SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT (CONCORD)
Origin: According to collinsdictionary.com: from Old French Concorde; from Latin Concordia. The word concord is derived from the Latin for agreement. When applied to English grammar, the term is defined as the grammatical agreement between two words in a sentence. Some linguists use the terms concord and agreement interchangeably, although traditionally, concord is used in reference to the proper relationship between adjectives and the nouns they modify, while agreement refers to the proper relationship between subjects and their verbs with objects.
Mixed concord, also known as discord, is the combination of a singular verb and a plural pronoun. This structure happens when there’s a substantial distance between a noun and its modifier and shows up most frequently in informal or spoken language. Discord is motivated when the abstract preference for a phrase’s meaning to be in agreement outweighs the desire for the formal subject noun phrase to agree.
Basic Principle: Singular subjects need singular verbs; plural subjects need plural verbs. Examples:
1. My brother is a dietician.
2. My sisters are statisticians.
RULES
Rule 1. The indefinite pronouns anyone, everyone, someone, no one and nobody
are always singular and, therefore, require singular verbs. Examples:
A) Everyone has done the assignment.
B) Somebody has left her wallet.
Certain indefinite pronouns — such as all and some — are singular or plural depending on what they are referring to. (Is the thing referred to countable or not?) Be watchful when choosing a verb to accompany such pronouns. Example:
C) Some of the beads are missing.
D) All of the water is gone.
There is one indefinite pronoun, none, that can be either singular or plural; it usually doesn’t matter whether you use a singular or a plural verb — unless something else in the sentence determines its number. Writers mostly think of none as meaning not any and will choose a plural verb, as in “None of the appliances are working,” but when something else makes us regard none as meaning not one; we want a singular verb, as in “None of the food is fresh.” Examples:
D) None of you claims responsibility for this incident?
E) None of you claim responsibility for this incident?
F) None of the students have done their homework. (In this last example, the word their rules out the use of the singular verb.
Rule 2. Certain indefinite pronouns are particularly troublesome. Everyone and everybody (listed above, also) surely look like more than one person and, therefore, students are sometimes tempted to use a plural verb with them. They are always singular. Each is often followed by a prepositional phrase ending in a plural word (Each of the cars), thus confusing the verb choice. Each, too, is always singular and requires a singular verb. Examples:
A) Everyone has finished the assignment.
You would always say, “Everybody is here.” This means that the word is singular and nothing will change that.
B) Each of the students is responsible for doing the work in the library. Don’t let the word “students” confuse you; the subject is each and each is
always singular —Each is responsible.
Rule 3. Phrases such as together with, as well as and along with are not the same as and. The phrase introduced by as well as or along with will modify the earlier word (mayor in this case), but it does not compound the subjects (as the word and would do). Sometimes the subject is separated from the verb by such words 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, vice versa.
Examples:
A) The mayor as well as his brothers is going to gaol.
B) The mayor and his brothers are going to gaol.
C) The politician, along with the newsmen, is expected shortly.
D) Excitement, as well as nervousness, is the cause of her shaking.
Rule 4. The pronouns neither and either are singular and require singular verbs even though they appear to be referring, in a sense, to two things.
Examples:
A) Neither of the two traffic lights is working.
B) Which shirt do you want for Christmas? Either is fine with me.
In informal writing, neither and either sometimes take a plural verb when these pronouns are followed by a prepositional phrase beginning with of. This is particularly true of interrogative constructions: “Have either of you two clowns read the assignment?” “Are either of you taking this seriously?”
Two singular subjects connected by or, either/or, or neither/nor require a
singular verb.
Examples:
C) My aunt or my uncle arrives by train today.
D) Neither Juan nor Carmen is available.
E) Either Kiana or Casey is helping today with stage decorations.
Rule 5. The conjunction or does not conjoin (as and does): when nor or or is used, the subject closer to the verb determines the number of the verb.
Whether the subject comes before or after the verb doesn’t matter; the proximity determines the number. Examples:
A) Either my father or my brothers are going to buy the land.
B) Neither my brothers nor my father is going to buy the land.
C) Are either my brothers or my father responsible?
D) Is either my father or my brothers responsible?
Because a sentence like “Neither my brothers nor my father is going to sell the house” sounds peculiar, it is probably a good idea to put the plural subject closer to the verb whenever that is possible.
The verb in an or, either/or, or neither/nor sentence agrees with the noun or
pronoun closest to it. Examples:
E. Neither the plates nor the serving bowl goes on that shelf.
F. Neither the serving bowl nor the plates go on that shelf.
This rule can lead to bumps in the road. For example, if I is one of two (or more) subjects, it could lead to this odd sentence:
Awkward: Neither she, my friends, nor I am going to the festival.
If possible, it’s best to reword such grammatically correct but awkward
sentences. Better: Neither she, I, nor my friends are going to the festival. OR
She, my friends, and I are not going to the festival.
