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SUBJECTVERB Selectfromthefollowing
AGREEMENT
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BasicPrinciple:Singularsubjectsneedsingularverbspluralsubjectsneedpluralverbs.My
brotherisanutritionist.Mysistersaremathematicians.
SeethesectiononPluralsforadditionalhelpwithsubjectverbagreement.
Theindefinitepronounsanyone,everyone,someone,noone,nobodyarealways
singularand,therefore,requiresingularverbs.
Everyonehasdonehisorherhomework.
Somebodyhasleftherpurse.
Someindefinitepronounssuchasall,somearesingularorpluraldependingonwhatthey're
referringto.(Isthethingreferredtocountableornot?)Becarefulchoosingaverbtoaccompany
suchpronouns.
Someofthebeadsaremissing.
Someofthewaterisgone.
Ontheotherhand,thereisoneindefinitepronoun,none,thatcanbeeithersingularorpluralit
oftendoesn'tmatterwhetheryouuseasingularorapluralverbunlesssomethingelseinthe
sentencedeterminesitsnumber.(Writersgenerallythinkofnoneasmeaningnotanyandwill
chooseapluralverb,asin"Noneoftheenginesareworking,"butwhensomethingelsemakesus
regardnoneasmeaningnotone,wewantasingularverb,asin"Noneofthefoodisfresh.")
Noneofyouclaimsresponsibilityforthisincident?
Noneofyouclaimresponsibilityforthisincident?
Noneofthestudentshavedonetheirhomework.(Inthislastexample,thewordtheir
precludestheuseofthesingularverb.
SomeindefinitepronounsareparticularlytroublesomeEveryoneandeverybody
(listedabove,also)certainlyfeellikemorethanonepersonand,therefore,studentsare
sometimestemptedtouseapluralverbwiththem.Theyarealwayssingular,though.
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Eachisoftenfollowedbyaprepositionalphraseendinginapluralword(Eachofthecars),thus
confusingtheverbchoice.Each,too,isalwayssingularandrequiresasingularverb.
Everyonehasfinishedhisorherhomework.
Youwouldalwayssay,"Everybodyishere."Thismeansthatthewordissingularandnothingwill
changethat.
Eachofthestudentsisresponsiblefordoinghisorherworkinthelibrary.
Don'tlettheword"students"confuseyouthesubjectiseachandeachisalwayssingularEach
isresponsible.
Phrasessuchastogetherwith,aswellas,andalongwitharenotthesameasand.The
phraseintroducedbyaswellasoralongwithwillmodifytheearlierword(mayorin
thiscase),butitdoesnotcompoundthesubjects(asthewordandwoulddo).
Themayoraswellashisbrothersisgoingtoprison.
Themayorandhisbrothersaregoingtojail.
Thepronounsneitherandeitheraresingularandrequiresingularverbseventhough
theyseemtobereferring,inasense,totwothings.
Neitherofthetwotrafficlightsisworking.
WhichshirtdoyouwantforChristmas?
Eitherisfinewithme.
Ininformalwriting,neitherandeithersometimestakeapluralverbwhenthesepronounsare
followedbyaprepositionalphrasebeginningwithof.Thisisparticularlytrueofinterrogative
constructions:"Haveeitherofyoutwoclownsreadtheassignment?""Areeitherofyoutaking
thisseriously?"Burchfieldcallsthis"aclashbetweennotionalandactualagreement."*
Theconjunctionordoesnotconjoin(asanddoes):whennorororisusedthesubject
closertotheverbdeterminesthenumberoftheverb.Whetherthesubjectcomes
beforeoraftertheverbdoesn'tmattertheproximitydeterminesthenumber.
Eithermyfatherormybrothersaregoingtosellthehouse.
Neithermybrothersnormyfatherisgoingtosellthehouse.
Areeithermybrothersormyfatherresponsible?
Iseithermyfatherormybrothersresponsible?
