Choose Between Singular and Plural Verbs
Work with Compound Subjects
Master Special Subject/Verb Agreement Problems
Work with Phrases and Clauses Between Subjects and Verbs
Work with Indefinite Pronouns
Maintain Subject/Verb Agreement When Using Either/Or and Neither/Nor
Make Verbs Agree with Collective Nouns
Make Pronouns Agree with Their Antecedents
Avoid Sexism While Maintaining Agreement

WHAT IS AGREEMENT?

As you know, when words agree they are of the same number. This concept means that singularsubjects take singular verbs. Plural subjects take plural verbs. Singular means one; plural means more than one.

CHOOSE BETWEEN SINGULAR AND PLURAL VERBS

To decide whether to use a singular or a plural verb, first determine whether your subject is singular or plural. Most plural nouns end in -s or –es.

Singular:	horse, dress
Plural:	horses, dresses

With singular nouns, use verbs that end in -s or -es. Otherwise, use the simple form of the verb.

Singular:	The horse runs through the field.
Plural:	Horses run through the field.

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WORK WITH COMPOUND SUBJECTS

Use plural verbs with compound subjects, which are joined by and.

Brazil and Argentina border not borders] Uruguay.
Where were not was she and you on the night of the murder?

Use singular verbs with subjects joined by or if both subjects are singular.

Bill or Sam has not have been elected to feed the pig.

Use plural verbs with subjects joined by or if both subjects are plural.

I can’t remember whether the Marx Brothers or the Three Stooges are not is] her favorite comedians.

If one subject is singular and the other is plural, the verb agrees with the one that is closer to it.

Millie’s  brother  or  her	sisters  are	scheduled  to  visit  next  October.

Millie’s  sisters  or  her	brother  is	scheduled  to  visit  next  October.

A complement is a noun or adjective that describes the subject but comes after the verb. When a compound subject is followed by a complement, the verb is plural even if the complement is singular.

Overeating

and

forcing

yourself

to

vomit

are

[not is] a symptom of bulimia.

When the parts of a compound subject name the same person, place, or thing, the verb is singular.

The commander of the colonial army and our first president was [not were] George Washington.

When two subjects form a unit, the verb should be singular.

Peas and carrots is [not are] my favorite side dish.

Peas and carrots grow [not grows] in the garden by the window.

When a relative pronoun (that, which, who, whom, or whose) refers to compound elements, the verb following that pronoun is plural.

Spanish and Portuguese, which are [not is] Romance languages, are both spoken in Europe and South America.

If separate adjectives are used to distinguish two types of the same noun, the verb is plural even if the noun is singular.

College and professional football share [not shares] many of the same rules.

When a relative pronoun—who, which, or that—is a subject, make the verb agree with its antecedent, the word to which a pronoun refers.

The movie was about a woman who wins the lottery.

The subject of who wins the lottery is who. The antecedent of who is woman. Woman is singular; therefore, who takes a singular verb, wins.

A gerund is a noun that ends in -ing and that stands for an activity: running, writing, studying, working, reading, understanding. Deal with gerunds as you would other nouns.

Donating food at our church helps [not help] the needy.
Swimming and running are [not is] my favorite exercises.

If a sentence begins with there or here, the subject comes after the verb. Look for it there.

Once there were [not was] two men who claimed to be the true pope.

Here are [not is] your two choices: either get a job or get out!

Some indefinite pronouns are singular; they take singular verbs.

Everybody has [not have] to pay the registration fee.

My sisters are professionals; each has [not have] her own career.

Some indefinite pronouns are plural; they take plural verbs.

Few survive [not survives] the effects of the disease.

The rebels were defeated; several were [not was] hanged.

Some indefinite pronouns can be singular or plural depending on the meaning of the sentence.

Singular:	All is lost.
Plural:	All of our employees have been trained.

Singular:	None of the defendants was guilty.
Plural:	None were honored more than the wounded.

