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SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT

SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT. LESSON 1. SINGULAR/PLURAL. THE BASIC RULE OF THUMB (This is the easy part!). Singular subjects take singular verbs Plural subjects take plural verbs Here’s a hint to help find the subject: The subject will never be found in the prepositional phrase. NEXT ISSUE.

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SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT

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  1. SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT

  2. LESSON 1 SINGULAR/PLURAL

  3. THE BASIC RULE OF THUMB(This is the easy part!) • Singular subjects take singular verbs • Plural subjects take plural verbs Here’s a hint to help find the subject: • The subject will never be found in the prepositional phrase.

  4. NEXT ISSUE

  5. Remember your math • One + one = two • Singular + singular = plural • + = AND • The ugly lawn gnome AND the lovely plastic elf belong together. • Gnome (singular) AND elf (singular) belong (plural)

  6. LET’S PRACTICE!!

  7. Singular or plural? • The ugly lawn gnome loves the lovely plastic elf. • The lovely plastic elf is pining after the ugly lawn gnome. • The weeds are a problem to this unhappy couple. • The hedge clippers are their only hope! Gnome loves = singular Elf is pining = singular Weeds are = plural Clippers are = plural

  8. OR, EITHER…OR, NEITHER…NOR Now what???

  9. Grab your ruler • The verb choice depends on the closest subject If the subject closest to the verb is singular, use a singular verb. (Either the students or the teacher has the right answer.) If the subject closest to the verb is plural, use a plural verb. (Either the teacher or the students have the right answer.

  10. Either, Neitherwithout their partners Or and Nor

  11. The subjects EITHER and NEITHER with no partner are ALWAYS SINGULAR. Either of the two teams is good enough to win the championship. Neither of the dogs has a collar. You’ll be tempted to use ‘teams’ and ‘dogs’ and choose plural verbs. Resist the temptation!!

  12. A couple of other points to remember…..

  13. The number of… requires a singular verb. • A number of …requires a plural verb. The number of cases of West Nile Virus is growing every year. A number of students are protesting on Friday night.

  14. Let’s Practice!!! • The sheriff along with two of her deputies (were, was) checking licenses at the North Road exit. • WAS • Some of the lots in our subdivision (was, were) not for sale. • WERE • Here (is, are) the transistors and diodes that you purchased for your repair shop. • ARE • Genetics (is, are) very difficult for beginning students to understand. • IS

  15. More Practice!!! • The number of girls in my football club (was, were) surprising. • WAS • A number of the swimmers (is, are) going to the state competition. • ARE • There (is, are) some error messages showing up in my program. • ARE • Neither Betty nor Jane (type, types) more than fifty words per minute. • TYPES

  16. LESSON 2 WORDS BETWEEN THE SUBJECT AND VERB

  17. Don’t let words between the subject and verb trip you up! These interrupters may include: • Prepositional phrases • Appositive phrases

  18. Prepositional phrases • Prepositional phrase = preposition+object of the preposition The files of any computer are vulnerable to electronic-age thieves. Ignore the prepositional phrase The subject = files (pl) The verb = are (pl)

  19. Appositive phrases • Appositive phrases contain extra information and are set off from the sentence with commas. Computer thieves, people like the hackerKevin Mitnick, steal government and industry secrets. Ignore the appositive phrase The subject = thieves The verb = steal

  20. Interrupters may also be clauses and participles • But those are for another day!!!!

  21. REMEMBER • IGNORE THE INTERRUPTERS. • “CROSS OUT” (at least mentally) PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES AND APPOSITIVE PHRASES. • FIND THE SUBJECT AND VERB IN THE “BASIC” SENTENCE.

  22. PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

  23. Which sentence is correct? Why?

  24. The boy in the first row, along with all the other students in the class, are beleaguered by the worksheets. • The boy in the first row, along with all the other students in the class, is beleaguered by the worksheets. ** boy is

  25. The girl with the blue ribbons in her hair, but not the other girls in the class, throws spitballs at the teacher. • The girl with the blue ribbons in her hair, but not the other girls in the class, throw spitballs at the teacher. ** Girl throws

  26. The ugly lawn gnome with 10,000 eyes and only five toes love the lovely plastic elf. • The ugly lawn gnome with 10,000 eyes and only five toes loves the lovely plastic elf. ** gnome loves

  27. The lovely plastic elf, fascinated with folktales, imagines herself as a beautiful princess in love with the ugly lawn gnome. • The lovely plastic elf, fascinated with folktales, imagine herself as a beautiful princess in love with the ugly lawn gnome.