Becauseasentencelike"Neithermybrothersnormyfatherisgoingtosellthehouse"sounds
peculiar,itisprobablyagoodideatoputthepluralsubjectclosertotheverbwheneverthatis
possible.
Thewordsthereandhereareneversubjects.
Therearetworeasons[pluralsubject]forthis.
Thereisnoreasonforthis.
Herearetwoapples.
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Withtheseconstructions(calledexpletiveconstructions),thesubjectfollowstheverbbutstill
determinesthenumberoftheverb.
Verbsinthepresenttenseforthirdperson,singularsubjects(he,she,itandanything
thosewordscanstandfor)havesendings.Otherverbsdonotaddsendings.
Helovesandshelovesandtheylove_and....
Sometimesmodifierswillgetbetwenasubjectanditsverb,butthesemodifiersmust
notconfusetheagreementbetweenthesubjectanditsverb.
Themayor,whohasbeenconvictedalongwithhisfourbrothersonfourcountsof
variouscrimesbutwhoalsoseems,likeacat,tohaveseveralpoliticallives,isfinallygoing
tojail.
Sometimesnounstakeweirdformsandcanfoolusintothinkingthey'repluralwhen
they'rereallysingularandviceversa.ConsultthesectiononthePluralFormsof
NounsandthesectiononCollectiveNounsforadditionalhelp.Wordssuchasglasses,
pants,pliers,andscissorsareregardedasplural(andrequirepluralverbs)unless
they'reprecededthephrasepairof(inwhichcasethewordpairbecomesthesubject).
Myglasseswereonthebed.
Mypantsweretorn.
Apairofplaidtrousersisinthecloset.
Somewordsendinsandappeartobepluralbutarereallysingularandrequire
singularverbs.
Thenewsfromthefrontisbad.
Measlesisadangerousdiseaseforpregnantwomen.
Ontheotherhand,somewordsendinginsrefertoasinglethingbutarenonethelesspluraland
requireapluralverb.
Myassetswerewipedoutinthedepression.
Theaverageworker'searningshavegoneupdramatically.
Ourthanksgototheworkerswhosupportedtheunion.
Thenamesofsportsteamsthatdonotendin"s"willtakeapluralverb:theMiamiHeathavebeen
looking,TheConnecticutSunarehopingthatnewtalent.Seethesectiononpluralsfor
helpwiththisproblem.
Fractionalexpressionssuchashalfof,apartof,apercentageof,amajorityofare
sometimessingularandsometimesplural,dependingonthemeaning.(Thesameis
true,ofcourse,whenall,any,more,mostandsomeactassubjects.)Sumsandproducts
ofmathematicalprocessesareexpressedassingularandrequiresingularverbs.The
expression"morethanone"(oddlyenough)takesasingularverb:"Morethanonestudenthas
triedthis."
Someofthevotersarestillangry.
Alargepercentageoftheolderpopulationisvotingagainsther.
Twofifthsofthetroopswerelostinthebattle.
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Twofifthsofthevineyardwasdestroyedbyfire.
Fortypercentofthestudentsareinfavorofchangingthepolicy.
Fortypercentofthestudentbodyisinfavorofchangingthepolicy.
Twoandtwoisfour.
Fourtimesfourdividedbytwoiseight.
Ifyoursentencecompoundsapositiveandanegativesubjectandoneisplural,the
othersingular,theverbshouldagreewiththepositivesubject.
ThedepartmentmembersbutnotthechairhavedecidednottoteachonValentine's
Day.
Itisnotthefacultymembersbutthepresidentwhodecidesthisissue.
Itwasthespeaker,nothisideas,thathasprovokedthestudentstoriot.
Agreement
Agreement
*TheNewFowler'sModernEnglishUsageeditedbyR.W.Burchfield.ClarendonPress:Oxford,England.1996.Used
withthepermissionofOxfordUniversityPress.p.242.
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