When checking agreement between indefinite pronouns and verbs, ignore words that come between; focus on the subject. Try setting off the words that come between.

subject						verb
No	one	living	in	this	neighborhood	fears	a	break	-	in.

subject						verb
Anyone	who	hikes	in	these	hills	has	to	watch	for	bears.

Don't let phrases that begin with of and that come between the subject and verb confuse you. Focus on the indefinite pronoun to decide whether a subject is singular or plural.

subject				verb
Each	of	the	cars	was	stolen	in	a	different	city.

subject				verb
Some	of	the	cars	are	antiques.

Relative pronouns—that, which, who, whom, and whose--—introduce subordinate clauses, which refer to and describe a noun or pronoun. Ignore those subordinate clauses when you make the subject and verb of the main clause agree.

subject				verb
Anybody	who	studies	Russian	knows	the	Cyrillic	alphabet.

Each is an indefinite pronoun. However, it can be used as an adjective if placed immediately before a noun.

Pronoun:	Each pays his or her own way.
Adjective:	Each student pays his or her own way.

In all cases, the verb is singular.

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Joining nouns and pronouns with and creates compound subjects, which are plural. But this situation isn't true when you use or and nor between subjects. Or and nor tell us to consider subjects separately, not together. The joining word helps us determine whether a verb should be singular or plural.

Sam and Paul ride motorcycles.

BUT

Either Sam or Paul rides a Harley-Davidson.
Neither Sam nor Paul rides on Sundays.

Either/or and neither/nor constructions make us consider the two subjects separately, not as a pair. Therefore, if both subjects are singular, the verb must be singular:

Not:Either Thailand or Sri Lanka were her home.
But:Either Thailand or Sri Lanka was her home.

You learned that if both subjects in an either/or or neither/nor sentence are singular, the verb is singular. By the same token, if both subjects are plural, the verb is plural.

Not:Neither the cats nor the dogs has torn the screen.
But:Neither the cats nor the dogs have torn the screen.

When one subject is singular and the other is plural, the subject closer to the verb determines whether the verb is singular or plural.

Neither the company nor the workers want a strike.

BUT

Neither the workers nor the company wants a strike.

In the first, workers is the subject closer to the verb. Since workers is plural, the verb is plural. In the second, company is closer to the verb. Since company is singular, the verb is singular.

When either or neither comes immediately before a noun, the noun is singular. Therefore, the verb that follows is also singular.

Either restaurant serves [not serve] the food we like.

Neither bookstore stocks [not stock] novels by Verga.

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A collective noun names a single unit. It stands for a group of people or things. Although collective nouns seem to be plural, they are usually singular. Collective nouns usually take singular verbs.

The Congress has passed gun-control laws.
The National Football League employs hundreds of people.

Locate the verb in the sentences above. In each case, it comes directly after the subject.

Question:	What do these verbs have in common?
Answer:	They end in -s; they are all singular.

Sometimes collective nouns refer to individuals in a group rather than to the group as a whole. In such cases, use a plural verb:

Instead, base your decision on the sentence's meaning. First, separate the prepositional phrase from the subject and verb. Then decide whether the verb is singular or plural.

		subject					verb
Singular:	The	union	of	masons	and	artisans	organized	in	1892.

BUT

		subject			verb
Plural:	A	majority	of	voters	think	their	taxes	are	high.

Not:The club, which were once open only to men, now recruit women.
But:The club, which was once open only to men, now recruits women.

Fifty dollars, hidden in my closet, has been stolen.

Thirty - five pounds is the price we paid for two theater tickets in London.

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Just as a verb agrees in number with its subject, a pronoun agrees with an antecedent, the word it refers to. Antecedents are nouns or other pronouns.

Singular:	Neither  Fred  nor  Bill  has  paid  his  [not their] dues.
Plural:	Neither  sea  otters  nor  seals  make  their  [not its] home in the Caribbean.

RULE

3:

Use a singular or plural pronoun to refer to a collective noun depending on the sense of that noun.

Singular:	The Cheng family researched its origins in China.
Plural:	My family cannot agree on where to take their vacation.