  28. LESSON 3 INDEFINITE-PRONOUN SUBJECTS

  29. An indefinite pronoun refers to an unspecified person or thing. • Some indefinite pronouns are always singular. • Some indefinite pronouns are always plural. • Some indefinite pronouns can be singular or plural depending on how they are used.

  30. Everyone has heard of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson • Singular indefinite pronouns take singular verbs. • Plural indefinite pronouns take plural verbs. Few realize that Arthur Conan Doyle solved real-life cases.

  31. Indefinite Pronouns

  32. Six indefinite pronouns take singular verbs when they refer to one thing. They take plural verbs when they refer to two or more people or things. • To decide whether the pronoun takes a singular or plural verb, find the noun in the prepositional phrase that follows the indefinite pronoun. • Mostof the storytakes place in England. • Mostof the storiestake place in England.

  33. More examples of the 6 indefinite pronouns than can be singular or plural • Anyof the bookisinteresting. • Anyof the magazinesare interesting. • Allof the pieis gone. • Allof the shoesare on sale. • Noneof the pollutionis blamed on the factory. • Noneof the factoriesare to blame for the pollution. • Someof the speechis appropriate. • Someof the politiciansare giving speeches tonight.

  34. BY THE WAY…….

  35. EACH and EVERY change whatever follows into a singular idea. • EACH shoe and sock is in need of mending. • EVERY dress and skirt in that store is on sale. • EACH of those Halloween pumpkins was rotten by December. • EVERY one of the atomic secrets has been stolen.

  36. REMEMBER EACH mistaken subject and verb is a problem, and EVERY grammar rule and example is important.

  37. Indefinite Pronouns

  38. GIVE IT A TRY!! (Grammar for Writing 2008)

  39. Correct • Many of Arthur Conan Doyle’s fans enjoy reading about the real-life cases Doyle solved. • One of these cases involve George Edalji, a young man from a small English village. • Someone among the villagers are viciously killing animals. • Nearly all of the animals are killed at night in open fields. • According to police, most of the evidence point to Edalji. involves is Correct points

  40. finds Correct 6) Everyone on the jury find him guilty. 7) Someone writes Doyle, asking him to help Edalji. 8) One of Doyle’s tests reveal Edalji’s “night blindness.” 9) No one with night blindness are able to chase and kill animals in the dark. 10) After hearing Dole’s evidence, all of the commissioners pardons Edalji. reveals is pardon

  41. Subject-Verb Agreement With Inverted Sentences

  42. IN AN INVERTED SENTENCE • The verb (or part of the verb) comes before the subject. • Inverted sentences: may be questions DOES the bankWANT the robber punished? or may begin with there, here, where Here IS a book about dumb criminals or may begin with a phrase Right by the police SPEEDS the truck.

  43. To decide whether to use a singular verb or a plural verb • FIRST, find the subject • THEN, make sure the verb agrees with the subject.

  44. THERE IS AN EASY WAY TO FIND THE TRUE SUBJECT Out of the bank (come, comes) the two robbers. • Turn the sentence around so that the subject comes before the verb. The two robbers(come, comes) out of the bank. • Determine whether the subject is singular or plural. Robbers (plural) • Make sure the subject and verb agree. The two robberscome out of the bank.

  45. REWRITE THESE SENTENCES SO THEY ARE IN “NATURAL” WORD ORDER. • There are nine players on a baseball team. • Is your coat in the closet? • Were we surprised! • There are still season tickets available. Nine players are on a baseball team. Your coat is in the closet. We were surprised! Season tickets are still available.

  46. NOW, WRITE THE SUBJECT AND VERB FOR EACH SENTENCE • There are nine players on a baseball team. • Is your coat in the closet? • Were we surprised! • There are still season tickets available. playersare coatis wewere ticketsare

  47. LESSON 5 Subject/Verb Agreement with collective nouns, nouns ending in ‘s’, titles, amounts, time

  48. AGREEMENT WITH COLLECTIVE NOUNS • Collective nouns are singular when they refer to the group as a unit. • Collective nouns are plural when they refer to the individual members of the group. The flock of birds is covering the sky. (The flock is one unit.) The jury is still deliberating. (The jury is one unit) The flock of birds were grooming themselves. (The flock are thought of as individual birds.) The jury argue about the case. (The individuals argue.)

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