Subject-Verb Agreement

Hello!

I'm a week behind in posting this, but life is very, very hectic right now. Juggling nine classes, even temporarily, certainly keeps me on my toes! I'm reminded, though, how many people have forgotten (or never learned?) some of the basics of English composition. Thus, I continue to write this blog!

Today, we're going to look at a concept that should be relatively simple ... and it can be. However, I still see issues with this in some of my students' writing.

The concept is: Subjects and verbs must agree in "number." This means that singular forms of the noun or pronoun in the subject must agree with the singular form of the verb; plural forms of the noun or pronoun in the subject must agree with the plural form of the verb.

Please note I said the singular form of the verb or the plural form of the verb. Some students get hung up on the fact that plural forms of nouns have an s on the end, so they think that the plural form of the verb also means an s at the end.

What I recommend to students is looking at the verb and conjugating it using pronouns:

I think ...
He thinks ...
She thinks ...
We think ...
They think ...
Who thinks ...
One thinks ...

So, if you're writing

John _______ in the morning,

you'd use the third person singular form of the verb:

John walks in the morning.

If you're writing

The students ________ for each test the night before.

you'd use the third person plural form of the verb:

The students cram for each test the night before.

Simple, right?

The issues arise when other elements come between the subject and the verb:

It's extremely important to break your sentence down to its absolute basics to make certain your subjects and verbs agree.

Another issue is what to do with compound subjects connected with and and those connected with or or nor.











Finally, you need to be aware indefinite pronouns (both singular and plural) and collective nouns:

As I've written before, writers communicate only with the words they use ... and how those words are used. Understanding simple concepts goes a long way towards your being more effective communicators.

My next blog (hopefully next week?) will be on writing thesis statements and outlines. I hope to "see" you then!

Keep pen to paper!

Prof. Rinehart