Grammar • Level 1 (Beginner)

Lesson 09: Subject-Verb Agreement Rules

Mastering Singular & Plural Subjects, Pronoun Rules, Tricky Exceptions & Practice Exercises

📌 1. What is Subject-Verb Agreement?

In English grammar, a verb must always agree with its subject in number. This means a singular subject takes a singular verb, and a plural subject takes a plural verb.

Subject Type	Verb Form Required	Real-Life Example
Singular Subject (He / She / It / Noun)	Singular Verb (+s / -es / is / has)	The student writes an essay.
Plural Subject (They / We / Nouns)	Plural Verb (Base verb / are / have)	The students write essays.

📊 2. Essential Subject-Verb Agreement Rules

Rule Category	Rule Explanation	Correct Example
Compound Subjects (AND)	Two or more subjects connected by and take a plural verb.	Sarah and Lisa are doctors.
OR / NOR Rule	The verb agrees with the subject that is closest to the verb.	Neither the teacher nor the students were present.
Indefinite Pronouns	Words like everyone, someone, nobody, each take a singular verb.	Everyone has a textbook.
Collective Nouns	Group nouns (team, family, class) acting as a unit take a singular verb.	My family is visiting today.
Amounts & Time	Expressions of money, time, distance, or weight take a singular verb.	Ten dollars is enough for lunch.

⚠️ TRICKY EXCEPTIONS & COMMON MISTAKES:

1. Prepositional Phrases Don't Change the Subject: Ignore words that come between the subject and the verb.
• Correct: The box of chocolates is on the table. ✅ (Subject is 'box', not 'chocolates')
2. There Is vs. There Are: The verb agrees with the noun that follows it.
• Correct: There is a book. | There are three books.

📝 3. Practice Exercises

Exercise A: Choose the correct verb form in brackets:

Either my brother or my parents _________ (is / are) coming to the party.
Everybody in the classroom _________ (knows / know) the correct answer.
The list of items _________ (was / were) found on the teacher's desk.
Fifty miles _________ (is / are) a long distance to drive daily.
The football team _________ (trains / train) hard every morning.

💡 Click here to view Answer Key & Explanations

Exercise A Answers:

1. are (Closest subject 'parents' is plural).
2. knows (Indefinite pronoun 'Everybody' takes a singular verb).
3. was (Main subject 'list' is singular; ignore 'of items').
4. is (Distance expression 'Fifty miles' is treated as a single quantity).
5. trains (Collective noun 'team' acts as a single unit).

📥 Download Free PDF Guide

Download the complete lesson, grammar rules summary, and all practice exercises with answer keys in PDF format (Mery TalkEnglish Academy).

📄 Download Free PDF