Subject-Verb Agreement

Form

The verb agrees with its subject.

A singular subject takes a singular verb (My brother lives nearby. The bus is late.), and a plural subject takes a plural verb (My parents live nearby. The buses are late.). In the present simple, he, she, it, and any one person or thing add -s or -es to the verb (she works, he watches) and use does and doesn't; I, you, we, they, and plural nouns use the base form with do and don't. Be has its own forms: am, is, and are in the present, was and were in the past. To find the subject, skip the words between it and the verb: The keys to the car are on the table.

When to Use It

1. 1

   Add -s or -es to a present simple verb after he, she, it, or one person or thing

   My sister plays the piano.

2. 2

   Use a plural verb when two subjects are joined by and

   Tom and Ana live on my street.

3. 3

   Find the real subject, not the noun closest to the verb

   The keys to the car are on the table.

4. 4

   Treat everyone, everybody, somebody, nobody, each, and every as singular

   Everyone loves this song.

5. 5

   After one of or each of plus a plural noun, the verb is still singular

   One of my friends has a boat.

6. 6

   Give uncountable nouns (news, advice, furniture, homework) and -ing subjects a singular verb

   The news is good and Swimming is fun.

7. 7

   Use there is before a singular noun and there are before a plural noun

   There are two eggs in the fridge.

8. 8

   A lot of and a number of with a plural noun take a plural verb, but the number of takes a singular verb

   The number of cars is growing.

Common Mistakes

• Leaving the -s off after he, she, or it: write She works on Saturdays, not She work on Saturdays.
• Using don't with he, she, or it: write He doesn't like coffee, not He don't like coffee.
• Agreeing with the nearest noun: write The price of apples has gone up, not The price of apples have gone up — the subject is price.
• Giving everyone a plural verb: write Everyone has a ticket, not Everyone have a ticket.
• Treating people as singular: write People are friendly here, not People is friendly here.
• Treating news as plural because of the -s: write The news is on at six, not The news are on at six.