# English in Use/Subject-verb Agreement

English features a loose conjugation and declension pattern. For this
reason, subject-verb agreement is of paramount importance.

Subject-Verb agreement is a rule which states that the number present in
a noun must agree with the number shown in the conjugated form of the
verb that is being used, and that the person of the noun must agree with
the person of the conjugated form of the verb that you are using.

Proper Subject-Verb agreement:

-   **TO BE**: I am - you are - he is - we are - you are - they are
-   **TO WORK**: I work - you work - he works - we work - you work -
    they work

Where the subject is a pronoun or complex or modified as part of an
adjectival phrase, or modified by parenthetic expressions, or clarified
in meaning by common knowledge or something that occurs later in the
sentence, then subject-verb agreement can become a little more
complicated. Some grammar rules say that the complex part of the subject
closest to verb in the sentence should determine the verbal agreement.
However, many examples can be found that make this sound funny. A better
rule is to consider the entire complex subject phrase as one subject,
and then think about what kind of thing it represents.

The basic idea in idiomatic English is to make the verb agree with the
idea that the subject REPRESENTS, which could have different plurality
than the actual subject as a word. This is actually helpful in
understanding meaning since it gives subject-verb agreement a role that
is not simply redundant (in echoing the pluarity of the subject).
Whatever the subject represents can be considered singular or plural,
and that is what the verb should agree with.

-   The president and the children (plural) are at the party.
-   Neither the president nor the children (plural) are at the party.
-   Either the president or the children (plural) are at the party.
-   Neither the children nor the president (singular) is at the party.
-   Somebody (singular) is at the party.
-   Nobody (singular) is at the party.
-   We (plural 1st person) are at the party.
-   I (singular 1st person) am at the party.
-   The Three Musketeers (singular-book) is a good book.
-   Ten dollars (singular) is enough to buy the book.
-   Ten dollars (plural) are in my pocket.
-   Economics (singular subject of study) is an interesting subject.
-   Bryans and Hastings (singular supermarket) is a great place to shop.
-   The idea of serving frankfurters (singular idea) is a good one.
-   My sister is (singular) with my friend, Roberta, at the party.
-   My sister and my friend are (both) at the party.

In many cases, the author decides whether the subject represents
something singular or plural, depending upon which idea is desired to be
expressed. For example, a group can act as a whole (singular) or as a
group of individuals (plural), and despite many attempts at making rules
for this, there is no simple rule that covers all cases:

-   All of my family is going camping.
-   Most of my family is at the party.
-   All of my family are fans.
-   Some of my family are fans.
-   Most of my family is at the party.
-   Most of my family are at the party.
-   Some of my family are in their homes.
-   The sounds the car makes, the ways they irritate (singular idea
    stated with 2 phrases)\--it is all the same idea no matter how you
    say it.

Another needed example is one in which the noun that is clearly singular
until the entire sentence is read, and something near the end changes
the meaning of the noun so that it clearly represents a plural thing.

