject- two or more subjects joined by and, or, nor

• Subjects- joined by and usually take plural verbs

• Subjects joined by or, nor take either a singular or a plural verb determined by the subject closest verbs.

Compound subjects & Subject-verb agreement

Rule 1: Subjects joined by _________ are usually plural and take plural verbs.

Example: My friend and I are going.Rule 2: When subjects are joined by___________ or

___________, the subject closer to the verb determines whether the verb is singular or plural.

Example: Either the teacher or the student is

responsible. Neither the teacher nor the students are

responsible.

Practice 4: Circle the correct verb according to which conjunction is joining the two subjects.• 1. James and his brother (is/are) leaving

now.• 2. Neither the soldiers nor their general

(was/were) given credit for the victory.• 3. Kisha and her friends (was/were)

volunteering at the hospital.• 4. Either he or his dogs (was/were)

responsible for the mess.• 5. For their project, Tiffany and Justin (is/are)

making a model volcano.

Collective Nouns and Subject-Verb Agreement!!

• Collective Nouns are nouns that appear singular, but they may represent a group.

Collective Nouns

Army Class Crowd Flock Mob

Audience Club Faculty Group Public

Band Collection Family Herd Swarm

Bunch Committee Fleet Jury Team

Collective Nouns

• In some cases, a collective noun may refer to the individual members of a group in which cases it takes a plural verb.

• Note: In most cases, collective nouns will be treated as singular. To double-check, ask yourself if the noun is referring to the group as a whole or if it refers to the individual member.

Collective Nouns

Directions: Read each sentence carefully and circle the correct verb.

• The rugby team (practice/practices) three times a week.

• The soccer team (practice/practices) their skills individually when they meet with the coach one-on-one.

• The class (contribute/contributes) different amounts depending on how much candy they sell.

• My class (is/are) the largest in the school.• The fleet of ships (is/are) stationed in the gulf.