Concord

Concord/ Subject-Verb Agreement

Simple Present Tense

        Verb-to-be

-----   is / are  (For ‘am’ only agrees with ‘I’)

        Ordinary verbs

          ---–         noun subject that can be replaced by ‘He/ She/It ’

                 uses ‘F1+s  /es’

        -----  noun subject that can be replaced by ‘I/ We/You/You/They’

                 uses ‘root verb /F1’.

*  Simple Past Tense – only involves ‘was / were’

Noun subject classification

        Countable / Uncountable

        Singular / Plural

I.  The kinds of noun subject with a singular verb

1.  [a singular noun]

     [Shirley] is a happy girl.

     [James] works hard and smart all the time.

2.  [an uncountable noun]

        a)  abstract nouns

        b)  material nouns

        [Diligence] is the first factor to success

        [Gold] is an expensive metal.

3.  [an indefinite pronouns]

        anybody    everybody         nobody      somebody

        anyone      everyone           #no one    someone

        anything    everything         nothing     something

        [Nobody] except Tina was at home last Monday morning.

     Some games:        billiards, cards, checkers, darts, draughts……………..

     Subject names:  classics, economics, linguistics, mathematics, physics,     

                             phonetics, statistics……..

     Others:                 athletics, news, politics, savings, sports, ……………..

     Names of a book / film / place:  ‘The Three Musketeers’,

                                                     the Philippines,

                                                     the United States of America  

       

        Appendicitis requires attention, too.

        [Linguistics] is an interesting subject to me.

        [Billiards] was once popular here.

        [The United States of America] is a big country.

4.  [Each / every noun and each / every noun]

        Each man and each woman was given an umbrella.

        Every boy and every girl carries a bottle of water to school every day.

5.   a noun plural in form but singular in meaning

Some diseases:      appendicitis, measles, mumps, rabies, rickets,

                             tuberculosis,… Concord  /Subject-Verb Agreement

        [Appendicitis] requires urgent attention for treatment.

6.  a plural noun phrase expressing a fixed whole amount / period

        [A thousand dollars] is a small amount to a rich person.

        [Two weeks holiday] is not long to us.

 

7.  a subject made up of 2 noun phrases but expressing a single idea

        [Bread and butter] is my usual breakfast.

        [Time and tide] waits for no man.

8.  [a finite noun clause]

        [That she can play the piano very well] is true.

        =  It is true that she can play the piano very well.

        [What he put in the box just now]  is an old clock.

9.  [a non-finite clause]

        a)  To-infinitive

b)   F2 / ing form / present participial phrase

          [To get up early in the morning] enables (her) to get to school

           early.

[To have passed the SPM with flying colours] has qualified him to apply for the course he likes.

        [Dancing] makes her feel good.

        [Walking home alone late in the night] is really not safe.

10.  Either of ………../ Neither of ……………..

        [[Either] of the sisters] is a genius in languages.

        [[Neither] of the girls] likes sports.

============================================

II.  The noun subject with a plural verb

       

1.  [a plural noun subject]

        [Most boys] enjoy sports.

2.  nouns plural in form only and plural in meaning

        Clothing:    briefs, clothes, pajamas, pants, shorts, trousers,

                         trunks…….

        Tools:        bellows. Pincers, pliers, scissors, shears, tongs,…………

        Others:      belongings, goods, spectacles, surroundings………………….

        [These shorts] don’t fit him.

        The tongs are made of stainless steel.

3.  nouns singular in form only but plural in meaning

        cattle, gentry, police, poultry, people, vermin……………..

        [The police] line up in the field to practise marching every day.

        The people are angry at the poor transport system.

4.  the + adjective = plural noun

     the rich   the poor  the strong the weak   the wise    the foolish

     The poor = the poor people

     The poor need initial assistance to stand on their own feet one day.

=============================================

III.  noun subject with a singular / plural verb

1.  a collective noun singular in form

        a)  When it is taken as a whole unit, it takes a singular verb.

                My family is united and in harmony.

                The army is well-disciplined.

       

        b)  When it suggests individual persons / things, a plural verb is

              used.

                My family are discussing the environmental issue.

                The army were on the full alert.

2.  a noun plural in form but can take a singular / plural verb depending on

      the  meaning.

        barracks, crossroads, headquarters, means, series, species……………

        a)  Taking a singular verb when the meaning is singular

                [The crossroads near my school] is confusing.

                The series of Harry Potter  is very popular among teenagers.

        b)  Taking a plural verb when the meaning is plural.

                The barracks are new and clean.

                There are other means you can try to gather information for

                 your research paper.

3.  a noun singular in form but can be singular / plural in meaning. 

        a)  a singular verb

                [That fish] is still alive.

                A Portuguese was kidnapped a few weeks ago while travelling

                  here.

        b) a plural verb

                [Those fish] are big and cheap.

                The two Portuguese are lecturers in a college here.

4.  None of ……….. singular / plural verb

        [None of the children] has / have completed their homework.

        [None of his business] concerns me.

5.  a)  [The number of ……….] a singular verb

     b)  [A number of ………..] a plural verb   

        [The number of girls in my class] is 13.

        [A number of children here] are very naughty.   

IV.  The verb agrees with the subject [S2] nearer to it.

1.     a)  Either [   S1    ]  or  [S2]  V

                Either Maria or [her brothers] have broken the vase.

        b)  Neither [ S1]   or   [ S2 ]  V

            Neither the students nor [the teacher] is happy with the

                decision.

2.  Not only [ S1]  but also  [S2]  V

        Not only your sister but also [your cousins] were punished for being

        late.

V.   The verb agrees with the first noun phrase. 

     In other words the prepositional  phrase / relative clause after the first

     noun phrase is not considered.

1.    [[Nina]], as well as her friends] is very diligent and well-disciplined.

2.  [[All the pupils]], together with their teachers] are tired now.

        3.  [[A man]] with many activities] is a tired man.

        4.  [[Those poultry]] of Mr Chong] are not for sale.

5.   [[The policemen]] who have so much work to do] have very little time for themselves.

6.   [[The cat]] {which gave birth to so many kittens last week}] is

very fierce.