Grammar Topic
Subject-Verb Agreement
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Explanation
Subject-verb agreement means a singular subject takes a singular verb, and a plural subject takes a plural verb.
Basic: The cat sleeps. The cats sleep.
Tricky subjects: everyone, someone, nobody, each, every, either, neither are ALWAYS singular. Everyone is here. Each student has a book.
Compound subjects joined by 'and' take plural: Tom and Jerry are friends. Joined by 'or'/'nor', the verb agrees with the nearest: Neither the teacher nor the students were ready.
Collective nouns (team, family, committee) take singular when acting as one unit, plural when acting as individuals.
Special: distances, amounts, time periods take singular: Five kilometers is a long walk.
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Examples
Basic: The cat sleeps on the sofa. The cats sleep on the sofa.
Everyone is here. Each student has a book. Neither of them is ready.
Tom and Jerry are friends. Neither the teacher nor the students were ready.
The team is winning. The team are arguing among themselves.
Five kilometers is a long walk. Ten years is a long time.
There is a book on the table. There are three books on the table.
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Test Your Knowledge
Mini Quiz
1/ 2
Choose the correct verb: 'Every student and teacher ___ present at the assembly.'
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