Rule 6. The words there and here are never subjects. In sentences beginning with here or there, the true subject follows the verb. With these constructions (called expletive constructions: a word or phrase conveying no independent meaning but added to fill out a sentence or metrical line), the subject follows the verb but still determines the number of the verb.
NOTE:
The word there’s, a contraction of there is, leads to bad habits in informal sentences like There’s a lot of people here today, because it’s easier to say “there’s” than “there are.” Take care never to use there’s with a plural subject. Examples:
A) There are two reasons [plural subject] for this.
B) There is no reason for this.
C) Here are two pears.
D) There are four hurdles to jump.
E) There is a high hurdle to jump.
F) Here are the keys.
Rule 7. Verbs in the present tense for third-person, singular subjects (he, she, it and anything those words can stand for) have s-endings. Other verbs do not add s-endings. Examples:
A) He loves football.
B) They love football.
Rule 8. Sometimes modifiers will get between a subject and its verb, but these modifiers must not confuse the agreement between the subject and its verb. Example:
A) The mayor, who has been convicted along with his four brothers on four counts of various crimes but who also seems, like a cat, to have several political lives, is finally going to gaol.
Rule 9. A subject will come before a phrase beginning with of. This is a key rule for understanding subjects. The word of is the culprit in many, perhaps most, subject-verb mistakes. Example: The list of items is/are on the desk. If you know that list is the subject, then you will choose is for the verb.
Hasty writers, speakers, readers and listeners might miss the all-too-common
mistake in the following sentence:
Incorrect: A bouquet of yellow roses lend colour and fragrance to the room. Correct: A bouquet of yellow roses lends colour and fragrance to the room.
(bouquet lends, not roses lend). Sometimes nouns take weird forms and can mislead us into thinking they are plural when they are really singular and vice- versa. Consult the section on the Plural Form of Nouns and the section on Collective Nouns (in part one: An easier approach to English grammar) for additional help. Words such as glasses, pants, pliers, and scissors are regarded as plural (and require plural verbs) unless they are preceded by the phrase a pair of (in which case the word pair becomes the subject). Examples:
A) My glasses were on the bed.
B) A pair of plain trousers is in the closet.
Rule 10. Some words end in -s and appear to be plural but are really singular and require singular verbs. Examples:
A) The news from the front is bad.
B) Measles is a dangerous disease.
On the other hand, some words ending in -s refer to a single thing but are nonetheless plural and require a plural verb. Examples:
C) Our assets were wiped out in the depression.
D) The average worker’s earnings have gone up dramatically.
E) Our thanks go to the workers who supported the union.
The names of sports teams that do not end in “s” will take a plural verb. Examples:
F) The Miami Heat have been improving their performance.
G) Kotoko are hoping that new talents will arrive this season.
Rule 11. Fractional expressions such as half of, a part of, a percentage of, a majority of are sometimes singular and sometimes plural, depending on the meaning. If the noun after of is singular, use a singular verb. If it is plural, use a plural verb. The same is true when all, any, more, most and some act as subjects. Sums and products of mathematical processes are expressed as singular and require singular verbs. The expression “more than one” (oddly enough) takes a singular verb: “More than one student has tried this.” Examples:
A) Some of the voters are still angry.
B) A large percentage of the older population is voting against her.
C) Two-fifths of the troops were lost in the battle.
D) Two-fifths of the vineyard was destroyed by fire.
E) Forty percent of the students are in favour of changing the policy.
F) Forty percent of the student body is in favour of changing the policy.
G) Two and two is four.
H) Four times four divided by two is eight.
I) A lot of the pie has disappeared.
J) A lot of the pies have disappeared.
K) A third of the city is unemployed.
L) A third of the people are unemployed.
M) All of the pie is gone.
O) All of the pies are gone.
P) Some of the pie is missing.
Q) Some of the pies are missing.
Rule 12. If your sentence compounds a positive and a negative subject and one is plural, the other singular, the verb should agree with the positive subject. Examples:
A) The department members but not the chairman have decided not to teach on Saturday.
B) It is not the faculty members but the president who decides this issue.
C) It was the speaker, not his ideas that has triggered the students to riot.
Rule 13. As a general rule, 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. But note these exceptions:
Exceptions:
A) Breaking and entering is against the law.
B) The bed and breakfast was charming. In those sentences, breaking and entering and bed and breakfast are compound
nouns. Rule 14. Parentheses are not part of the subject. Example: Joe (and his trusty pet) was always welcome. If this seems awkward, try rewriting the sentence.
Rule 15. Use a singular verb with distances, periods of time, sums of money, etc., when considered as a unit.
Examples:
A) Three miles is too far to walk.
B) Five years is the maximum sentence for that offense.
C) Ten cedis is a high price to pay.
BUT
D) Ten cedis (i.e., cedi bills) were scattered on the floor.
Rule 16. With collective nouns such as group, jury, family, audience, population, etc., the verb might be singular or plural, depending on the writer’s intent.
