Tamilnadu State Board Class 10 English Grammar Subject-Verb Agreement
Subject-Verb Agreement (Text Book Page No.: 174-175)
Subject-verb agreement simply means the subject and verb must agree in number. This means both need to be singular or both need to be plural.
Basic Rule : A singular subject (she, Banu, car) takes a singular verb (is, goes, shines), whereas a plural subject takes a plural verb.
Example: The list of items is on the desk.
Rule 1: A subject will come before a phrase beginning with of. This is a key rule for understanding subjects.
A bouquet of yellow roses lends color and fragrance to the room.
Rule 2 : Two singular subjects connected by or, either / or, or neither/nor require a singular verb.
My aunt or my uncle is arriving by train today.
Rule 3 : The verb in an or, either/or, or neither/nor sentence agrees with the noun or pronoun closest to it.
Neither the plates nor the serving bowl goes on that shelf.
Neither the serving bowl nor the plates go on that shelf.
Rule 4: Use a plural verb with two or more subjects when they are connected by and.
Example:
A car and a bike are my means of transportation.
Rule 5 : Sometimes the subject is separated from the verb by such words as along with, as well as, besides, not, etc. These words and phrases are not part of the subject. Ignore them and use a singular verb when the subject is singular.
Examples:
The politician, along with the newsmen, is expected shortly.
Rule 6: Parentheses are not part of the subject.
Example:
joe (and his trusty mutt) was always welcome.
Rule 7 : In sentences beginning with here or there, the true subject follows the verb.
Examples:
There are four hurdles to jump.
There is a high wall to jump,
Here are the keys.
Rule 7: Use a singular verb with distances, periods of time, sums of money, etc., when considered as a unit.
Examples:
Three kms is too far to walk.
Five years is the maximum period to rule. ,
Five hundred rupees is a high price to pay.
Rule 8: With words that indicate portions – e.g., a lot, a majority, some, all – Rule 1 given earlier in this section is reversed, and we are guided by the noun after of. If the noun after of is singular, use a singular verb. If it is plural, use a plural verb.
Examples:
A piece of the cake has disappeared.
A slice of the cakes have disappeared.
A third of the city is unemployed.
A third of the people are unemployed.
Rule 9: With collective nouns such as group, ury, family, audience, population, the verb might be singular or plural, depending on the writer’s intent.
Examples:
All of my family has arrived (or) have arrived.
Most of theory is here (or) are here.
A third of the population was not in favor (or) were not in favor of the bill.
Exercises: Type – 1
Choose the correct form of the verb that agrees with the subject.
Question 1.
Anu and her brothers __________ at school. (is, are)
Answer:
are
Question 2.
Either my mother or my father __________ coming to the meeting. (is, are)
Answer:
is
Question 3.
The dog or the cats __________ outside. (is, are)
Answer:
are
Question 4.
Either my shoes or your coat __________ always on the floor. (is, are)
Answer:
is
Question 5.
eorge and Tamanna _________ want to see that movie. (doesn’t, don’t)
Answer:
don’t
Question 6.
Bharathi __________ know the answer. (doesn’t, don’t)
Answer:
doesn’t
Question 7.
One of my sisters __________ going on a trip to Delhi. (is, are)
Answer:
is
Question 8.
The man with all the birds __________ on my street. (live, lives)
Answer:
Lives
Question 9.
The movie, including all the previews, __________ about two hours to watch. (take, takes)
Answer:
takes
Question 1o.
The players, as well as the captain, __________ to win. (want, wants)
Answer:
want
Question 11.
Either answer ___________ acceptable. (is, are)
Answer:
is
Question 12.
Every one of those books __________ fiction. (is, are)
Answer:
is
Question 13.
Nobody _________ the trouble Ive seen. (know, knows)
Answer:
knows
Question 14.
__________ the news on at five or six? (Is, Are)
Answer:
Is
Question 15.
Mathematicsohn’s favorite subject, while Civics is Arya’s favorite subject. (is, are)
Answer:
is
Question 16.
Two hundred rupees ___________ the price of a movie these days. (is, are)
Answer:
is
Question 17.
__________ the shirts in this drawer? (Is, Are)
Answer:
Are
Question 18.
Your pants __________ at the cleaners. (is, are)
Answer:
are
Question 19.
There __________ fifteen candies in that bag. Now there is only one left! (was, were)
Answer:
were
Question 20.
The committee __________ these questions carefully. (debates, debate)
Answer:
debates
Question 21.
The committee __________ very different lives in private. (leads, lead)
Answer:
leads
Question 22.
The Prime Minister, together with his wife, ___________ the press cordially. (greets, greet)
Answer:
greats
Question 23.
All of the CDs, even the scratched one, __________ in this case. (is, are)
Answer:
are
Question 24.
A pack of cards __________ needed. (is, are)
Answer:
is
Question 25.
The Secretary and Correspondent of the school __________ Mr. Vijey. (is,are)
Answer:
is
Exercises: Type – 2
Fill in the blanks using “am, is, are, am not, isn’t, aren’t”.
Question 1.
India, Pakistan and SriLanka __________ cities.
Answer:
are not
Question 2.
A lemon __________ sweet. It __________ sour.
Answer:
isn’t, is
Question 3.
Copper cheap. Diamonds _________ expensive.
Answer:
is, are
Question 4.
Airplanes __________ slow. They __________ fast.
Answer:
aren’t, are
Question 5.
Ice cream and candy __________ sweet.
Answer:
are
Question 6.
Today cloudy. It _________ bright.
Answer:
is, isn’t
Question 7.
My brother __________ married. He __________ single.
Answer:
isn’t, is
Question 8.
I _________ from Chennai.
Answer:
am
Question 9.
Maths ___________ interesting. It ___________ easy.
Answer:
is, isn’t
Question 10.
Thomas _________ an athlete.
Answer:
is