Sentences
Agreement in longer sentences
Find the real subject of a long sentence and make the verb agree with it, even when words come in between or the order is turned round.
He walks, they walk — agreement is easy when the subject and the verb are next to each other. It stops being easy the moment a sentence grows. English loves dropping a phrase in the middle, and your ear starts agreeing with whichever noun it heard last.
Cover the middle and look again
The bag of apples is on the shelf. Cover "of apples" and you are left with "the bag is". Whatever sits after of, in, on, with or between commas is describing the subject, not being it.
"Along with" does not add a subject
The captain, along with the players, is travelling by coach. Together with, as well as and along with all add company rather than a second subject, so the verb stays with the first noun.
"There" is never the subject
There is one mango. There are three mangoes. The word after the verb is what decides. Turn the sentence round in your head — three mangoes are there — and the answer falls out.
And makes two; or and nor pick the nearer one
Anil and his neighbour have finished — two people, plural. But with either...or and neither...nor the verb agrees with whichever subject is nearest: Neither the driver nor the guards were told. Swap them round and the verb changes with them.
Everyone, somebody, nothing, each — all singular
However many people they are standing for, these words take a singular verb. Everyone in the two teams is ready. Nothing was missing.
Worked example
Choose the verb: "The sound of the drums ____ (was / were) deafening."
Cover the phrase in the middle: "of the drums".
It begins with of, so it can only be describing the subject.
Try it together
Let us find the real subject three times.
In each sentence, cover the words in the middle and see what is left. Each answer is one word.
1.The box of chocolates ____ on the shelf. Write "is" or "are".
Have a go
There ____ several reasons for the delay.
Ready to practise?
Eight questions on what you have just read. Nothing is timed, and you can play as many times as you like.