Examples:
A) All of my family has arrived OR have arrived.
B) Most of the jury is here OR are here.
C) A third of the population was not in favour OR were not in favour of the bill.
NOTE
Anyone who uses a plural verb with a collective noun must take care to be accurate—and also consistent. It must not be done carelessly. The following is the sort of inconsistent sentence one sees and hears a lot these days:
D) The staff is deciding how they want to vote.
Cautious speakers and writers would avoid assigning the singular is and the plural they to staff in the same sentence.
Consistent: The staff are deciding how they want to vote. Rewritten: The staff members are deciding how they want to vote.
Rule 17. The word were replaces was in sentences that express a wish or are contrary to fact:
Example: If Paul were here, you’d be sorry. Shouldn’t Paul be followed by was, not were, given that Paul is singular? But Paul
isn’t actually here, so we say were, not was. The sentence demonstrates the subjunctive mood, which is used to express things that are hypothetical, wishful, imaginary or factually contradictory. The subjunctive mood pairs singular subjects with what we usually think of as plural verbs.
Examples:
A) I wish it were Friday.
B) She requested that he raise his hand. In the first example, a wishful statement, not a fact, is being expressed; therefore,
were, which we usually think of as a plural verb, is used with the singular subject I.
Normally, he raise would sound terrible to us. However, in the second example,
where a request is being expressed, the subjunctive mood is correct. Note: The subjunctive mood is losing ground in spoken English but should still be
used in formal speech and writing.
SUBJECT AND VERB AGREEMENT QUIZ 1
For each of the following, choose the sentence in which the subjects and verbs have been correctly identified and in which the subjects and verbs agree. The subjects are in bold and the verbs are underlined.
1. A) At the end of the story, they was living happily ever after.
B) At the end of the story, they were living happily ever after.
2. A) Al and Eli go to the beach to surf with their friends.
B) Al and Eli goes to the beach to surf with their friends.
3. A) When Al and Eli arrive, they find that their friends has polished their boards.
B) When Al and Eli arrive, they find that their friends have polished their boards.
4. A) A group of children from that school are not being cooperative.
B) A group of children from that school is not being cooperative.
5. A) Unless our staff members really do cooperate, we will not meet our goals.
B) Unless our staff members really does cooperate, we will not meet our goals.
6. A) Either Foli or I am responsible for allocating the funds.
B) Either Foli or I are responsible for allocating the funds.
7. A) Neither she nor they were willing to predict the election results.
B) Neither she nor they was willing to predict the election results.
8. A) She is one of the candidates who are worthy of my vote.
B) She is one of the candidates who is worthy of my vote.
9. A) Dora, of all the candidates who are running, is the best.
D) Dora, of all the candidates who are running, are the best.
10. A) My problem, which is minor in comparison with others, exists because I dropped out of high school.
B) My problem, which is minor in comparison with others, exist because I dropped out of high school.
11. A) His dogs, which is kept outside, bark all day long.
B) His dogs, which are kept outside, bark all day long.
12. A) There is three strawberries left.
B) There are three strawberries left.
13. A) Here is the reports from yesterday.
B) Here are the reports from yesterday.
14. A) Some of my goals has yet to be met.
B) Some of my goals have yet to be met.
15. A) All of my goals are being met and surpassed.
B) All of my goals is being met and surpassed.
16. A) None of this is your business.
B) None of this are your business.
Source: AN EASIER APPROACH TO ENGLISH GRAMMAR 2 by J. A. Ansah
Buy full book here
- The Digital Dialects: How Programming Languages Shape Our Modern World
Post Views: 36 By Bright Atsu Aditse The era of a one-language-fits-all approach is long gone. The modern philosophy is “using the right tool for the right job.” This specialization allows for greater efficiency, performance,… - The Dark Side of Human Rights: Freedom or a Gateway to Spiritual Corruption?
Post Views: 26 By Michael Nyavi (Sir Michael) Human rights, as enshrined in international law, were originally meant to protect the dignity and freedom of every human being. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR)… - The Myth of Meritocracy in Ghana: A Critical Examination
Post Views: 134 By Ametepe Michael “Meritocracy! The Modern Norm” Meritocracy is a political system of governance in which rewards, opportunities, and positions of power are distributed based on individual talents, efforts, and… - The Role of the Church in Combating Corruption: The Church Cannot Remain Mute
Post Views: 48 By Michael Nyavi (Sir Michael) Introduction Corruption has become a cankerworm eating deep into the fabric of many nations, including Ghana. It weakens trust, destroys institutions, and deepens poverty. In a country… - Changing the Script: How Applied Behaviour Analysis (ABA) Is Empowering Learners and Transforming Classrooms
Post Views: 50 By James Attah Ansah NB: First published with Modern Ghana on 22nd September 2025 At first, all Kormi did was scream. He screamed when he was asked to hold a pencil. He…
