SUPPLEMENTARY 2
C. SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT
Sentences have subjects and verbs. In English, the verb in a sentence changes to match the subject, depending on whether the subject is singular or plural. We usually change a singular present verb by adding an ‘s’ or ‘es’. Example:
Adam lives in Shah Alam.
The verb must have‘ s’
Singular subject
Many students live in Shah Alam.
The verb does not have‘ s’
Plural subject
Singular verbs / Plural verbsPresent tense / Has
Is
Verb with ‘es/s’ / Have
Are
Verb with no ‘es/s’
Past tense / Had
Was / Had
Were
RULES IN SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT
1. The singular verb is used when:
a) a collective noun is considered as a whole
b) an abstract noun or uncountable noun is used
c) Titles of written works, films and other works of art are mentioned, as do the names of companies and words that are referred to as words.
d) Expressions like ‘with’, ‘including’, ‘as well as’ and ‘together with’ are used.
e) the following expressions are used: ‘each’, ‘one of’,‘ much’, ‘every’, ‘someone’ and ‘anything’
2. The plural verb is used when:
a) two or more subjects are joined by ‘and’
b) referring to individual units of a collective noun
c) when referring to a specific groups pf people such as “the needy”, “the less fortunate”, “the young”
d) With many, several, a few, both
e) With nouns like “people”, “police”, “public”
3. The Singular or Plural Verbs
a) The verb agrees with the nearest subject when two or more subjects are joined by
or / The cousins or Aunt Matilda herself is going to arrange the party.Aunt Matilda or the cousins are going to arrange the party.
either ... or / Either Aunt Matilda or the cousins have drunk all the brandy.
Either the cousins or Aunt Matilda has drunk all the brandy.
neither ... nor / Neither Aunt Matilda nor the cousins have drunk all the brandy.
Neither the cousins nor Aunt Matilda has drunk all the brandy.
not only... but also / Not only Aunt Matilda but also the cousins have drunk all the brandy.
Not only the cousins but also Aunt Matilda has drunk all the brandy.
b) These indefinite words can have singular or plural verbs, depending on the meaning of the subject.
all / All she wants is to be happy.All her dreams have come true.
any / Any friend of yours is a friend of mine.
Any friends he had were few and far between.
enough / Enough has been said about that already.
Enough people have been hurt already.
most / Most of his day is spent reading.
Most boys in New Zealand play rugby.
some / Some fool is firing a rifle in the woodshed.
Some girls play rugby, too.
c) Some subjects that refer to groups of people can take either singular or plural verbs
team / The team has arrived.The team have arrived.
family / Our family is a strange group of people.
Our family are a strange lot.
jury / The jury has not yet reached a verdict.
The jury are coming out of the jury room now.
crowd / The crowd goes wild every time he touches the ball.
The crowd are becoming unmanageable.
class / Our class hasn't so many people in it this year.
Our class are going on a field trip next week.
committee / The committee is meeting at Mary's house this week.
The committee are having trouble making a decision.
d) Sometimes the subject is referred to as a singular group yet it requires a plural verb
few / A few of the members disagree with the proposal.handful / Only a handful of the protesters remain.
12. With there is and there are, the verb depends on what follows.
There are more things to heaven and earth....There is a tavern in the town.
Exercise A
Choose the correct form of the verb that agrees with the subject.
1. Annie and her brothers (is, are) at school.
2. Either my mother or my father (is, are) coming to the meeting.
3. The dog or the cats (is, are) outside.
4. Either my shoes or your coat (is, are) always on the floor.
5. George and Tamara (doesn't, don't) want to see that movie.
6. Benito (doesn't, don't) know the answer.
7. One of my sisters (is, are) going on a trip to France.
8. The man with all the birds (live, lives) on my street.
9. The movie, including all the previews, (take, takes) about two hours to watch.
10. The players, as well as the captain, (want, wants) to win.
11. Either answer (is, are) acceptable.
12. Every one of those books (is, are) fiction.
13. Nobody (know, knows) the trouble I've seen.
14. (Is, Are) the news on at five or six?
15. Mathematics (is, are) John's favourite subject, while Civics (is, are) Andrea's favourite subject.
16. Eight dollars (is, are) the price of a movie these days.
17. (Is, Are) the tweezers in this drawer?
18. Your pants (is, are) at the cleaner's.
19. There (was, were) fifteen candies in that bag. Now there (is, are) only one left!
20. The committee (debates, debate) these questions carefully.
21. The committee (leads, lead) very different lives in private.
22. The Prime Minister, together with his wife, (greets, greet) the press cordially.
23. All of the CDs, even the scratched one, (is, are) in this case.
Exercise B
Circle the verbs in the following sentences. Some verbs consist of a phrase (several words)
1. The children are playing
2. There is a black cat somewhere
3. Do these exercises!
4. I hate rain in the evenings because I must stay back.
5. I love the colour pink.
6. I thought I saw Uncle Ben last night.
7. The computer is broken
8. I have been talking to Amy
9. You should show your parents some respect
10. It rained heavily last night.
11. Meera and I had an argument yesterday
12. Books are fun
13. I bake cake once a month.
Exercise C
Read the following conversation. Then complete each of the blanks with the correct verbs.
