Subject-Verb Concord/Agreement

What is Subject-Verb Concord?

Subject-Verb Agreement means the verb must agree/match with its subject in number, or person.

In English, the verb needs to match just the number and sometimes the person. For example, the singular subject ‘He’ and the plural subject “They’ use different versions of the same verb: ‘He/She plays.’, and ‘They play.’

The subject-verb agreement rules require to match both the number and the person. 

Friends, In this article we are learning Subject- Verb Concord in easy way. Carefully understand the tables given below to gain a better understanding of the Proper use of Helping Verb.

PERSON	SINGULAR	PLURAL
First Person	I am	We are
Second person	You are	You are
Third Person	He/She/It is	They are

PERSON	SINGULAR	PLURAL
First Person	I have	We have
Second person	You have	You have
Third Person	He/She/It has	They have

    

PERSON	SINGULAR	PLURAL
First Person	I do	We do
Second person	You do	You do
Third Person	He/She/It does	They do

Have / Has – Rules:

Use "has" with he, she, it

Use "have" with I, you, we, they

As a helping verb in perfect tense (have/has + past participle):

e. g. I have eaten lunch.

e. g. She has gone to school.

Do / Does – Rules:

Use "do" with I, you, we, they

Use "does" with he, she, it

Use of “do / does”: In questions (present simple):

• Do you like coffee?
• Does she speak English?

(CBSE) Exam Tip:

In editing/gap-filling and find the error correction questions, watch for subject-verb number mismatch. Always underline the subject first and check the verb form accordingly.

Friends, let's learn complete Rules of Subject-Verb Agreement:

Rule 1:

A singular subject takes a singular verb. A plural subject takes a plural verb:

Use s/es with singular subject (he, she, it)

Use base verb with plural subject (they, we, you)

• Virat plays cricket.
• I play cricket.
• We play cricket.
• You play cricket. (Singular)
• You (all) all play cricket.
• She plays cricket.
• He plays cricket
• They play cricket. 

Rule 2:

Two singular subjects joined by “and” take a plural verb:

Examples:

• Aanav and Aarnav are best friends.
• Honesty and hard work lead to success.
• Bread and butter are on the table. (If seen as two separate items)

Rule 3:

Two Subjects joined by ‘and’ but referring to one item = Singular Verb:

Earning bread and butter is not a difficult task.

(If seen as two separate items are considered one)

Incorrect: Time and tide wait for none.

Correct: Time and tide waits for none (Because they're two different things).

Rule 4:

Subjects joined by ‘or’, ‘either...or’, ‘neither...nor’ = Verb agrees with the subject closer to it:

i) Either the students or the teacher is going on a trip.

    (Because "teacher" is singular)

ii) Neither your brother nor my brothers have arrived.

    (Because "brothers" is plural)

iii) Neither your brothers nor my brother has arrived.

    (Because "brother" is singular)

iv) The supervisor or the workers are responsible for this problem.

    (Because "workers" is plural)

v) The workers or the supervisor is responsible for this mess.

    (Because "supervisor" is singular)

vi) Either Raj or I am going to call the director.

    ("I" always takes "am")

vii) Neither he nor you were present.

    ("you" always takes "were")

Rule 5:

Indefinite Pronouns like someone, nobody, each, everyone = Singular Verb:

• Someone is at the gate.
• Somebody has taken your pen.
• Something is burning in the kitchen.
• Anyone can win this contest.
• Anybody is welcome to join.
• Anything is possible with hard work.
• Everyone enjoys a good movie.
• Everybody wants success.
• Everything seems perfect today.
• No one knows the truth.
• Nothing makes sense right now.
• Each has a different role to play.
• One needs to be careful while driving.
• Much has been said already.
• Little remains of the old building.

Rule 6:

Use a singular verb if the group is acting as one unit.

Use a plural verb if the members of the group are acting individually.

Common Collective Nouns:

• family
• committee
• jury
• army
• crowd
• class
• group
• audience
• staff

Examples with Singular Verb (as a single unit):

i) The team wins the trophy every year.

    (The team is acting as one group.)

ii) The committee has announced bonus in the meeting.

    (The committee made one decision together.)

iii) The family lives in Mumbai.

    (The family is treated as one unit.)

iv) The jury reaches a verdict.

    (One decision is made.)

v) X class is on the top floor.

    (Seen as a single body of students.)

Examples with Plural Verb (acting as individuals):

i) The team are managing among themselves.

    (Members of the team are doing different things.)

ii) The committee have different outlook.

    (Committee members are not united.)

iii) The family are planning their separately.

    (Each member is doing something different.)

iv) The jury were divided in their decision.

    (They didn’t agree.)

v) The class are submitting their projects today.

    (Each student is submitting individually.)

Rule 7:

Uncountable nouns = Singular Verb:

• Water is important.
• Honesty is the best policy.
• Milk goes bad if not refrigerated.
• Sugar is sweet.
• Rice doesn't s take time to cook.
• Oil is used for frying.
• The information is correct.
• Her advice was very helpful.
• This furniture is very unique.
• The news is shocking.
• His luggage was heavy.
• Knowledge is free.
• Money breaks relationship.
• Education plays a vital role in personality development.
• Bread is also made from weat flour.

Rule 8:

Plural form, but singular meaning. Some nouns looks plural because ends with 's' but they takes = Singular Verb:

• Mathematics was my subject in std. VIII.
• Physics explains natural laws.
• Economics is not difficult for many students.
• The news is shocking.
• Politics is often complicated.
• Linguistics is the study of language.
• Ethics is important in workplace.
• Diabetes is a serious illness.
• Aerobics is a good way to stay fit.
• Statistics is a branch of mathematics.

Rule 9:

Distances, time, money = Singular Verb when considered one unit:

• Five years is a long time.
• Fifty thousand rupees is a large amount.

Friends, after reading this article properly, practice it. I am sure you will not need to read any article again after this.

If you have any doubts then, contact us.