Rules in Subject-Verb Agreement

1. SUBJECT-VERB
AGREEMENT

2. Singular nouns, even
those ending in –s,
require singular form of
the verb.
1

3. EXAMPLES
The news was too good to be
true.
Politics in the country is
dirty.

4. When two or more
singular subjects are
joined by and, the plural
form of the verb is used.
2

5. EXAMPLES
Matthew and John are
identical twins.
The president and the
secretary lead the
discussion.

6. Compound subjects
connected by or or nor
require a verb that agrees
in the number with the
nearest subject.
3

7. Two adolescent boys or a man is
enough.
Neither a pony ride nor turns at
the shooting game excite young
Polly.

8. The pronouns you and
I always require the
plural form of the verb.
4

9. EXAMPLES
You make me feel
uneasy.
I serve food and wine
to guests almost every
day.

10. A singular subject followed by
as well as, including, with,
together with, in addition to,
or any similar expression
takes a singular verb.
5

11. EXAMPLES
The teacher, as well as the
students, participates in the
campaign.
The man, together with his
children, arrives from Cebu.

12. ACTIVITY
1. GROUP YOURSELVES WITH 5
MEMBERS.
2. CONSTRUCT 10 SENTENCES USING
THE WORDS AS SUBJECTS IN YOUR
SENTENCE FOLLOWING THE SUBJECT-
VERB AGREEMENT.
3. DO THIS IN A 1 WHOLE SHEET OF
PAPER.

14. The indefinite pronouns
another, anybody, anyone,
anything, each, either,
everybody, everyone, neither,
no one, nobody, nothing, one,
somebody, someone, and
something, take the singular
form of the verb.
6

15. Among the boys, in the
basketball team, each has his
own strengths.
No one makes waffles like
you do.
EXAMPLES

16. The indefinite pronouns
both, few, many, and
several, take the plural
form of the verb.
7

17. EXAMPLES
Both have means to accomplish
their tasks.
Very few gain access to the
department’s classified
documents.

18. The indefinite pronouns all, more,
most, any, none, and some are
sometimes singular or plural,. They
take the singular form of the verb
when they refer to a singular noun,
and the plural form when they refer
to a plural noun.
8

19. EXAMPLES
Some of the milk was
spilled.
Some of the chairs are
broken.

20. Collective nouns may take either a
singular or a plural form of the verb,
depending on the meaning of the
sentence in which they are used.
They take a singular form of the
verb when they act in a collective
fashion or represent one group.
They take a plural form of the verb
when they represent individual
members of one group.
9

21. EXAMPLES
The couple is
having a vacation.

22. Subjects that indicate fractions,
percentages, or portions can
also be singular or plural
depending on what they are
referring to. If the reference is
an uncountable noun, a
collective noun, or a singular
noun, a singular verb is used.
10

23. EXAMPLES
Half of the oil was used.
Half of the lamps were used.
One-fifth of the fruit is
rotten.
One-fifth of the fruits are
rotten.

25. The expression “more
than one” (oddly
enough) takes the
singular form of the
verb.
11

26. EXAMPLES
More than one student
has questioned the new
policy.
More than one pellet was
stuck in the barrel.

27. In an inverted sentence
(wherein the verb comes
before the subject), the
verb must agree with the
subject that follows it.
12

28. EXAMPLES
In that shed live four
women.
Unscathed by the
monsters was the brave
young boy.

29. Sentences that begin with
here or there are also
inverted. Again, the verb
agrees with the subject it
follows.
13

30. EXAMPLES
There goes our hard-
earned money.
Here are the notebooks
you asked for.

31. The verb that follows the
relative pronoun who,
that, or which agrees with
the noun before the
relative pronoun.
14

32. EXAMPLES
He is among the employees
who work overtime every
week.
Liza is our only student who
has achieved national
recognition.

33. The expression “the
number” takes the
singular form of the verb,
while “a number” takes
the plural form of the verb.
15

34. EXAMPLES
A number of Filipinos are
living below the poverty
line.
The number of dengue
victims increases every hour.

35. Subjects that state the
amount of time, money,
weight, and volume take
the singular form of the
verb.
16

36. EXAMPLES
Two hundred meters is
too much distance for a
toddler to walk.
Three kilos is enough.

37. A verb agrees with
its subject, not with
the predicate
nominative.
17

38. EXAMPLES
Traffic violations
are now a major
concern.

39. Study the following sentences. Write C if the sentence
observes correct subject-verb agreement. If it does not,
write I. Write your answers on a one fourth sheet of paper.
1. Ritual and magic are common elements in
myths.
2. Each man and woman is controlled by a
powerful being in many myths.
3. Every deity has magical powers.
4. Every myth and legend have unique
features.
5. Somebody is shown as more powerful in
creation stories.

40. 6. The gods nor the goddess play
favorite among the humans.
7. Many of the themes in myths were
used already in movies.
8. All myths is regarded as stories from
oral tradition.
9. Neither a myth nor a legend explains
the full nature of creation.
10. Either the historians or the
mythologist are coming to the lecture.

42. ANSWERS
1.C
2.C
3.C
4.I
5.C
6.I
7.C
8.I
9.C
10.I

43. ASSIGNMENT