Lecture 3 Subject-verb Concord II

Lecture 3 Subject-verb Concord II 3.1 Problems of Concord with a Coordinate Subject 3.2 Problems of Concord with Expressions of Quantity as Subject 3.3 Other Problems of Subject-verb Concord

3.1 Problems of Concord with a Coordinate Subject 1) Coordination with “and” or “both… and” 2) Coordination with 3) Subject + as much as 4) Subject + as well as or either... or nor neither... Nor not only... but also 5) Exercise

1 ） Coordination with “and” or “both… and” 1. U sually treated as plural when it refers to two or more than two persons / things 2. T reated as singular when it refers to only one person or thing.when it refers to only 3. E lliptical Construction with andConstruction with 4. W hen modified by each/every/many amodified by

treated as singular The poet and singer has come. poet and singer A and B The A and the B = 2 parts The A and B=1unit DeterminerHead word

Observe the Following Sentences: Wits and humour abounds in the book. War and peace is a constant theme in the history. Truth and honesty is the best policy. The hustle and bustle of the city life fatigues many people. Salt and water is also a kind of medicine. Egg and rice is her usual breakfast. Wits and humour War and peace Truth and honesty hustle and bustle Salt and water Egg and rice A. 两种抽象的东西 被看作是一个 不可分割的整体 B. 两个名词已构成 一种食品

3 Elliptical Construction with and:  Elliptical construction with and has a plural mean and the predicate verb takes Pl. form. Good and bad taste are inculcated by example. What I say and think are no business of yours. Good and bad taste Good taste and bad taste. What I say and what I think. What I say and think

4 when modified by each/every/many a  When the coordinated noun phrases by and are preceded by each, every, no, many a, the verb usually takes singular form. Every boy and every girl in this room is entitled to a copy. Many a man and woman in this community finds himself or herself in need. No teacher and no students is admitted.

2 ） Coordination with 1. Here the problem of concord is generally dealt with according to the principle of proximity. 2. But in informal style, items coordinated by “neither… nor”, “not only... but also” can sometimes be regarded as plural. Not only the switches but also the old wiring has / (have) been changed. My sisters or my brother is likely to be at home. Neither the players nor the coach was / (were) overconfident. My sisters or my brother is Neither the players nor the coach was / (were) Not only the switches but also the old wiring has / (have) Either my father or my brothers are coming. Either my father or my brothers are or either... or nor neither... Nor not only... but also

3 ） Subject + as much as 4 ） Subject + as well as  The form of the following verb is determined by the subject.  subordinate constructions : more than, rather than, no less than;  prepositional phrases : in addition to, with, along with, together with, except, including, like, accompanied by, besides, but.

Exercise: 1.Neither Russia nor the united states_______ (has, have) been able to discover a mutual satisfactory plan for gradual disarmament. 2.Even minor amendments or innovations_______ (was, were) given heavy publicity. 3.His friend and fellow author _______ (was, were) cool to the idea of collaborating on a cookbook. has were was

4.All this effort and sacrifice _______ (has, have) helped to alleviate poverty. 5._______ (Is, Are) January and February the coldest months of the year. 6.In many years of service, neither Philips nor I _______ (has, have) seen anything like it. 7.It became necessary to involve every man, woman and child who _______ (was, were) willing to help. Exercise: has Are have was

6.Law and order_______ (means, mean) different things to people with different political opinions. 9.If your wife or husband_______ (is, are) proficient in English, there are many study courses from which they can choose. 10.Every change of season, every change of weather, indeed, every hour of the day, _______(produces, produce) some change in the hues and shapes of these mountains. Exercise: means is produces

3.2 Problems of Concord with Expressions of Quantity as Subject 1) Concord with Expressions of Definite Quantity as Subject as Subjectas Subject 2) Concord with Expression of Indefinite Quantity as subject as subjectas subject

