Subject/Verb Agreement
Trojans is doomed.
Hector are violent. |
It’s easy to see what’s wrong with these sentences: the
subjects (Trojans and Hector)
do not match their verbs (is and are, respectively). Trojans are
plural but is is singular; Hector is
singular, but are is plural. Subjects and verbs
must match or “agree.”
The SAT will test this by sticking a long phrase or clause
between the subject and the verb, like so:
The importation of predator
species, which stems from a laudable desire to break with the usual
chemical methods of pest control, almost always lead to ecological
imbalance. |
See the error? If not, get rid of the intervening clause:
The importation of predator
species almost always lead to ecological imbalance. |
Can you see it now? If you still can’t see it, isolate
the subject and verb:
|
|
|
| | The importation of predator species | almost always | lead | |
| | Subject | | Verb | |
|
|
Predator species is not the subject—the importation of
predator species is. Importation is singular; lead is
the plural form of the verb. The singular form of the verb must
match the singular subject.
Hector leads the
Trojans.
The Trojans lead all
Anatolian city-states. |
The correct version is as follows:
The importation of predator
species, which stems from a laudable desire to break with the usual
chemical methods of pest control, almost always leads to ecological
imbalance. |
Is the following sentence correct?
Inside the wooden horse is
Achilles and Odysseus. |
Tricky! The subject is hidden here—it’s not the
wooden horse. What if you flipped the sentence around so
the subject, which we’re accustomed to seeing at the beginning of
a sentence, comes first:
Achilles and Odysseus is inside
the wooden horse. |
The is sticks out more when the sentence
is rewritten this way; it should be are. Achilles
and Odysseus is a compound subject; compound subjects take
plural verbs. Only the word and can create a compound
subject. As well as, or, and along
with do not create compound subjects.
Bill and Ted are excellent
adventurers.
Bill, as well as Ted, is an excellent
adventurer.
Bill, along with Ted, is an excellent
adventurer.
Bill or Ted is an excellent adventurer. |
What, if anything, is wrong with the following sentence?
Neither of those two airhead
adventurers are bright. |
The problem is that neither, either, and none take
singular, not plural, verbs. The correction is:
Neither of those two airhead
adventurers is bright. |
Finally, watch out for nouns that seem plural but are
actually singular, such as:
The series of
lectures was very interesting.
The team was ready
for the big game.
The couple finds happiness
in each other. |
Series, team, and couple are
singular nouns that refer to groups. Group, actually,
is another good example. By definition, a group has more than one
member, but a group itself is singular: one group; many groups.
