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SINGULAR AND PLURAL When a word refers to one person,
place, thing or idea, it is singular in number.
When a word refers to more than one, it is plural in number.
Singular: circle, he, one, woman, loss
Plural: circles, they, some, women, losses
A SUBJECT MUST AGREE WITH ITS VERB
A singular subject takes a singular verb.
A plural subject takes a plural verb.
Generally speaking…
Subjects that end in an ‘s’ are plural.
Verbs that end in an ‘s’ are singular.
TO CHECK FOR AGREEMENT…
Isolate the subject and the verb.
Mexican art is interesting.
Mexican holidays vary greatly.
S V
S V
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E1. The fifth of May (is, are) an important
Mexican holiday.
2. Many Mexican Americans (celebrate,
celebrates) this holiday.
3. Some people (watch, watches) these
celebrations in Los Angeles.
4. Others (see, sees) them in San Antonio.
5. The celebrations (include, includes) parades
6. Bands (play, plays) Mexican and American
music.
7. Marchers (wear, wears) traditional costumes.
KEEP IN MIND…
If the sentence has a verb phrase, make
the first helping verb agree.
Bob has been studying art.
Dogs are known to roll around in mud.
1. We (have, has) learned about Mexican
traditions.
2. Immigrants (do, does) bring new traditions.
3. Mexican corridos (is, are) heard in the
Southwest.
4. In English, corridos (is, are) known as
ballads.
5. What (do, does) these ballads describe?
6. In them, heroes’ lives (has, have) been
recorded.
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AGREEMENT WITH COMPOUND SUBJECTS
1. Subjects joined by and usually take a
plural verb.
2. A compound subject that refers to only
one person or thing takes a singular
verb.
a. Sweet and sour is a common style of food
preparation.
3. Singular subjects joined by or or nor
take a singular verb.
a. Neither Lucy nor Susan likes lemonade.
b. Either Peter or Edward becomes king.
4. Plural subjects joined by or or nor take
a plural verb.
c. Strawberries or raspberries are in their
backyard.
5. When a singular subject and plural
subject are joined by or or nor, the verb
agrees with the subject closest to the
verb.
a. Unripe apples or sour milk makes you sick.
b. Sour milk or unripe apples make you sick.
1. ____ Vinegar and lemon juice (contain, contains) acids.
2. ____ Neither lemons nor limes (is, are) bases.
3. ____ Baking soda or soap (is, are) a salt.
4. ____ Acids and bases (combine, combines) to make salt.
5. ____ Acids and bases (is, are) our next topics in science
class.
6. ____ Fats or oils (is, are) added to bases to make soap.
7. ____Some food and common household items (contain,
contains) acids.
8. ____ Plaster and cement (is, are) made with bases.
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Proofreading: 4 errors in agreement, 2
spelling
Amy and Bethany have learned that
spaghetti and meatballs are the best-
known Italian dish. Lasagna and pizza is
also well known. But macarroni or tomato
sause are not in every Italian dish. Meat
juices or marinade are sometimes used
for flavor.
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SUBJECT/VERB CONTINUED:SPECIAL SITUATIONS
1. A collective noun, like flock or class
names a group. It takes a singular verb
when it refers to the whole group. It takes a
plural verb when it refers to parts of a
group.
a. The family is closely knit.
(The family unit is closely knit)
b. The family are meeting in Rochester.
(Individual members are meeting)
2. The subject usually follows the verb in
questions and in sentences beginning
with here or there. Make sure the subject
and verb still agree.
There is the house.
Try rephrasing, as in: The house is there.
3. The contractions here’s, there’s, and where’s contain the verb is and should only be used with singular subjects.
4. Words stating amounts are usually
singular.
a. Five dollars is a good price for that lunch.
5. A title is singular, even when plural in form.
a. Beauty and the Beast is a great movie for kids and adults alike!
6. The words don’t and doesn’t are contractions of do not and does not.
Use don’t with all plural subjects and with the pronouns I and you.
