1. Subject- Verb Agreement
Stephanie Paige-Hubbard

2. Bell work
Choose the sentence that is written with the correct subject- verb agreement.
A. Everything on the racks were on sale.
B. Neither the radio nor the television are working.
C. A few of the nails in the can are rusted.
D. Your term paper on the importance of insects were very interesting.

3. Subject Verb Agreement
Most important facts to remember about Subject -Verb Agreement & Pronoun- Antecedent Agreement are:
1. Subject and verb MUST AGREE IN NUMBER.
2. Pronoun and antecedent MUST AGREE IN NUMBER AND GENDER.

4. Key Terms. Write down the meaning of each of the key terms and provide an example of each.
Subject-
Verb-
Pronoun-
Antecedent-
Singular-
Plural-

5. A verb should agree in number with its subject.
A singular subject MUST HAVE a singular verb. A singular verb will end in -s.
YOU MUST FIND THE SIMPLE SUBJECT FIRST, THEN FIND YOUR VERB.
Examples:
He washes the dishes.
A girl in my neighborhood plays in the band.
Our princess dances every night.

6. A plural subject MUST HAVE a plural verb
A plural subject MUST HAVE a plural verb. A plural verb will not end in –s
Examples:
The twelve princesses dance every night.
They will wash the dishes.
The girls in my neighborhood were playing in the band.

7. Practice 1: Now let’s practice by circling the correct verb to agree with the subject.
1. The children (walks/ walk) to the playground every afternoon.
2. My friend (gives/give) me his potato chips at lunch.
3. She always (sings/sing) that song.
4. He (takes/ take) pride in his work.
5. Gregory (fishes/ fish) for bass in the lake.
6. We (is/are) tired and hungry.

8. BE CAREFUL- Do not confuse the object of preposition as the subject
BE CAREFUL- Do not confuse the object of preposition as the subject! The subject of a sentence will NEVER be found in a prepositional phrase.
Example:
One of my friends is going.

9. Practice 2: Circle the correct verb, and mark out the prepositional phrase.
1. The tiles in the corner (is/are) broken.
2. Which type of pens (was/were) your favorite?
3. The letters from Cale (has/ have) been found in the drawer.
4. The forks in the drawer (was/ were) bent?
5. My interest in crafts (keeps/keep) me busy.
6. Two colors of the flag (has/ have) been changed.

10. BE CAREFUL- The subject does NOT always come at the beginning of the sentence. Sometimes the subject follows the verb.
1. A phrase may come at the beginning of the sentence.
Example:
Behind the door was a prize.
2. With questions, the verb, or part of it, can come before the subject.
Does Rose go to camp? (____________________)
Do her sisters go to camp. (___________________)
3. If a sentence begins with there or here, the subject will come after the verb.
Here comes the parade. (_____________________)
There go the floats. (__________________________)

11. Practice 3: Underline the subject and the circle the correct verb.
1. There (was/were) ten gifts left.
2. Down in the forest (was/were) two rope swings.
3. Why (was/were) the young girl still on the bus?
4. Here (comes/come) the band leader.
5. (Does/Do) those men have shelter?

12. Compound subjects & Subject-verb agreement
Compound subject- two or more subjects joined by and, or, nor
Subjects- joined by and usually take plural verbs
Subjects joined by or, nor take either a singular or a plural verb determined by the subject closest verbs.

13. Compound subjects & Subject-verb agreement
Rule 1: Subjects joined by _________ are usually plural and take plural verbs. Example: My friend and I are going. Rule 2: When subjects are joined by___________ or ___________, the subject closer to the verb determines whether the verb is singular or plural. Example: Either the teacher or the student is responsible. Neither the teacher nor the students are responsible.

14. Practice 4: Circle the correct verb according to which conjunction is joining the two subjects.
1. James and his brother (is/are) leaving now.
2. Neither the soldiers nor their general (was/were) given credit for the victory.
3. Kisha and her friends (was/were) volunteering at the hospital.
4. Either he or his dogs (was/were) responsible for the mess.
5. For their project, Tiffany and Justin (is/are) making a model volcano.

15. Collective Nouns and Subject-Verb Agreement!!
Collective Nouns are nouns that appear singular, but they may represent a group.
Collective Nouns
Army
Class
Crowd
Flock
Mob
Audience
Club
Faculty
Group
Public
Band
Collection
Family
Herd
Swarm
Bunch
Committee
Fleet
Jury
Team

16. Collective Nouns
In some cases, a collective noun may refer to the individual members of a group in which cases it takes a plural verb.
Note: In most cases, collective nouns will be treated as singular. To double-check, ask yourself if the noun is referring to the group as a whole or if it refers to the individual member.

17. Collective Nouns
Directions: Read each sentence carefully and circle the correct verb.
The rugby team (practice/practices) three times a week.
The soccer team (practice/practices) their skills individually when they meet with the coach one-on-one.
The class (contribute/contributes) different amounts depending on how much candy they sell.
My class (is/are) the largest in the school.
The fleet of ships (is/are) stationed in the gulf.