Questions tagged [subject-verb-agreement]
A singular subject requires a singular verb form, whereas a plural subject requires the plural verb form.
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collective nouns subject verb agreement
Which of the following is correct?
The committee debates these questions carefully.
or
The committee debate these questions carefully.
I am confused on when to use plural form of the verb with ...
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Verbs in plural after a singular noun [duplicate]
These are some sentences I found in some academic books I was reading:
A small white blob is reflected there, precisely where Beth’s
camera-flash left behind proof of her presence as if the daughter
...
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Questions about verbs
70% (700) of the total data is used as training data, and the remaining 20% (200) are used as validation data.
I am in the process of creating presentation PPT materials.
Is are used as correct in ...
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Two cats and one dog (were/was)
Consider the following sentence:
Two cats and one dog (were/was) sitting on the fence
Logically I would think the correct word to use here is "were" considering that we are talking about a ...
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Noun and verb after "either one or all": singular or plural?
I think it is grammatical to say
"Almost every day, either this table or that one is reserved."
What about the following sentence?
"Almost every day, either one or all tables are ...
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What form of the verb is used with a subject like "little me"? [closed]
I want to say that I look innocent in an old picture of mine and I don't know if I should say:
"Little me looks so innocent"; or
"Little me look so innocent" (without an "s&...
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Some questions about notional agreement
I learned from some resources that notional agreement is not a rigid rule but rather a matter of preference. But they also suggest that there are times when notional agreement works better, and the ...
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Which is the correct subject verb agreement in "The majority of the class was/were"? [duplicate]
"The majority of the class was having problems with simple subject-verb agreement problems..."
Correction: "The majority of the class were having problems with simple subject-verb ...
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"What Has" or "What Have," and Why?
Which of the following is correct (and, most importantly, why)?
A glimmer of light after what have been long weeks of darkness.
A glimmer of light after what has been long weeks of darkness.
(The ...
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2
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What kind of verb should be used after 'A century of + a plural noun'
In the following sentence, which verb is right?
A century of discoveries in genetics ( has / have ) unlocked the
secrets of our DNA.
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subject-verb agreement When two singular words are joined by not only . . . but also
When neither… nor… or either… or… are used with two singular nouns, the verb can be singular or plural. A plural verb is more informal.From Oxford Learner's Dictionaries
I wonder if When not only . . ...
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Singular noun is something and something?
I get stuck by the following sentence from this article: Noam Chomsky: The False Promise of ChatGPT.
The crux of machine learning is description and prediction; it does not posit any causal ...
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Which is correct? "…who copy/copied from who?"
Is it grammatically okay to say:
Between John and Abraham who copy from who?
Between John and Abraham who copied from who?
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Which one is correct
"How many days has it been since I purchased the subscription" or "How many days have it been since I purchased the subscription".
My limited knowledge says me "has it been&...
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Subject-verb agreement of singular-plural
Top of mind on Capitol Hill as lawmakers return from recess this week are the annual spending bills to keep the government open, which must be enacted by the time the new fiscal year starts on Oct. 1. ...
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Agreement of a verb with its subject when another noun phrase appears between them [closed]
I failed this question in a test but I don't think I was wrong.
Instruction: Choose the correct vèrb from the pair in parenthesis.
knowledge of different cultures (helps/help) to survive in a global ...
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Is the sentence in the post correct?
"We were intelligent enough to know that a sample size of one does not a conclusion make" ?
Is the sentence above correct as per the grammatical rules of English ? If yes then what set of ...
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Is "some of the fruit" plural or singular in this case?
Is "some of the fruit" plural or singular?
We are familiar with the verse from the bible "She took some of the fruit and ate it.". Here "some of" refers to a piece of a ...
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'how reasoning and acting more human-like works' [duplicate]
This is from one of "for dummies series".
Our current daily data production is estimated to amount to about 2.5
quintillion (a number with 18 zeros) bytes, with the lion’s share
going to ...
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Subject-verb number agreement relating to "services"
I understand the subject-verb number agreement rule but had a hard time locating answers relating to types of and use of the word "services." I assume that you don't use plural types if ...
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each (of them) have vs has
I am wondering if the following sentence is correct.
There are 200 individuals who each have two alleles at single nucleotide site of interest.
In my opinion, have should be changed to has. Is it ...
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"Is" or "are" for two uncountable words?
"The commonality and difference among these concepts is/are still unclear. So our paper sheds light on it/them."
‘Is’ or ‘are’ for two uncountable nouns/subjects
According to the above ...
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2
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Verb form with name of subject ending in "studies"
Which verb form should be used with names of subjects ending in "studies" – that is, for instance, subjects such as "religious studies", "literary studies", and so on? ...
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"which sentence(s) is" vs. "which sentence(s) are": how should one conjugate a verb when the subject is a word followed by (s)?
I wonder how to conjugate a verb when the subject is a word followed by (s). For example, which of the following two sentence(s) is/are correct:
Which program(s) are needed?
Which program(s) is ...
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What verbform should I use with coordinated activities as a subject? [duplicate]
If the subject in a clause is singular, the verb form should be singular, and if the subject is plural, the verb form should be plural. So far, so good. But what about subjects that coordinate two ...
