Subject-verb agreement is a grammatical rule that requires the verb in a sentence to match the subject in number (singular or plural) and sometimes person. In English, this means if the subject is singular, the verb must be singular; if the subject is plural, the verb must be plural
. For example:
- Singular subject: "The cat runs fast." (cat is singular, so the verb runs is singular)
- Plural subject: "The cats run fast." (cats is plural, so the verb run is plural)
The rule also applies to pronouns and irregular verbs such as "to be" and "to have," which change form based on person and number:
- I am, you are, he/she/it is (for "to be")
- I have, you have, he/she/it has (for "to have")
Some additional points:
- When subjects are joined by "and," the verb is plural.
- When subjects are joined by "or" or "nor," the verb agrees with the nearest subject.
- Collective nouns can take singular or plural verbs depending on whether the group acts as one unit or as individuals
In summary, subject-verb agreement ensures clarity by matching the subject and verb forms correctly according to number and sometimes person, which is essential for grammatical correctness in English sentences
