Writing Articles

Subject-Verb Agreement

The main verb must agree with the subject of the sentence or clause. If the subject is singular, the verb is singular. If the subject is plural, the verb is plural

(The graph shows the cost of different clothing items. (singular subject, singular verb

(The graphs show the cost of different clothing items. (plural subject, plural verb

.Non-count nouns always take a singular verb

(Milk costs more in the winter. (non-count noun, singular verb

Know the subject of your sentence. Sometimes there might be a phrase or clause between the subject and the verb

(The computers sold by that company are more expensive. (plural subject, plural verb

.Some nouns look plural but are actually singular. Nouns that end with -ics are singular (mathematics, politics, athletics)

.(The names of diseases are singular (mumps, meas/es

.The noun news is singular

.Mathematics was the most popular school subject last semester (singular subject, singular verb)

.The names of companies are singular, even if they include plural words

.Intelligent Systems sells more computers than its competitors (singular subject, singular verb)

.Sums of money take singular verbs

(Five hundred dollars isn’t a very large sum of money. (singular subject, singular verb

Words that begin with every and no (everybody, everything, nobody, nothing) take singular verbs

(Everyone rides the bus for free after midnight. (singular subject, singular verb

Study the chart and the model essay below. Complete the blanks with the correct form of the verbs in parentheses. Choose the verb that agrees with the subject

The chart below presents the breakdown of professional time for elementary school teachers in the Wardsville school district

Model Essay

A. …………… (spend/spends) their professional time. Teachers working in elementary school 3 …………… (spend/spends) the largest portion of their time in the classroom. Professional development activities, on the otherhand, …………… (take/takes) up the least amount of teachers’ time An elementary school teacher in Wardsville …………… (spend/spends) a little over half of his or her professional time-60 percent of it-in the classroom. The rest of the time …………… (are/is) taken up with activities such as preparation, meetings, and professional development activities. Preparation ………… (take/takes) up one-fourth of a teacher’s professional time. Meetings …………… (take/takes) up 10 percent of it. Professional development activities …………… (account/accounts) for just 5 percent of a teacher’s time. Overall, the chart …………… (show/shows) that teachers …………… (spend/spends) a significant portion of their professional time outside of the classroom. Forty percent of their time-close to half of it-………….. . (are/is) spent in other types of activities

  : Answers

shows\ spend\ spend\ take\ spends\ is\ takes\ take\ account\ shows\ spend\ is