PREPARED BY

ESTELITA A. JAVIER
.Now, it’s time for you to deepen your
knowledge and skills in subject-verb
agreement. I bet you’ll enjoy this even
more.
You will learn how to compose clear and
coherent sentences using appropriate
grammatical structures following the
rules in Subject-Verb Agreement.
Always remember that whenever you
communicate with others and as you
present your work in the class, you
should always observe politeness at all
times, be tactful and open to criticism.
In this activity sheet, several
exercises are prepared for you
to enhance your knowledge
and skills on Subject-Verb
Agreement so you can
compose clear and coherent
sentences.
Task 1: Circles, Boxes, and Arrows With your partner, read the
following sentences. Encircle the subjects and box the verbs.
Then, make an arrow from the verb to its subject.
1. An urban habitat refers to areas
dominated by human activities.
2. Nowadays, an urban habitat is already a
home to many animals.
3. Birds like pigeons nest on tall
buildings.
4. Mice and rats build their habitats
inside or near houses.
5. Perhaps, the favorite city animals live
in the homes of people - cats, dogs, and
other pets.
 SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT

Basic Rule The basic rule in subject-verb agreement states that a

singular subject takes a singular verb, while a plural subject takes
a plural verb.

Hint: Verbs that end with s are singular. Verbs do not form their
plurals by adding an s as nouns do. In order to determine which
verb is singular and which one is plural, think of which verb you
would use with he or she and which verb you would use with they.

Example:
talks, talk
Which one is the singular form?
Which word would you use with he?
We say, "He talks." Therefore, talks is singular.
We say, "They talk." Therefore, talk is plural.
 RULES IN SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT

1. General Rule: A
singular subject takes a
singular verb. A plural
subject takes a plural
verb.
2. Intervening words & phrases: A phrase or
clause that interrupts a subject and its verb
does not affect the subject verb agreement (of
phrases, together with, as well as, with, in
addition to, accompanied by, etc.)
e.g. The captain of the guards stands at
attention.
The troopers whom the captain put in
charge of the roadblock stand on either side.
The teacher, together with her students,
visits the library.

COMPOUND SUBJECTS 3. Two or more

4. Two or more plural subjects joined
by or or nor must have a plural verb.
e.g. The girls or the boys are going
to win.

5. If one or more singular subjects

are joined to one or more plural
subjects by or or nor, the subject
closest to the verb determines the
agreement. The verb in an or, either-
or, or neither-nor sentence agrees
6. A compound subject joined by and is
generally plural and must have a plural
verb.
e.g. Jenny and Rose are going to New
York.
The boys and the girls perform on
stage.

Exceptions:
If the parts of the compound subject are
thought of as one item, then a singular
verb is needed.
 CONFUSING SUBJECTS
7. Hard to Find Subjects: A subject
that comes after its verb must still
agree with it in number.
Inverted Sentence: Under the
table is the cat.
On top of the hill are two
tractors.
Sentences with “Here” and “There”:
There is only one orange in the
8. Subjects of Linking Verbs: A linking verb
must agree with its subject regardless of the
number of its predicative nominative.
e.g. Speeding cars are one reason for the high
accident rate.

9. Collective Nouns: A collective noun takes a

singular verb when the group it names acts as a
single unit. It takes the plural verb when the
group it names acts as individuals with
different points of view.
e.g. The jury orders a verdict.
The committee disagree on the issue.
10. Plural-Looking Nouns: Nouns that are plural in
form but singular in meaning agree with singular
verbs. (news, measles, Mathematics, Physics, ethics,
Social Studies)
e.g. Mathematics becomes my favorite subject.
Measles is a dangerous disease for unborn
children.

11. Indefinite Pronouns: Singular indefinite pronouns

take singular verbs. Plural indefinite pronouns take
plural verbs.
e.g. One of the paintings is missing.
Everyone is going to the trip.
Either of your plans is acceptable to me.
Both of the players were late.
The pronouns all, any, more, most, and some
usually take a singular verb if the antecedent
is singular and a plural verb if it is plural.
e.g. All of the soup is eaten.
All of the seats were taken.

12. Titles: A title of the book, story, novel,

literature, or any work of art is considered
singular and takes a singular verb.
e.g. Wuthering Heights is a novel by Emily
Bronte.
The Last Leaf is written by O. Henry.
13. Amounts and Measurements: A noun
expressing an amount or measurement is
usually singular and requires a singular verb.
e.g. Fifty pesos is more than enough.
40 feet is the length of the room.
10 kilometers is the distance of this school
to his house.

