Rules of Subject and Verb Agreement

1. A singular subject agrees with a singular verb – Lisa studies consistently.

2. A plural subject agrees with a plural verb – The children study consistently.

3. Though the pronouns, ‘I’ and ‘You’ refer to one person, they both agree with plural verbs.
- I study consistently. - You study consistently.

4. When the subject of a sentence is composed of two or more nouns or pronouns connected by
and, use a plural verb - She and her friends are at the fair.

5. When two or more singular nouns or pronouns are connected by or or nor, use a singular verb
- The book or the pen is in the drawer.

6. When two or more plural nouns or pronouns are connected by or or nor, use a plural verb -
The books or the pens are in the drawer.

7. When a compound subject contains both a singular and a plural noun or pronoun joined by or
or nor, the verb should agree with the part of the subject that is nearer the verb - The boy or his
friends run every day/ His friends or the boy runs every day.

8. One should not be misled by a phrase that comes between the subject and the verb. The verb
agrees with the subject, not with a noun or pronoun in the phrase. Some of these phrases begin
with a preposition while others begin with words such as including, accompanied by, in
addition to, or as well, together with, along with, etcetera.

- One of the boxes is empty. - The people who listen to that music are few.
- The team captain, as well as his players, is anxious.
- The book, including all the chapters in the first section, is boring.
- The woman with all the dogs walks down my street.

9. The words ‘each, every, everyone, everybody, any, anybody, anyone, nobody, somebody,
someone, none and, ‘one of’ and ‘no one’ are singular and require singular verbs.
- Each of these hot dogs is juicy. - Everybody knows Mr. Jones.

10. Nouns such as Civics, Mathematics, Physics, photosynthesis, dollars, measles, diabetes,
gastroenteritis, scoliosis, news, series, gymnastics, Jaws (movie),United States, United Nations
and Los Angeles, require singular verbs - The news is on at six.

11. Measurements of money, time, and distance usually require a singular verb.
- One hundred dollars is a lot of money for a bottle of wine.
- Two hours is a long time to wait to see a doctor.
- Ninety-three million (93,000,000) miles is the distance from the sun to the earth.
The word, dollars, is a special case. When talking about an amount of money, it requires a
singular verb, but when referring to the dollars themselves, a plural verb is required.
Five dollars is a lot of money. - Dollars are often used instead of rubles in Russia.

12. With words that indicate portions—percent, fraction, part, majority, some, all, none,
remainder, and so forth —look at the noun in your of phrase (object of the preposition) to
determine whether to use a singular or plural verb. If the object of the preposition is singular, use
a singular verb. If the object of the preposition is plural, use a plural verb.

Fifty percent of the pie has disappeared (ONE PIE – SINGULAR).

Pie is the object of the preposition of.
Fifty percent of the pies have disappeared.
Pies is the object of the preposition - PLURAL
One-third of the city is unemployed (CITY IS SINGULAR).
One-third of the people are unemployed (THE WORD, ‘PEOPLE’ IS PLURAL).

13. Nouns such as scissors, tweezers, pliers, shears, trousers, pants, shorts, tights, jeans,
binoculars, sunglasses, glasses and headphones require plural verbs. (There are two parts to
these things.)
- These scissors are dull. - Those trousers are made of wool.
- A pair of jeans is on the bed. - The jeans are on the bed.

14. Collective nouns are words that imply more than one person but that are considered singular
and take a singular verb, such as: group, team, committee, class, and family. Use a singular verb
when the collective noun represents the individuals acting as a unit.
- The team runs during practice. - The committee decides how to proceed.
BUT
Use a plural verb when the sentence emphasizes that the individuals are acting separately.
- The team live in different communities.

15. The following words almost always use the plural form of verbs: all, both, few, many,
several, and some.
- Some people in my office are very annoying.
- Few mountain climbers have successfully reached the peak of Mt. Everest. 

When the word, ‘some’ refers to an uncountable noun, a singular verb is used.
- Some of the sand is in the bucket BUT Some grains of sand are in the bucket.

16. When the word, ‘number’, is preceded by the word ‘a’, a plural verb is used.  When the
word, ‘number’, is preceded by the word, ‘the’, a singular verb is used.
- A number of people are waiting to see you.
- The number of stars in the sky seems countless.

17. Meals that consist of more than one items of food require singular verbs: bun and cheese,
egg and bread, ackee and salted fish, rice and peas, etc.
- Rice and peas tastes sweet.

18. When sentences start with “there” or “here,” the subjects will always follow the verbs so
one needs to be careful in determining whether the subject is singular or plural.
There is a problem with the balance sheet.
Here are the papers you requested.

19. Subjects don't always come before verbs in questions. Make sure you accurately identify the
subject before deciding on the proper verb form to use.
Does Lefty usually eat grass?
Where are the pieces of this puzzle?

20. Verbs that follow ‘shall, will, do and to,’ never change their forms.
- Debbie shall live with her aunt (NOT LIVES).
- They do know the answer.
- Sally does know the answer (NOT KNOWS).
- Angella is going to walk across the lawn (NOT WALKS).
- The baby will eat the porridge (NOT EATS).

21. The following nouns are singular and require singular verbs. NEVER ADD ‘S’ to these
verbs: luggage, baggage, equipment, furniture, information, clothing, footwear, advice,
homework, work, feedback.

References
- Instructor Web: http://www.instructorweb.com/docs/pdf/subjectverbagreele.pdf
- Lesson Snips: http://www.lessonsnips.com/
- Purdue University: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/owlprint/599/