NOTES:

What is subject-verb agreement?

The term ‘subject-verb agreement’, just like the name suggests, refers to the agreement between
the subject and the verb. This is mainly with reference to singular and plural nouns/pronouns that
act as subjects.
The general rule of subject-verb agreement according to Garner’s Modern English Usage is “to
use a plural verb with a plural subject, a singular verb with a singular subject. This rule holds
true for most cases. However, there are exceptions to this rule. Check out the next section to
learn how verbs have to be conjugated in order to agree with the subject.

RULES

1. Subject-verb agreement with the conjunction "or/ nor" - the verb agrees with the subject
closest to it.

Either John or his friends are coming to the party.

2. Singular indefinite pronouns such as ‘EITHER, NEITHER, EACH, EVERYONE,

ANYBODY’ etc, must be followed by a singular verb

Either of us is capable of doing the work.

3. Prepositional phrases such as with, together with, along with, as well as , in addition to
are not part of the subject and, therefore, have no effect on the form of the verb. The verb
needs to agree in number only with the subject (the noun preceding these phrases) of the
sentence.
The candidate, along with her supporters, leaves the building.
The employees of the organization, as well as the CEO, have an interest in the project’s
success.
The ship, with its crew, was saved.
4. With Collective nouns -the singular form of the verb is used.
For example:
The diversity committee was well represented at the last board meeting.

5. Some nouns occur only in plural form, but they are singular nouns and take a singular verb:
politics, news, ethics, etc.

Ethics is an important component of human study.

6. Subjects that express time or amount always take a singular verb.

Forty thousand is an average starting salary for a Computer Science graduate.

 Misplaced modifiers:

What does misplaced modifier mean?

A misplaced modifier is just that—a modifier (a describer) that is misplaced (separated) from the
word it describes. This could mean that the modifier is in the wrong place in the sentence or that
the word the modifier should describe is omitted from the sentence.
In English, modifiers are placed immediately before or after the word(s) they describe.
When a modifier is misplaced, it becomes difficult to tell which word(s) it describes.
Misplaced Modifier Examples:
Examples of misplaced modifiers with correctly placed modifier:

Loud singing annoys you quickly.

Here, it is clear that you are quickly annoyed.

Loud singing quickly annoys me.

Here, it is unclear if quickly modifies loud singing or if it modifies how fast you are annoyed.
 Idioms

IDIOMS
1. “it’s raining cats and dogs” - Raining heavily
2. “to have a sweet tooth” - a strong liking for sweet foods:
3. “Once in a blue moon” - Very rarely
4. “A white lie” -something which is untrue, that is often said in order to protect
someone or to avoid hurting someone's feelings
5. “ To have clean hands” - To be innocent; to be free of any wrongdoing.
6. “The ball is in your court” - it is time for someone to deal with a problem or make a
decision
7. “Spill the beans” - To tell a secret.
8. “Pull someone’s leg” - to make someone believe something that is not true as a joke : to
trick or lie to someone in a playful way.
9. “Sat on the fence” -To not make a decision or take a side when presented with two or
more options or possibilities.
10. “Through thick and thin” - you always support or stay with them, even if there are
problems or difficulties: Backing, supporting & defending.
11. Beat around the bush - To avoid talking about what’s important
12. Hit the sack - Go to sleep
13. On cloud nine - Being very happy
14. Don’t cry over spilt milk - Don’t cry over what has happened as it can not be fixed.
15. Draw the line - To stop before a point where something okay gets not okay.
16. Go the extra mile - To make an extra effort.
17. Like a cakewalk - So easy task
18. At Sea - Confused
19. Read between the lines - Understanding the real message behind something
20. A blessing in disguise - Something that you think is bad but turns out to be a blessing
Redundancies:

In grammar, redundancy refers to the use of unnecessary words, phrases, or expressions that
do not add any significant meaning or clarity to a sentence. Redundancy can make writing or
speech verbose and can be avoided to improve conciseness and effectiveness of
communication.

Here are some examples of redundancies commonly found in grammar:

1. "I saw it with my own eyes." The phrase "with my own eyes" is redundant because the
word "saw" already implies personal observation.

2. "She nodded her head in agreement." The phrase "her head" is unnecessary since
nodding is typically done with the head.

3. "Close proximity." The word "proximity" already implies closeness, so the word
"close" is redundant in this context.

4. "I completely filled up the entire page." The words "completely," "filled up," and
"entire" all convey the same idea of filling something to capacity, making the sentence
redundant.

5. "Free gift." The word "free" is redundant because a gift is already something given
without charge.

6. "I personally think..." The word "personally" is unnecessary as the word "think"
already implies that it is the speaker's opinion.

