He Said She Said (Subject Verb Agreement)

By Deatri King-Bey

Which of the following sentences are correct:

1. The characteristics of the heroine tells the reader how she may react.

2. The characteristics of the heroine tell the reader how she may react.

3. If I was you, I’d study the rules for subject verb agreement.

4. If I were you, I’d study the rules for subject verb agreement.

Sentences two and four are correct. Subjects and verbs must agree in person and number. Pronouns agree in person, number, and gender. Subject verb agreement stumps many a writer. This workshop steps through the rules to help keep you from stumbling. The best way to learn is by example. You know the routine. Roll up those sleeves and let’s get busy simplifying subject verb agreement.

NOTE: Key subjects/nouns are highlighted in blue, key verbs in green.

Subject and Verb must agree in number.

You can usually make a noun plural by adding “s” or “es.” Now for the part that confuses some folks. To make a present tense verb into a singular verb, you usually add “s” or “es.” Let’s dissect two sentences.

A plant grows.

1. Plant does not end in “s” or “es” indicating it is singular.

2. Grows ends in “s” indicating it is singular.

The plants grow.

1. Plant ends in “s” indicating it is plural.

2. Grow does not end in “s” or “es” indicating it is plural.

Be careful of the sneaky “s” that sometimes isn’t pronounced when speaking.

The tests were more difficult than I thought they would be.

The rule is different when working with pronouns. Notice in the chart below that the only time the form of the verb changes is when you couple it with the third person pronoun.

	Singular Pronoun + verb	Plural Pronoun + verb
First Person (Ourselves)	I (work)	We (work)
Second Person (To someone)	You (work)	You (work)
Third Person (About someone)	He/she/it (works)	They (work)

Hint: If you have trouble selecting the correct form of verb, change the noun into its pronoun counterpart and use the chart to help select the verb. A tree (grow, grows).

It grows. A tree grows.

Subject and Verb must agree, even if separated by other words

Often times the subject and verb are not side-by-side, but they still need to agree.

The problem with all of Carla’s characters is they aren’t fully developed.

Some folks incorrectly make the verb agree with the closest noun (characters in this case)

Subjects joined by “and”

When two nouns (compound subjects) are joined by the word “and” they are considered plural, thus the accompanying verb should be plural.

Tanja and Deatri read every day.

Remember: If you have difficulty determining which form of the verb to use, exchange the subject with its pronoun counterpart.

They read every day.

Subjects joined by “nor” or “or”

When compound subjects are joined by “nor” or “or” the verb should agree with the nearer subject.

Tanja or Deatri is the older sister.

Neither short stories nor novels are easy to find agents for.

Collective Nouns

Collective nouns refer to groups of similar things such as a crowd, flock, family, or committee and can be seen as either plural or singular. Use the context in which the collective noun is used to determine its number and verb.

When speaking about a single entity, agree with a singular verb.

The committee has the power to decide.

When speaking about individuals in a group, agree with a plural verb.

The committee have argued over every decision.

While technically correct, using plural collective nouns is rare, and it sounds odd to our ear. For the sake of clarity, it is best to rephrase and avoid this.

The committee members have argued over every decision

Word Inversion

Whether the verb comes before or after its noun, they need to agree.

There are many writers attending this conference.

Many writers are attending this conference.

Linking Verbs and Subjects

Be careful not to mix the subject up with the subject complement. The verb should agree with the subject not the subject complement.

The chef has pork chops.

NOTE: The chef have pork chops. Pork chops is not the subject but the subject complement.

Relative Pronouns (Who, Which, That)

When using a relative pronoun as the subject, make sure the verb agrees with the word the pronoun refers to (its antecedent).

The books that we read were amazing.

The book that I read was amazing.

Plural form Nouns that have a Singular Meaning

Some nouns end in “s” but are generally regarded as singular, such as athletics, economics, news, politics, and United States. The agreeing verb should be in the singular form also.

Economics is my least favorite course.

Fifty dollars is too much to pay.

Titles and Words Named as Words

Even if the words of a title are plural the title is still considered to be singular and should have a singular verb to agree with. The same goes for a word you are referring to.

“Ants” is my daughter’s favorite movie.

Excesses is misspelled in your novel.

Indefinite Pronouns

If the indefinite pronoun is singular, then the verb agreeing with it should be singular. If the indefinite pronoun is plural, then the verb should be plural. Below is a table of common indefinite pronouns.

Indefinite Pronouns

Always Singular

Always Plural

Singular or Plural

Another

Anybody

Anyone

Anything

Each

Either

Everybody

Everyone

Everything

Much

Neither

Nobody

None

No one

Nothing

One

Somebody

Someone

Something

Both

Few

Many

Others

Several

All

Any

Most

None

Some

What

That’s All Folks

This brings us to the end of another session. As always, if you have questions or just wish to say hi, email me at workshops@deewrites.com .

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