NAME:…………………

SUBJECT
The word agreement

-VERB
AGREE
means that the words a
writer uses need to
ALIGN in number and
gender.

MENT
What’s wrong with these sentences?
 Sugar and flour is needed for the recipe.
 Neither my dad nor my brothers knows how to ski.
In the sentences above, the subjects are compound (2 elements). Therefore, the
subject is plural and the verb should agree with that. “Sugar and flour” ARE, and “my
dad or my brothers” KNOW.

BASIC RULE FOR S-V AGREEMENT:

- A singular subject (she, Bill, car) takes a singular verb (is, goes,
shines).
- A plural subject (the girls, those cars, they) takes a plural verb (were,
are, go).
Example: The list of items is on the desk.
In this case, the subject is THE LIST (not items), so we choose IS for

RULE 1:
The subject comes before a phrase beginning with OF. For example: In the
subject “A bouquet of red roses”, the subject comes before the word OF, so
the subject is “a bouquet”. Observe:
INCORRECT: A bouquet of red roses lend color and fragrance to the room.
CORRECT: A bouquet of red roses lends . . . (bouquet lends, not roses lend

Rule 2: paired conjunctions.

The verb in an NOT ONLY… BUT ALSO, OR,
EITHER/OR, NEITHER/NOR sentence agrees with
the noun or pronoun CLOSEST to it. Examples:
-Neither the plates nor the bowl GOES on that
shelf.
-Neither the bowl nor the plates GO on that shelf.
-Either he or you ARE to clean up the mess. (Here
the verb ARE agrees with the second person pronoun
YOU.)
-Neither Peter nor his parents WERE aware of
this. (sounds more natural than ‘Neither his parents
nor Peter was aware of this.)
Rule 3:
Use a singular verb with distances,
periods of time, sums of money, etc.,
when considered as a unit.
-Three miles IS too far to walk.
-Five years IS the maximum sentence for
that crime.
-Ten dollars IS a high price to pay.
BUT
Ten dollars (i.e., dollar bills) were
scattered on the floor.

Rule 4: Rule 5:
With words that indicate portions—e.g., a lot, a With collective nouns such as group,
majority, some, all—Rule 1 given earlier is jury, family, audience, population, the
reversed, and we are guided by the noun after verb might be singular or plural,
Now get together with a partner and circle the correct verb for these
sentences:

1. The students accompanied by their teacher HAS / HAVE gone on a picnic.

2. Man and woman IS / ARE complementary to each other.
3. Not only the students but also their instructor HAS / HAVE been called to the
office.
4. A dictionary and an atlas IS / ARE missing from the library.
5. The leader as well as his brothers BELONGS / BELONG to the same tribe.
6. The brothers as well as their sister IS / ARE good at their studies.
7. A lot of houses HAS / HAVE collapsed in the storm.
8. A large sum of money WAS / WERE stolen.
9. Carlos is the only one of my students who HAS / HAVE presented the homework
on time.
10.Ten minutes IS / ARE more than enough to complete this exercise.

Now analyze the text and circle the correct verb according to its
subject:
Perhaps one of the more obvious discoveries of my life is / are that the majority of the thinking that
I do is passive, not active. When I read my Bible each day, I am often actively holding up specific
beliefs against the light of God’s word to see if I believe anything wrongly. Simultaneously, through
the mere act of reading, other truths is / are making themselves at home in my mind, even if I’m
not conscious of that.

Active learning or active thinking is / are not the type of thinking most of us is / are doing the
majority of our time each day. And yet, we are all thinking about something all day every day.
Thinking is / are something we do when we’re conscious. The process of introduction of new facts
in our minds is called thinking. And, contrary to what seems to be quite generally supposed,
thinking cannot be avoided by anybody.

Whether we are reflecting on a fact at any given moment or not, we are always thinking, and our
thinking shapes / shape us in profound ways.