14. In a sentence with a fraction and an “of-

phrase” before the verb, the verb agrees with
the object of the preposition.
e.g. Half of the cupcakes are eaten.
Three fourth of the crop is rotten.
 MISCELLANEOUS RULES
15. The pronoun “You” always takes the
plural verb.
e.g. You are the best in the class.

16. Clausal subjects are singular even if the

nouns referred to are plural.
e.g. What we need is more reference books.

17. With “a number of” as a subject, use a

plural verb. With “the number of” as a
subject, use a singular verb.
e.g. A number of students take the exam.
The number of students is 60.
18. With “none” as a subject, use a singular verb.
e.g. None of the magazines is here.

19. Subject nouns which are derived from adjectives

and describe people take plural verbs.
e.g. The rich are in favor of the tax cut.
The poor need the help of the government.

20. For items that have two parts, when the word pair
is used, the verb is singular. But without the word
pair, the verb is plural. (scissors, tongs, trousers,
pants)
e.g. My scissors are lost.
A pair of scissors is needed for the activity.
Task 3: Oral Drill Identify the subject
in each sentence and tell whether it is
singular or plural. Then choose the
correct verb inside the parenthesis to
make the statement correct.
Example: The survey covering seven
schools (reveal, reveals) a growth in
enrollment.
Subject: The survey
Form: singular Verb: reveals
1. My sister and my brother (lives, live) in
Davao City.
2. Either the man or his friends (knows,
know) the answer.
3. Three weeks (is, are) a long time.
4. The news (surprise, surprises) me
today.
5. Each student and teacher (was, were)
aware of the difficulty.
6. A car and a bike (is, are) my means of
transportation.
7.My aunt or my uncle (is, are) arriving at the airport.
8. Neither Jenny nor the others (is, are) available.
9. The serving bowl or the plates (go, goes) on that
shelf.
10. Each of the students (read, reads) well.
11. Five years (is, are) the maximum sentence for that
offense.
12. Dennver, a campus journalist, (write, writes) the
reports.
13. The Red Hen and Her Friends (is, are) the narrative
that we read last time.
14. Social Studies (is, are) my favorite subject.
15. Mumps (is, are) a viral disease.
Task 4: Choosy Me! Choose the correct form of the verb in
each of the following sentence.

1. Everyone _____ happy and contented.

A. looks B. look
2. The number of chopper crashes _____ clamming.
A. is B. are
3. My friend and classmate _____ left for abroad.
A. has B. have
4. Ten months _____ long enough for the physician to detect
care-giving tendency of a nurse.
A are B. is
5. Both _____ good in English.
A. are B. is
6. The teachers, as well as the principal, _____ for vacation.
A. has gone B. have gone
7. Either I or you _____ going to represent
the school.
A. are B. is
8. Three-fourths (3/4) of the workers
_____ working visa abroad.
A. has B. have
9. His favorite food ____ ham and
sandwich.
A. is B. are
10. Tongs ____ what I need to pick up
the hot fried chicken.
A. is B. are
11. The hopeless _____ immediate
counselling.
A. need B. needs
12. None of the pupils ____ to be late in the
class this morning.
A. appear B. appear
13. Androcles and the Lion _____ written by
Aesop.
A. is B. are
14. Several people _____ the earthquake drill.
A. observe B. observes
15. On top of the mountain _____ the wild
animals.
A. is B. are
Task 5: Compose Our Own Work with your partner and
compose your own sentences using the following subjects. Be
sure to observe rules in subject-verb agreement to compose
clear and coherent sentences. Present your work in the class.

1. The Philippines
___________________________________.
2. Filipinos
_________________________________________.
3. One of the Filipino traditions
_________________________.
4. Either sinigang or adobo
____________________________.
5. What make us proud as Filipinos
___________________________________.
Read “Let’s Remember This”
 You may know something or have a meaningful
experience that you want to share to others, but
if you cannot communicate effectively, your
ability to share knowledge, information, or
experiences is affected.

 It is therefore necessary that you learn subject-

verb agreement. In this activity sheet, you’ve
learned that in sentences, verbs must always
agree with the noun or pronoun subject.

 Subjects and verbs should agree with one

another in number- singular or plural.
 Thus, if the subject is singular,
the verb must also be singular. If
the subject is plural, the verb
must also be in plural form.

 There are different rules in

subject-verb agreement and
learning each of them will help
you become effective
communicator of the English
language.