For example: – Is he or the students busy? Rule: when subjects are joined by or, either…or, neither…nor, the verb must agree with the nearer subject. Rule 7. Fill in the blanks with a verb form that agrees with the subject. “Dogs” is a plural subject that takes the … Either Kiana or Casey is helping today with stage decorations. Don’t either of your kids want dessert? Neither of the brothers want breakfast. Subject/verb agreement can be confusing when we use either…or or neither…nor couplets.As we’re presenting a noun phrase with multiple objects, it seems natural to use a plural, but the verb may often be in the singular.This depends on the nouns included; the option between two (either one or the other) does not create a plural on its own. Let’s look at both words and settle the issue of subject-verb agreement when they’re used as subjects. Subject verb agreement worksheet. In other words, when the either/neither phrase comes before the In recent years, the SAT testing service has considered none to be strictly singular. This depends on the nouns included; the option between two (either one or the other) The preceding sentence would read even better as: The staff members are deciding how they want to vote. Sometimes the subject is separated from the verb by such words as along with, as well as, besides, not, etc. (Technically, it is the singular subject of the object clause in the subjunctive mood: it were Friday.) Examples:
ELB has produced a series of bestselling English guides, available from all major retailers, with over 25,000 copies sold worldwide. Either the three elephants or the lone tiger is going to be cut from the second act. I don’t either. Should this be “am doctors” or “am a doctor?”. The word were replaces was in sentences that express a wish or are contrary to fact: Example: If Joe were here, you'd be sorry. have two nouns, the verb should then be singular: To Lou, I liked the three options she quoted from Barbara Walraff. Copyright by Jane Straus/GrammarBook.com. This Two singular subjects connected by or, either/or, or neither/nor require a singular verb. Edit wisely. Under the other condition, the choice between singular and plural will depend not only on the words either and neither, but on other words in your sentence as well. This rule can lead to bumps in the road. The politician, along with the newsmen, is expected shortly. Turn the reader's attention where you want it to go. Examples: Either the vase or the dish was/were a gift. Neither Rachel nor her sisters were telling the truth. Neither Peter nor James has any right to the property. Grammar Girl wasn’t very helpful with these subject-complement agreement sentences. There are four hurdles to jump. in the singular. Examples: Neither the plates nor the serving bowl goes on that shelf. Neither do I. X. Doesn’t either of your kids want dessert? That’s up to you to decide. Neither and either always take singular verbs when acting as the subject of a sentence. Kathy, some people do say me either when they mean me neither. Most of the jury is here OR are here. When the subjects connected by or or nor are of different persons, the verb agrees with the noun that comes closer to it. 5) “Both men relied heavily on their wife” or “Both men relied heavily on their wives”? 2. In this case we’re talking about two subjects linked by or or nor. Most of the time we want to be grammatically correct. Click a cover to learn more! risk being technically incorrect, if you wish to use a plural in these I can either. NCERT Guides.Com © 2020. If it isn’t clear, rewriting is always an option. Some of the pies are missing. Very helpful, but can I refer you to Fowler’s Modern English Usage (13th edn), p. 518, subsection 4 where it gives an example ‘Neither the Conservative figures nor the evidence of Labour’s recovery since 1993 produce any sense of inexorable movement in political fortunes’, Times 1985. Examples:
Lists of Verbs and Parallel Constructions. But either and neither are still singular, even when followed by a prepositional phrase containing a plural object. But you could change the word order. 1) “They visited each other’s shrine” or “They visited each other’s shrines.”. No prize or medal was given to the boy, though he stood first in the examination. Enter email address to subscribe and receive notifications of new posts by email. Join our Patreon team to keep ELB producing new and better content, and you’ll receive exclusive benefits. Not me either. If both subjects are singular or both plural, the choice for the verb is easy. I can’t either. October 30, 2020 by admin. nor the Conservative figures . examples above demonstrate, this isn’t strictly grammatically accurate, but But Joe isn't actually here, so we say were, not was. Both are acceptable beyond serious criticism." The following is the sort of flawed sentence one sees and hears a lot these days: The staff is deciding how they want to vote. Let’s look