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The Egyptians built the pyramids out of giant stone blocks that weigh several thousand kilograms each.

Weigh or weighs, which one is correct?

Some teacher give the following answer

The Egyptians built the pyramids out of giant stone blocks that weighs several thousand kilograms each.

The Egyptians built the pyramids out of stone blocks. Each block weighs several thousand kilograms. The blocks in the sentence is the plural form of block, not a singular word.

My question:

Let's not talk about whether "weigh" is appropriate here.

My confusion is that since the verb that follows the relative pronoun must agree in number with the word that comes immediately before the relative pronoun, if "blocks" are plural, then it must use "weigh" which contradicts with "each".

So, I guess "blocks" is a separate word, other than a plural form of block. I checked some online dictionaries and some of them support my view.

Could a kind professional on this area give an answer on this questions? Your clarification is very much appreciated!

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    Consider this as a clue: does "weigh" have to agree only in number, or also in time? When did these blocks weigh anything? And do the blocks still exist or weigh the same as they used to?
    – Prof Yaffle
    Commented May 23, 2016 at 14:19
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    Weight is not correct since it is a noun and your sentence needs a verb. For the verb "weigh", current tense is "weigh", past tense is "weighed".
    – Kristina Lopez
    Commented May 23, 2016 at 14:24
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    Your teacher is wrong: the sentence "The Egyptians built the pyramids out of giant stone blocks that weighs several thousand kilograms each" is ungrammatical.
    – sumelic
    Commented May 23, 2016 at 16:55

2 Answers 2

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My confusion is that since the verb that follows the relative pronoun must agree in number with the word that comes immediately before the relative pronoun, if "blocks" are plural, then it must use "weigh" which contradicts with "each".

In your sentence, "each" is not used as a pronoun, but rather as and adverb meaning the same thing as "apiece".

adverb

3. to, from, or for each; apiece

(Dictionary.com)

That is, "each" clarifies that every block weighs thousands of kilograms individually, lest the reader think that the sentence is instead describing the combined weight of all the blocks together. This adverbial use is typically found only in conjunction with plural verb forms, because when the subject is singular the adverbial use of "each" is redundant.

So, I guess "blocks" is a separate word, other than a plural form of block. I checked some online dictionaries and some of them support my view.

There is a verb "to block", for which "blocks" is the present singular form, but that's not what you have in your sentence. Your "blocks" is indeed the plural of "block", to which the word "that" refers, and therefore the plural form of the verb "weigh" must be used to agree with it:

The Egyptians built the pyramids out of giant stone blocks that weigh several thousand kilograms each.

If your teacher told you differently then you have just learned a valuable lesson: no one is infallible, not even authorities.

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  • I totally agree with your answer. My understanding of "each" is wrong. Now it all comes back to me!
    – user2376256
    Commented May 24, 2016 at 0:47
  • Some alternatives: The Egyptians built the pyramids out of giant stone blocks each of which weighs several thousand kilograms. or The Egyptians built the pyramids out of giant stone blocks each of whose weights is several thousand kilograms.
    – user2376256
    Commented May 24, 2016 at 0:49
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The verb in the DEFINING clause should agree with the noun it is modifying (i.e. blocks).

I would use "weighed", anyway.

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    You could indeed use "weighed" instead of "weigh". That puts a bit more emphasis on the magnitude of the engineering feat in its temporal context. On the other hand, the pyramids are still there, they are still built out of the same blocks, and those blocks still weigh thousands of kilos apiece. Using "weigh" in the sentence in question puts a bit more emphasis on how amazing the pyramids still are today.
    – PellMel
    Commented May 23, 2016 at 15:18
  • It is some kind of common knowledge so that present tense should be the way
    – user2376256
    Commented May 24, 2016 at 0:45

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