1) Concord with Expressions of Definite Quantity as Subject a)GGeneral rules b)FFraction / Percentage + of-phrase c)pplus /minus /multiply/ divide d)oone in / out of +plural noun

a) General Rules When a definite quantity is regarded as: There were 6 silver dollars in each of the stockings. He thought that 65 dollars was not too much to ask. a whole unit the individuals plural verb singular verb

b) Fraction / Percentage + of-phrase the verb form is determined by the noun in the of-phrase. Over 60% of the city was destroyed in the war. Two-thirds of the swampland has been reclaimed for farming. Nearly 50% of the doctors are women. plural singular / mass plural verb singular verb

c) plus /minus /multiply/ divide plus / and times / multiplied by singular /plural verb singular verb minus divided by A B Seven plus / and five (7+5) makes / make twelve. Forty minus fifteen (40-15) leaves twenty-five. Five times eight (5x8) is / are forty. Forty divided by eight (40÷8) is five.

d) one in / out of +plural noun Formal Style Informal Style singular verb plural verb One in ten students has / have failed the exam. One out of twenty was / were badly damaged.

II. Concord with expression of indefinite quantity as subject 3. a portion of…a portion of… 4. a kind of…a kind of… 5. many a …many a … 6. an average of…an average of… 1. all of…all of… 2. lots of…lots of… 7. Exercise

1. all of… 2. lots of… All of the cargo was lost. All of the crew were saved. Lots of food is going to waste. Lots of people are waiting outside. Depends on the noun in the of- phrase 1. all of … some of… none of … half of … most of … 2. lots of… heaps of… loads of… scads of… plenty of… Can all be used to substitute for or modify both countable and uncountable noun Following the rule of notional concord

3. a portion of… always singular verb a portion of a series of a pile of a panel of The unit nouns are the head words of the whole noun phrases Following the rule of grammatical concord A substantial portion of the reports is missing. A series of accidents has been reported.

4. a kind of… kind sort type this a of + noun singular verb these those kinds sorts types of+ noun singular mass plural verb singular mass plural these those kind sort type of + nounplural This kind of man annoys me. That type of car is old-fashioned. These sort of machines are up to date.

5. many a … many a more than one + noun singular verb Following the rule of grammatical concord Remains of ancient formal use Many a man has done his duty. More than one game was lost.

6. an average of… an average of a majority of plural noun determined by the notion of the noun phrase An average of 25 applications a month is not unusual. An average of 25 persons apply each month. + The head singular verbplural verb The head a number many people

1.The central portions of the book _______(is, are) devoted to this theory. 2.Almost two thirds of the land in the northwest areas of the country ______(is, are) not suitable for farming. 3.Half of the money I spend on advertising ________(is, are) wasted, and the trouble is I don’t know which half. 4.Most of the coffee we produce _________(is, are) for export---a high percentage _____(goes, go) to the US. Exercise: are is is is goes

5.About half of the women in this area _______(is, are) working-wives. None of them _______(has, have) much time to do housework. 6.Some of the furniture _______(has, have) been moved to another room in the house. 7.I’ll keep a third of the money and the rest _______ (is, are) yours. 8.Most of the residents ________(has, have) already left the island; the rest ________(is, are) preparing for the typhoon. are hashave has is have are Exercise:

9.It’s a big studio, so there _______(is, are) lots of room for all my things. 10.Loads of sand _______(was, were) dumped by the roadside so that there was hardly any space for two cars to pass. is was Exercise:

3.3 Other Problems of Subject- verb Concord I. Nominal Clause as SubjectNominal Clause II. Non-finite Clause as SubjectNon-finite Clause III. In relative ClausesIn relative Clauses IV. In Cleft-sentencesIn Cleft-sentences V. In Existential SentencesIn Existential Sentences VI. Exercise

I. Nominal Clause as Subject 1)General rulesGeneral rules 2)Coordinated clausesCoordinated clauses 3)In SVC constructionsIn SVC constructions

