Subject Verb Agreement Lecture

Subject- Verb ______________: Each __________ must agree with its _____________ in person and in _______________. Singular subjects take ________________ verbs, and plural subjects take ____________ verbs. -

Singular: A calendar shows the days of the year. The Gregorian calendar has been the standard in North America since the 1750s. Write your own:______________________________________________

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Plural: Several calendars show the phases of the moon. Some older calendars have been abandoned in favor of more accurate modern calendars. Write your own:______________________________________________

Compound Subjects: depends on the _______________ used to join two parts of the subject. - Compound Subjects with AND: a compound subject _____________ by and or both --- and is usually plural. Therefore, the verb should be ____________. -

Plural: The solar day and the lunar month are types of natural time keepers. Both the solar calendar and the lunar calendar differ from today’s modern calendar. Use your brain: __________________________________________________

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Occasionally, two words ______________ by and refer to the same person or thing or single _______________. Thus, the subject is considered _________________, and the verb should be ________________ also. -

Singular: The Roman Catholic pope and namesake of today’s calendar was Gregory XIII. Try it yourself:_________________________________________________

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Plural: Gregory and his advisors are responsible for an extremely accurate calendar. You Do It: _____________________________________________________

More examples: Our Lord and Savior _____ Jesus Christ. Blue and white ______ a popular color scheme. Chicken and rice is Richard’s least favorite meal. Chicken and rice are a part of Amber’s menu this week. Compound Subjects with Or: If a subject is ___________ by or, nor, either, or neither nor the __________ must agree with the subject that is closer to it. -

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Singular: Neither the lunar months nor the solar year serves as a precise method for measuring time. Practice it yourself: _________________________________________________ Plural: However, the sun’s rotation or the moon’s phases provide an indication of the passage of time. Try it out: _________________________________________________________

The following indefinite pronouns are always singular: Another Somebody Anybody Anyone Anything

Each

Either

Neither

Everybody Everyone Everything

Less Little Much

Nobody No one Nothing

The following indefinite pronouns are always singular: Both Few

Fewer Many

Several

The following can be singular or plural: All Any

More Most

None Some

Someone Something

Exercise: Write a paragraph of your own using indefinite pronouns, compound subjects and simple subjects. Have some sentences with correct agreement and other sentences with incorrect agreement. When everyone is finished, you will exchange your papers, and your mate will correct it. HAVE FUN! _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ __________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________ ___________