Subject-Verb Agreement Interrupted by Prepositions, Inverted Order, Indefinite Pronouns, Compound Subjects, and Collective Nouns

Basic Subject-Verb Agreement The subject and the verb in a sentence must agree in number. Singular: Megan likes surfing. She was at the beach yesterday. Plural They like surfing. Surfers were at the beach yesterday.

Agreement with Collective Nouns Use a singular verb with a collective noun acting as a single unit. Use a plural verb when the individual members of the group are acting individually. Singular: The soccer team marches in the parade. Plural: The soccer team have many different skills.

Agreement with Compound Subjects When a compound subject is connected by and, the verb that follows is usually plural. El Paso and Dallas are my two favorite Texas cities. Exception: If the parts of the compound subject are thought of one person or thing, it takes the singular verb. The strawberries and cream is on the table. Franks and beans is a popular meal when camping.

Agreement with Compound Subjects When two singular subjects are joined by or or nor, use the subject closest to the verb to determine agreement number. Either the monuments or the Alamo is interesting to see. Either the Alamo or the monuments are interesting to see.

Agreement in Inverted Sentence Order When sentences have inverted word order, such as, interrogative sentences, and sentences beginning with here, there, or prepositional phrases, the verb must still agree with the subject in number. Do the cultural attractions in New York City sound exciting to you? Here is the latest magazine about sports. There were several magazines about sports. Along the river were throngs of spectators.

Indefinite Pronouns Singular Indefinite Pronouns Anybody Everybody Nobody Somebody Anyone Everyone No one Someone Anything Everything Nothing Something Other Each Either One Another Much Neither Plural Indefinite Pronouns Both Few Many Several Others Singular or Plural Indefinite Pronouns All Any More Most None Some

Agreement with Indefinite Pronouns Indefinite pronouns that are always singular take singular verbs. Each of the football team mascots is at the game. Indefinite pronouns that are always plural take plural verbs. Both of my notebooks are in the car. Indefinite pronouns that are sometimes singular and sometimes plural take the verb of its referent most often found as the object of the preposition following the subject. All of the money we collected is missing. All of these cards are for you.