I. General rules & Coordinated clauses what who which how why whether What caused the accident is a complete mystery. What caused the accident and who was responsible for it remain a mystery to us. 1. clause Singular verb two or more 2. clauses both…and and coordinated by Plural verb and

3) In SVC constructions S V C what-clause singular plural plural in meaningplural b) a) What was real to him ______the details of his life. What are often regarded as poisonous fungi _______sometimes safely edible. were are S. plural meaning plural meaning

II. II. Non-finite Clause as Subject To climb mountains requires courage. Playing tennis is a very good exercise. Reading Ibsen and solving a quadratic equation are entirely different assignments. S V a non-finite clause singular coordinated clauses one thing separate things singular plural es is are

III. In III. In Relative Clauses 1. General ruleGeneral rule 2. one of +plural noun + relative clauseone of +plural noun 3. the (only) one of +plural noun + relative clause the (only) one of +plural noun

1. General Rule  D D ecide by the antecedent and the relative pronoun Noun + who / that / which -clause antecedent relative pronoun relative clause V-formS I, who _____ your friend, will try my best to help you. You, who _____ my friend, should help me. am are

2. one of … one of +plural noun + relative clause HeadPost modifier HeadComplementation HeadPost modifier Grammatical Concord Joan is one of those people who go out of their way to be helpful.

3. the (only) one of… the (only) one of +plural noun + relative clause HeadPost modifier 1 Grammatical Concord Post modifier 2 He is the only one of those boys who ___ willing to take on another assignment. is

IV. IV. Cleft-sentences 1. General ruleGeneral rule 2. “I” being focal element“I” being focal element

1. General Rule  In cleft-sentences, subject-verb concord in that-/ who-clause is generally determined by the number of the focal element functioning as subject in the clause. It is you that _____to blame. are

2. “I” being focal element  2. when the focal element is “I”, the verb to be in the following who-/ that-clause usually agree with “I” in both person and number. It is I who ______to blame. am Note: It is me that is to blame.

V. V. Existential Sentences 1.In existential sentences, subject-verb concord is generally determined by the number of the “notional subject”, 2.But in informal style, especially in spoken language, the verb often agrees with the “formal subject” and takes the singular form, even though the “notional subject” is plural.

3. When the notional subject is a coordinate construction, the verb form goes with the first coordinate element of the notional subject, singular or plural. There is a note left on the desk. There are three routes you can take. There’s more grace and less carelessness. There’s a long springboard, and three rafts at varying distances from the shore.

1.Eating ， unlike fighting, _______ (is, are) a pursuit in which both sexes freely indulge. 2.What make the river more beautiful _______ (is, are) the lotus plants growing in the river. 3.What we have just described _______ (is, are) the general pattern of the internal heat engine’s work output as we can see it today. Exercise: is are is

4. Children interfering in their parents’ right to remarry _______ (has, have) become a social problem. 5. To go there on Monday _______ (is, are) pointless---there’s a public holiday. 6. Why he entered the house and how he managed to get out of it without being seen by people _______ (remains, remain) a mystery to us all. has is remain

Exercise: 7. What appear to be disciplinary problems _______ (is, are) easily solved by very elementary applied psychology. 8. He’s one of those men who never _______ (cares, care) how they look. 9. There are few things in this world that _______ (give, gives) me more pleasure than a long bath. are care give

Exercise: 10. Watering the flowers and looking after the children ______ (is, are) all she has to do every day. 11. Sitting and talking to old friends _______ (is, are) a pleasant way to spend an evening. 12. Can you say “no” to a friend or relative who _______ (wants, want) to insist? are is wants

Exercise: 13. Ever since their quarrel, there ______ (has been, have been) an unpleasant atmosphere in the office. 14. There______ (is, are) a few cakes left over from the party---would you like one? 15. There________ (is, are) plenty of evidence to suggest that children are better at learning languages than adults. hasbeen are is