Grammar Agreement Questions Long
Subject-verb agreement is a grammatical rule that states that the subject and the verb in a sentence must agree in number. This means that a singular subject should be paired with a singular verb, and a plural subject should be paired with a plural verb. The purpose of subject-verb agreement is to ensure that the sentence is grammatically correct and that the subject and verb are in harmony.
To illustrate this concept, let's consider some examples:
1. Singular subject with a singular verb:
- The cat sleeps on the mat.
- In this sentence, the singular subject "cat" is paired with the singular verb "sleeps."
2. Plural subject with a plural verb:
- The dogs bark loudly.
- Here, the plural subject "dogs" is matched with the plural verb "bark."
3. Singular subject with a plural verb:
- The bookshelves need dusting.
- In this case, the singular subject "bookshelves" is an exception because it refers to multiple shelves. Therefore, it requires a plural verb "need."
4. Collective nouns:
- The team is practicing for the championship.
- Collective nouns, such as "team," "family," or "committee," can be singular or plural depending on the context. In this example, the collective noun "team" is treated as a singular subject and is paired with the singular verb "is practicing."
5. Indefinite pronouns:
- Everyone loves chocolate.
- Indefinite pronouns, like "everyone," "someone," or "nobody," are always singular and should be matched with singular verbs. In this sentence, the singular pronoun "everyone" is paired with the singular verb "loves."
It is important to note that subject-verb agreement can become more complex in sentences with compound subjects, inverted word order, or when dealing with certain irregular verbs. However, the basic principle remains the same: the subject and verb must agree in number to maintain grammatical correctness.