Fatini : Both Ivana and Joo Ling (1) bought a new car each. Don’t you think that’s great?
Yahya : Of course not. They obviously (2) adding traffic to our already congested roads.
Erra : I (3) My neighbour with the cute poodle (4) three cars! Everyone in his family (5)
Fatini : Three cars (6) not that bad, I suppose. I have seen a house with five cars parked in the
compound.
Yahya : The situation (7) not getting any better with more and more affordable cars made
available in the market. Very soon, the traffic jams in our city will be as nasty as those
in Bangkok and Tokyo.
Fatini : Yesterday, Ivana and I (8) in town, testing out her new car. Either Ivana was slow or
there (9) just too many impatient drivers who felt we were in their way. I think it’s less
stressful taking a bus to town.
Erra : One effective way to reduce traffic congestion (10) to rely on public transport.
1. A is C has
B are D have
2. A is C was
B are D were
3. A agree C agreed
B agrees D agreeing
4. A has C had
B have D having
5. A drive C drives
B driving D drove
6. A is C was
B are D were
7. A has C is
B had D are
8. A is C are
B was D were
9. A is C was
B are D were
10. A is C has
B was D have
D. ADVERBS
An adverb is a word that modifies a verb, an adjective or another adverb.
Examples: The baby crawls slowly.
(slowly describes the verb crawls)
This is a very old car.
(very describes the adjective old)
He completed his homework very quickly.
(very describes the adverb quickly)
1. Formation of adverb
Most adverbs are formed from adjectives by the addition of ‘y’, ‘ly’, ‘ily’ or ‘ally’.
ADJECTIVE(-e) / ADD / ADVERB / ADJECTIVE
(-y) / ADD / ADVERB
able
simple
capable
possible
gentle / ‘y’ / ably
simply
capably
possibly
gently / easy
noisy
lucky
busy
tidy / ‘ily’ / easily
noisily
luckily
busily
tidily
ADJECTIVE
(1 syllable) / ADD / ADVERB / ADJECTIVE
(-ic) / ADD / ADVERB
safe
bad
dear
wise
clear / ‘ly’ / safely
badly
dearly
wisely
clearly / terrific
specific
logic
systematic
fantastic / ‘ally’ / terrifically
specifically
logically
systematically
fantastically
Some adverbs have the same form as adjectives.
ADJECTIVE / ADVERB1 (a) We had an early lunch.
2 (a) I am not well today.
3 (a) The bread is very hard. / 1 (b) We ate lunch early
2 (b) This report is well written
3 (b) He worked hard.
2. Types of Adverbs
Adverbs commonly answer the questions how (manner), when (time), where (place), to what extent (degree) and how often (frequency).
EXAMPLES OF ADVERBS / ANSWERS THE QUESTIONS / TYPES OF ADVERBS1. (a) He reached home today.
(b) He went to the office yesterday.
2. (a) They looked everywhere for his
spectacles.
(b) The boy was here two minutes ago.
3. (a) Hassan writes neatly.
(b) Drive cautiously on a wet road.
4. (a) I could hardly hear him.
(b) The cloth is extremely tight for her.
5. (a) He usually comes on Saturday
(b) They rarely go out at weekends.
/ When
Where
How
To what extent
How often / Time
Place
Manner
Degree
Frequency
Exercise A
Underline the adverbs and write in the brackets whether they are adverbs of time, place, manner, degree or frequency.
Example: We jog daily (frequency).
1. I am currently under treatment. ( )
2. My mother is teaching my brother patiently to read. ( )
3. Susan had this illness before. ( )
4. Mr Ganesan lives here. ( )
5. I have almost completed my work. ( )
6. Devi is rarely quiet in class. ( )
7. She spoke proudly of her past experience. ( )
8. It usually rains in December. ( )
9. Her dress was extremely tight. ( )
10. Eugene is sleeping soundly. ( )
Exercise B
Rewrite these sentences by replacing the underlined words with suitable adverbs.
Example: The proud boy replied in a haughty manner.
The proud boy replied haughtily.
1. The magician appeared on stage two times.
2. The players felt that the referee had judged the match without fairness.
3. They looked at the dead dog with sadness in their eyes.
4. He performed the job in an excellent way.
5. My uncle takes us to his farm on occasion.
6. She answered the principal’s question with fear in her voice.
7. The old man advised the young children in a wise manner.
8. We wipe the window grilles once a month.
9. The supervisor spoke to the salesman in an angry tone.
10. You should handle these plates with care.
11. These girls helped their friend without hesitation.
12. That boy sneered at the poor man in a taunting way.
Exercise C
Underline the adverb in each sentence.
1. A microwave can cook food fast.
2. Jun sang very loudly.
3. Joe dresses very informally.
4. Sam walks very shakily, because he’s getting old.
5. It rained hard yesterday.
6. We hardly ever use the microwave.
7. She adapted quickly to any situations.
8. Andrea knows the material very well
9. He is awfully late.
10. When you are a parent, you will think differently about children.
11. She dances gracefully.
12. The hotel was fully booked as it was Christmas.
13. He truly did love her.
14. They were totally engrossed in the movie.
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