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What you said is/are both true and false?
What he said is both true and false.
What he said are both true and false.
Which one of these sentence is correct?
Which word can be considered as a subject in these sentences?
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Singular Noun With Plural Verb?
I'm currently struggling with whether to use a single or plural verb after an singular noun for the same event that happens multiple times. Example:
The catalyst for these celebrations are/is ...
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Why is it "need" in "it need not be thus" instead of "needs"?
But it need not be thus
This sentence boggles me. I expected to see "it needs not" or "it does not need to". What am I missing?
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Does relative clause agree with main subject?
Consider the sentence:
The trout that swim in the center of the river keep themselves safe.
The main subject is "trout" which is single, but the main verb is "keep". Shouldn't ...
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How does this sentence follow subject verb agreement?
I dont understand how the following sentence is following correct subject and verb agreement.
Do authors think that including examples from the text files has widespread applicability?
Grammarly ...
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2
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Increasing temperatures means
I saw the following sentence in a magazine. To my surprise, the plural subject "increasing temperatures" is paired with the singular verb "means." Is it a typo or a correct usage? ...
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By 5 units less or simply 5 less?
In France, 25 units of electricity were produced from gas, and by 5 units
less were produced with the help of oil.
Should I use 'by' here (I want to say that 20 units of electricity were obtained ...
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There was a bed, a desk and two windows. Could it be "there were" in this sentence?
There was a bed, a desk and two windows in my room.
Could it be "there were" in the sentence Above?
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If the "we" refers to a company, is it "is" or "are"?
Example
MicroLoft is a software company based in Los Angeles. We offer software development and maintenance services and is one of the few software companies with full Lookle certified team.
Should ...
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The usage of 'how much'?
I typed in the following sentence in Grammarly and it keeps telling me that I had a problem with the subject-verb agreement:
How much of each tea makes up the mixed tea is not known. (My incorrect ...
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'What N is' or 'what is N' (affirmative statement)
In one online course, I saw the following phrase:
In this video, you learned what is data and you also saw how not to
misuse data.
My question is: shouldn't it be 'you learned what data is,' since ...
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As a subject, is “dinner and drinks” singular or plural?
Is “dinner and drinks” considered singular or plural?
i.e. is it how were dinner and drinks? or how was dinner and drinks?
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A phone, tablet, or computer **is/are** used with care nowadays because people do not want to get addicted - is or are?
What form of the verb to use when the subjects are joined by a "or" and they are not mutually exclusive?
Example 1
A phone, tablet, or computer is/are used with care nowadays because people ...
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Omission of verbs in 'the more... the more...' construction
Recently I found the following phrase in an English guide book:
In all regions except Southeast Asia it can be seen that the higher
the consumption of cigarettes, the higher the tobacco-related
...
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What is the difference between 'ambitions' and 'ambition'?
I found a sentence below:
When guided by a sense of moral purpose, they were able to channel their ambitions and summon their talents to enlarge the opportunities and lives of others.
(Extract from ...
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Using plural noun + is and are
Can we use "is" and "are" like this:
EVs is a recent trend and are more common in our area than in my
grandparents'.
Or, when to treat plural as a singular subject?
These are ...
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Is it correct to write 'x plus y are z' [duplicate]
While it is correct to write 'Two and three are five' is it incorrect to write 'Two plus three are five' ? I've looked up several online dictionaries including OALD, Cambridge and Britannica but didn'...
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About verbs with "to" preposition
"He explained to me this stuff"
Here the preposition phrase " to me" stands before direct object. Are there other verbs where prepositional phrase can be before direct object? Can ...
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Singular Subject X + is + Plural Noun Y & Plural Noun Y + are + Singular Subject X, right?
In the official translation of a policy statement by a German politician it reads
Our greatest strength is our alliances.
As a German native, this makes me cringe, because the German rule is
"...
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Is/are: Which is the right verb to use in the given context?
There are two types of people in this world. The first (type) is those who do that, and the second (type) is those who don't.
There are two types of people in this world. The first are those who do ...
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Which one is correct: "the total miles is 275" or "the total miles are 275"?
Can you please tell me if I have to say the total miles is 275 or the total miles are 275? For example:
The load needs to be delivered to Austin, TX, which is 250 loaded miles. The total miles is/are ...
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Meaning of I have not to go there
Let's have a look at these sentences:
1.I have to not go there.
2.I don't have to go there.
3.I have not to go there.
What are the meanings of these sentences.
I think, the first one means that it is ...
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"Do" or "Does" with "any of X"? [closed]
Which is correct:
Do any of the ideas interest you?
Does any of the ideas interest you?
In one textbook, it gives 2 as an example sentence; however, in another one, I read something similar but it ...
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there was/were a number of
All examples are mine.
They arose as a result of my interest: whether we must always use verbs in the plural form when these verbs agree with "a (...) number of + noun".
My first example:
(...
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What is the subject in the sentence "there is a lot of X?" and how do I determine subject-verb agreement?
I was told that the sentence "there is a lot of potatoes" is incorrect because potatoes is a countable noun, so it should be "there are a lot of potatoes". But if I analyze the ...