7. "He repeated the same thing again." The word "again" is redundant because the
word "repeated" already suggests that something is being done more than once.
Punctuation marks:

Comma
,
Commas are primarily used to aid in clarity and to join two independent clauses with a
conjunction. They set off introductory phrases and set off series. They also are used to
separate independent and dependent clauses. The Oxford comma is the inclusion of a
comma before coordinating conjunction in a series.
Examples:
I enjoyed the singers, and I loved the dancers.
At the beginning of the performance, two dancers appeared from behind the
curtain.
Even though the auditorium was packed, the audience remained silent.
I had eggs, toast, and orange juice.
Commas can also be used to note an interjection in a sentence.
Example:
The criminal said the judge was an idiot.
The criminal, said the judge, was an idiot.
The criminal is speaking in the first sentence. The judge is speaking in the second.

Apostrophe
’
Apostrophes are used to mark possession and to mark contractions. They are also used
to denote a quotation mark in material that is already being quoted.
Examples:
It was James’ car that the drunk driver hit.

“James said, ‘If you come any closer I’ll call the police.’”

Quotation
“”
Quotation marks are used to inform a reader either of something that was spoken or
something that is being directly copied from another work. Quotes should also be
placed around a word if it is used in a specific context or otherwise bears special
attention. In informal applications, quotations can also be used to denote something that
is ironic.
Examples:
Lydia said, “Is this my prom dress?”
Dr. Shruti claims, “The use of violence against women in India is on the rise.”

Question and Exclamation

?!
Question and exclamation marks are used to note interrogative and exclamatory
sentences. Neither of these punctuation marks are commonly used in academic writing.
In general, a writer should not be shouting at the reader in formal writing. The lack of
conversation makes any question rhetorical, and revising the question in a statement
would be the better course.

Hyphen
–

Hyphens are most commonly used to pair compound words.

Examples:
Throw-away
High-speed chase
Merry-go-round
User-friendly

Dash
—
Dashes are generally not in common use but denote a tangent within a thought. There
are two kinds of dashes, an “en” dash and an “em” dash.
En dashes essentially are the same glyph as hyphens but fill a different purpose. Em
dashes are longer, an easy way to remember is that an en dash is the length of an “n”
and an Em dash is the length of an “m”.
Example:
I think that my dog is a genius — but doesn’t everybody think their pet is?
Dashes are able to substitute for commas and semicolons in the right situation. They
can replace commas to note non-essential information or semicolon to note an
example. Despite, and because of this versatility dashes should not be frequently
employed in your writing.
The multitude of applications make dashes easy to overuse taking away from, rather
than adding to clarity in your writing.
Note: Dashes can either connect to the surrounding words or be separated by a space,
it is an issue of style, be sure to ask your professors if they have a preference.

Parenthesis, Bracket, Braces

()[]{}
Parenthesis note non-essential information that could be skipped without altering the
meaning of a sentence. Brackets are most commonly employed in academic writing
within a quotation where the writer is omitting or explaining something. In either case,
the writer places a bracket within the quote [explains or places an ellipsis and] closes
the bracket to continue the quote.
Braces are used quite rarely and are employed to essentially make a list within a list.
Examples:
Cora (the woman who lives down the street from Jane) works as a paralegal.
Professor Brown claims, “She [the novel’s central character] is an example of a
strong African-American woman.”
Before I go on vacation I need to pack my bags {clothes, toiletries and
shoes}, unplug the TV, and close all of the windows.

Ellipsis
…
Ellipsis marks the omission of a word or words. If the omission includes the end of a
sentence the glyph has four dots (….) instead of three.

Colon
:
Colons make the statement: note what follows. Whatever information that follows the
colon must, in some way, explain, prove, or describe what ever came before it. To
properly employ a colon, ensure that the clause that follows the mark is able to stand on

its own (unless it is a list). Because whatever comes before the colon must be a
complete sentence, your writing after the colon is not required to be.
Example:
The Bridgekeeper asked me three questions: what is your name, what is your quest,
what is your favorite color.

Semicolon
;
A semicolon can be used to join two related main clauses.
Example:
James Left a mess at his desk after he left work; Sarah had to clean it up.
Another way to employ a semicolon to join two related main clauses is to include a
conjunctive adverb such as: however, moreover, nevertheless, furthermore,
consequently, or thus.
Conjunctive adverbs can also be used with a comma.
Example:
James left a mess at his desk after he left work; consequently, Sarah had to clean it up.
The simplest way to deal with two independent main clauses is to make two sentences.
If the topic of the two sentences are not related, or if one (or both) of the sentences are
already long, joining them could make the sentence too long and be a burden on the
reader.
One of the most common applications of semicolons is as a substitute for commas in a
list in which commas are required for the things listed.
Example:
It’s as easy as a,b,c; 1,2,3; doe, rae, mi.