ANSWER KEY:

1. The students accompanied by their teacher HAVE 2. Man and woman ARE complementary to each
gone on a picnic. other.
 3. Not only the students but also their instructor HAS 7. A lot of houses HAVE collapsed in the storm.
been called to the office. 8. A large sum of money WAS stolen.
4. A dictionary and an atlas ARE missing from the 9. Carlos is the only one of my students who HAS
library. presented the homework on time.
5. The leader as well as his brothers BELONGS to the 10. Ten minutes IS more than enough to complete this
same tribe. exercise.
6. The brothers as well as their sister ARE good at
their studies.

Perhaps one of the more obvious discoveries of my life is that the majority of the thinking that I do is passive, not active. When I
read my Bible each day, I am often actively holding up specific beliefs against the light of God’s word to see if I believe anything
wrongly. Simultaneously, through the mere act of reading, other truths are making themselves at home in my mind, even if I’m not
conscious of that.
Active learning or active thinking is not the type of thinking most of us are doing the majority of our time each day. And yet, we are
all thinking about something all day every day. Thinking is something we do when we’re conscious. The process of introduction of
new facts in our minds is called thinking. And, contrary to what seems to be quite generally supposed, thinking cannot be avoided
by anybody. Whether we are reflecting on a fact at any given moment or not, we are always thinking, and our thinking shapes us in
profound ways.

ANSWER KEY:

1. The students accompanied by their teacher HAVE 6. The brothers as well as their sister ARE good at
gone on a picnic. their studies.
2. Man and woman ARE complementary to each 7. A lot of houses HAVE collapsed in the storm.
other. 8. A large sum of money WAS stolen.
3. Not only the students but also their instructor HAS 9. Carlos is the only one of my students who HAS
been called to the office. presented the homework on time.
4. A dictionary and an atlas ARE missing from the 10. Ten minutes IS more than enough to complete this
library. exercise.
5. The leader as well as his brothers BELONGS to the
same tribe.

Perhaps one of the more obvious discoveries of my life is that the majority of the thinking that I do is passive, not active. When I
read my Bible each day, I am often actively holding up specific beliefs against the light of God’s word to see if I believe anything
wrongly. Simultaneously, through the mere act of reading, other truths are making themselves at home in my mind, even if I’m not
conscious of that.
Active learning or active thinking is not the type of thinking most of us are doing the majority of our time each day. And yet, we are
all thinking about something all day every day. Thinking is something we do when we’re conscious. The process of introduction of
new facts in our minds is called thinking. And, contrary to what seems to be quite generally supposed, thinking cannot be avoided
by anybody. Whether we are reflecting on a fact at any given moment or not, we are always thinking, and our thinking shapes us in
profound ways.

ANSWER KEY:

1. The students accompanied by their teacher HAVE 6. The brothers as well as their sister ARE good at
gone on a picnic. their studies.
2. Man and woman ARE complementary to each 7. A lot of houses HAVE collapsed in the storm.
other. 8. A large sum of money WAS stolen.
3. Not only the students but also their instructor HAS 9. Carlos is the only one of my students who HAS
been called to the office. presented the homework on time.
4. A dictionary and an atlas ARE missing from the 10. Ten minutes IS more than enough to complete this
library. exercise.
5. The leader as well as his brothers BELONGS to the
same tribe.
Perhaps one of the more obvious discoveries of my life is that the majority of the thinking that I do is passive, not active. When I
read my Bible each day, I am often actively holding up specific beliefs against the light of God’s word to see if I believe anything
wrongly. Simultaneously, through the mere act of reading, other truths are making themselves at home in my mind, even if I’m not
conscious of that.
Active learning or active thinking is not the type of thinking most of us are doing the majority of our time each day. And yet, we are
all thinking about something all day every day. Thinking is something we do when we’re conscious. The process of introduction of
new facts in our minds is called thinking. And, contrary to what seems to be quite generally supposed, thinking cannot be avoided
by anybody. Whether we are reflecting on a fact at any given moment or not, we are always thinking, and our thinking shapes us in
profound ways.