9 Subject Verb Agreement4

8/16/2019 9 Subject Verb Agreement4

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Subject-VerbAgreement


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Subject-verb

agreement is thecorrespondence innumber between the

subject and the verb of asentence.


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The General Rule

Plural subjects

take plural verbs,and singular

subjects takesingular verbs.


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Subject-VerbAgreement• Mistakes in SV agreement are

sometimes made in the followingsituations:

• When words come between thesubject and the verb

• When a verb comes before thesubject

• With compound subjects (twosubjects separated b a joining wordsuch as and! generall take a plural

verb"


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Words between Subjectand Verb

• Words that come between thesubject and the verb do not changeSV agreement.

• $%&M'$S:• )he lump salt in the shakers needs

to be changed.

• &n old chair with broken legs has satin our basement for ears.

• )he sharp fangs in the dog*s mouthlook scar.


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Verb before Subject

• & verb agrees with its subject evenwhen the verb comes before thesubject.

• $%&M'$S:• )here are wild dogs in our

neighborhood.

•+n the distance was a billow of blacksmoke.

• ere is the newspaper.

• Where are the children*s coats-


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Comound Subjects

• & compound subject is twosubjects separated b a joiningword.

• $%&M'$S:

• & patchwork uilt and asleeping bag cover m bed inthe winter.

• /lark and ois are a contented

couple.


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Comound Subjects

• When subjects are joined beither…or , neither…nor , notonly…but also, the verb agrees

with the subject closer to theverb.

• $%&M'$S:• 0either the negotiator nor the

union leaders want the strike tocontinue.

•

0either the director nor the writersof this #lm have ever received an


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!nde"nite Pronouns

+nde#nite pronouns alwas take singularverbs.-#$% -'( -T)!$G

one nobod nothing

anone anbod anthing

everone everbod everthing

someone somebod something

each

either, neither

T) and *%W ta+e a

lural verb,


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%ercise on



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!nstruction

/hoose the correct formof the verb shown in the

parentheses.


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1" 2ellowstone 0ational 'ark, located inWoming, +daho, and Montana, (are,is" home to 3ld faithful, the world*smost famous geser.

4" $ach of their children (was, were"given a name picked at random from

a page of the 5ible.6" 0ear the top of the compan*s

organi7ational chart (was, were" thevice president for sales and the

director of personnel.8" $nvelopes, #le folders, and a

telephone book (is, are" jammed into

upe*s kitchen drawers.*


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" & drop in the price of gasoline andother fuels (decrease, decreases" the

chances that bus fares will go upsoon.

;" Man people in m neighborhood(appear, appears" to be reccling

paper, cans, glass, and plastic.

9 Subject Verb Agreement4

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