at examples. Ignore them and use a singular verb when the subject is singular. And action. Some questions include collective nouns. Rule 5b. It's about syntax. HINT: Try substituting they (plural pronoun), then use a plural verb (without “s”). Subject Verb Agreement Or Nor. Subject-verb agreement. Either Rachel or her sisters were telling a lie. What a great blog! A tricky agreement problem: Neither-nor When two subjects are joined by neither-nor or either-or, choosing the right number for the verb can be tricky for writers. A lot of the pie has disappeared. Either the chairs or the boxes have to be moved. A lot of the pies have disappeared. can be acceptable in informal settings. little strange to the ear, as there is an option of a plural completing the Subject Verb Agreement Worksheets Neither Nor. In this second condition, readers might be bothered by a plural subject being followed by a singular verb. C. Adjectives and Adverbs with Sense Verbs, B. Rule 4. 2. 5) “Both men relied heavily on their wives”—unless we’re talking two men married to the same woman, go with wives. Either his mother or my sisters are singing in the pub tonight. If in context it seems like a singular to you, use a singular verb; if it seems like a plural, use a plural verb. (These examples get around, don’t they?). Subject/verb of these options will complete the action, so when we have a choice between two Rule 6. This grammar worksheet is designed for students of classes 5 and 6. Either Rachel was telling the truth or her sisters were. Neither she, I, nor my friends are going to the festival. Example: The list of items is/are on the desk. This rule does not apply to the correlative pairs Either…or and Neither…nor, which are discussed in the next section. we present a choice between two different options. EXAMPLE: Neither the cat nor the dogs are going outside. A third of the people are unemployed. Those that truly sound wrong are the examples with the preposition of (of your daughters, of yours) following either or neither. (Here the verb are agrees with the second person pronoun you.) The either/neither question I run into most often in real life is which of the following is correct: Me neither or me either? The verb in an or, either/or, or neither/nor sentence agrees with the noun or pronoun closest to it. closest noun. Either do I. … Or if you have any tips of your own to share, please include them in the comment section. Keep in mind that we’re talking subjects that share a verb. Many students have troubles with collective nouns and subject-verb agreement. Here, neither is the subject and behaves like a singular noun. Examples:
Me either. Neither lions make good pets nor tigers make good pets. Here’s a tip that should prove helpful: there are different conditions to consider when you make your decisions about whether either and neither are singular or plural. The reader will focus on what stands out. Focus your attention on the noun closest to the verb. Rule 1. I’ve included quite a few—several with similar wordings. by Phil Williams | Apr 9, 2019 | Grammar | 0 comments. I wouldn’t either. Look for the either/or and neither/nor constructions. Again, . Examples:
All of my family has arrived OR have arrived. Professional Web Design by weblinxinc.com, Remembering Jane Straus | May 18, 1954—February 25, 2011. EXAMPLE: Neither the dogs nor the cat is going outside. In sentences beginning with here or there, the true subject follows the verb. couplets.As – Am either I or my antique gardening tools important to you? The word there's, a contraction of there is, leads to bad habits in informal sentences like There's a lot of people here today, because it's easier to say "there's" than "there are." If the noun is plural, choose the plural form of the verb. Subject / Verb Agreement Worksheet 2 Underline the correct verb in the parentheses. verb, the verb should agree with the second option. Either you or John has to pay for the drinks. This issue has been bugging me all night, and this is the clearest explanation I’ve come across. ? One of his examples is “each other’s car.”. cooking dinner or my dad is cooking dinner. Neither the accountant nor his clients know the combination. I do either. It contains some of the same examples. Either the bikes or the car is getting sold. Post was not sent - check your email addresses! (There are other uses of either and neither, but we’re going to focus on only the one issue in this article.). agree with whichever noun you assign it to: This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. It's about putting the words together to touch, to entertain, to move the reader. All Rights Reserved. For this reason some English speakers may (albeit This is a key rule for understanding subjects. We will use the standard of underlining subjects once and verbs twice. Though Both of us (is / are) voting in the next election.
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