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John Paul L. Hablado: Discussant

This document discusses rules for subject-verb agreement in English. It begins by stating the basic rule that a singular subject takes a singular verb while a plural subject takes a plural verb. It then provides 23 specific rules for determining subject-verb agreement, such as compound subjects taking a plural verb, collective nouns being singular or plural depending on usage, and pronouns like "none" that can be either singular or plural depending on context. Examples are given to illustrate each rule of subject-verb agreement.

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John Paul Hablado
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64 views28 pages

John Paul L. Hablado: Discussant

This document discusses rules for subject-verb agreement in English. It begins by stating the basic rule that a singular subject takes a singular verb while a plural subject takes a plural verb. It then provides 23 specific rules for determining subject-verb agreement, such as compound subjects taking a plural verb, collective nouns being singular or plural depending on usage, and pronouns like "none" that can be either singular or plural depending on context. Examples are given to illustrate each rule of subject-verb agreement.

Uploaded by

John Paul Hablado
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Basic

Subject-Verb Agree
ment

John Paul L. Hablado


Discussant
Subject-Verb Agreement
Being able to find the right
subject and verb will help
you correct errors of
agreement.
Basic Rule
A singular subject takes a singular
form of the verb, while a plural
subject takes a plural form of the
verb.
Examples:
Singular subject Singular verb

He solves.
Plural subject Plural verb

They solve.
1. The subject and verb must
agree in number.
 John drives carefully along the
highway.
 Many men today drive their own cars.
2. Compound subject takes plural
verb.
 Rhoda and Lynn are best friends.

 The doctors and nurses are conducting


free medical check-up.
3. A compound subject referring
to a single person takes a
singular verb.
 My confidant and adviser is my mother.

 The secretary and treasurer of our


class is a trustworthy classmate.
4. Compound subjects modified b
y
each and every are singular.
 Every mother and father carries out the
assigned role.

 Each male and female student wears

I.D. inside the school.


5. The verb agrees with its
subject, not with the predicate.
 Books and magazines are the
materials for his report.
 Plain shirt and pants are his attire for
the party.
6. When compound subjects are
joined by or ,nor , either-or ,
neither -nor ,the verb agrees
with the subject near to it.
 Neither the singers nor the composer is
benefited by the concert.
 Either James or his friends are
volunteering to clean the mess.
7. When regarded as a unit, as
collective noun is singular.
 The committee stands firm to impose
its decision.
 The jury holds its verdict in abeyance.
8. When regarded as individuals, a

collective noun is plural .


 The audience are clapping their hands
after each number.
 The crowd are agitating over a dispute
among themselves.
9. When preceded by the article
a, the subject number is plural.
 A number of poor children are afflicted
by the epidemic.
 A number of people have passed
through the acid tests of life.
10. When preceded by the article
the, the subject number is
singular.
 The number of absentees from the
Mathematics class is reduced.
 The number of enrollees generally
decreases during the second
semester.
11. The verb agrees with the
affirmative, not with the
negative subject.
 The father ,nor the mother, decides on
the welfare of the family.
 You, not I, are accountable for the loss
of the book.
12. Singular indefinite pronouns
like someone, anyone, each,
either , take singular verbs.
 Someone is by your side to support
you at the confrontation.
 Anyone is welcome to give his
suggestions.
13. BEWARE! A few indefinite
pronouns—none, some, more,
most, any, and all—can be either

singular or plural, depending on


the context.
Some of our streams are polluted;
some pollution is reversible, but all
pollution is a threat to nature.
 None of the students have done their
agreement.
14. The plural indefinite
pronouns such as both ,
several, few, many, take
plural verbs.
 Many have been invited to my party.
 Few have come and attended
however.
15. Many a followed by a
singular noun takes singular
verb.
 Many a novel has been written on
love.
 Many a youngster today has already
been aware of crises.
16. Nouns that are plural in forms,

but singular in meaning take


singular verbs .
 Statistics provides the numerical data
in question.
 Politics is always associated with the
‘pulling of the string.’
17. Scissors, refreshments,
clothes, pliers, etc. are always

plural.
 Refreshments are now served at the
canteen.
18. Impersonal pronoun it at the
beginning of a sentence is
followed by a singular verb.
 It is his suggestions that finally take
precedence.
19. An amount of money, space
of time, or unit of measurement

even in plural form takes


singular verb.
 Three meters of cloth makes a dress
for your size.
20. Fractions or percents are
singular or plural depending
upon the phrase.
 One –half of the class misses out the
first period.
 One – half dozen of eggs are bought
by the consumers.
 Ten percent of the population is given
the privilege to join the competition.
21. Adjectives used as subjects
are considered plural.
 The old need some recognition to feel
that they belong.
22. Singular verbs are used with
mathematical abstractions.
 Four times six is twenty-four.

 One plus three equals four.


is
is equal to
23. A relative pronoun used as

a subject of the verb takes


a verb that agrees with the
antecedent of the pronoun.
 He, who is your brother and friend,
understands your situation.
Thank you for listening!
God bless!

[email protected]

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