Subject-Verb Agreement
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Making Subjects and Verbs Agree
The most basic grammar rule: singular subjects take singular verbs, plural subjects take plural verbs. Simple in principle, tricky in practice.
Basic Rule
"The dog runs" (singular) vs. "The dogs run" (plural).
Tricky Cases
- Prepositional phrases: "The box of chocolates is on the table." (Subject is "box," not "chocolates")
- Compound subjects with "and": "Tom and Jerry are friends." (Plural)
- Compound subjects with "or"/"nor": "Neither the teacher nor the students were ready." (Verb agrees with nearest subject)
- Collective nouns: "The team is winning" (acting as one) vs. "The team are arguing among themselves" (acting individually)
- Indefinite pronouns: Everyone, anybody, each, either, neither — all take singular verbs