Use doesn’t with all singular subjects except I and you.a. Plaids don’t match with stripes.b. Brown doesn’t always go well with purple.
PR
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E1. Civics (is, are) his favorite subject.
2. The class (is, are) working on its science
project.
3. You (doesn’t, don’t) have enough money.
4. The family (is, are) discussing their vacation
plans.
5. (Has, Have) the jury reached a verdict?
6. Here (is, are) the canned goods for the food
drive.
7. A machine (doesn’t, don’t) work properly
unless it’s oiled.
8. The Magnificent Ambersons (is, are) a famous
movie.
A PRONOUN MUST AGREE WITH ITS ANTECEDENT
A pronoun usually refers to a noun or
another pronoun, called its antecedent.
Whenever you use a pronoun, make
sure it agrees with its antecedent.
1. A pronoun must agree with its
antecedent in number and gender;
Some singular personal pronouns have
forms that indicate gender.
a. Him, he, and his are masculine.
b. She, hers, and her are feminine.
c. It and its are neutral.
2. Sometimes, the antecedent of a
personal pronoun can be another kind of
pronoun, such as each, either, or none.
In such cases, you need to look in the
phrase that follows the antecedent to
determine which personal pronoun to
use.
a. Each of the men put his keys on a hook by
the door.
3. Some antecedents may be masculine
or feminine. When referring to such
antecedents, use both the masculine and
feminine pronoun.
a. Everybody in the group wanted his or her
own invitation.
4. Use a singular pronoun to refer to each,
either, neither, one, everyone, everybody,
no one, nobody, anyone, anybody,
someone, or somebody.
a. Nobody in the league wanted his or her
team to lose.
5. Use a plural pronoun to refer to two or
more antecedents joined by and.
a. Bill and Buddy will lend their microscopes
to the class.
Dairy products are a rich sourse of protein. They are also good sources of calcium and various vitamens. Unfortunately, many dairy products are high in fat. Almost everyone should include some dairy products in their diet. Yet, no one should do so without thinking about his fat intake. For example, Ms. Wittimer chooses low-fat dairy products such as yogert in her diet. Mr. and Mrs. Rubin include low-fat cottage cheese in their diet. The Ramirez sisters use skim milk with her breakfast sereals. Each of these individuals is making a sensable decision about their dairy products. By doing so, each is contributing to their own well-being.
DO
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AGREEMENTWITH INDEFINITE PRONOUNS
1. A pronoun that does not refer to a
specific (or definite) person, place, thing,
or idea is called an Indefinite Pronoun.
Refer to memorization lists
(gold worksheet)
2. The following indefinite pronouns are singular.
each, either, neither, one, everyone, everybody, no one, nobody, anyone, anybody, someone, somebody
a. Nobody on our street grows a better tomato than Otis.
3. The following indefinite pronouns are plural.
both, few, many, severala. Many of his tomatoes taste sweet and juicy.
4. All, any, most, none, and some may be either singular or plural.
The pronouns will always be followed by a prepositional phrase. The number of the object in the prepositional phrase determines the number of the pronoun.
a. If the pronoun refers to a singular object, it is singular.
b. If the pronoun refers to a plural object, it is plural.
4. CONTINUED…
None of his effort is wasted.
None [of his effort] is wasted.
Some of his tomatoes are fantastic!
Some [of his tomatoes] are fantastic!
**Isolate the prepositional phrase to find what the pronoun refers to!
1. One of my brothers (plant, plants)
tomatoes every year.
2. No one on the block (believe, believes)
his plants will grow.
3. Many of the plants (does, do) not do
very well.
4. Everyone in the neighborhood (say,
says) the soil is not good enough.
5. A few of them (reach, reaches) full
size.
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1. ____ All of my cousins (like, likes) mariachi
bands.
2. ____ Some of my classmates also (listen,
listens) to them.
3. ____ (Do, Does) any of the band play
multiple instruments?
4. ____ None of our neighbors ever (complain,
complains).
5. ____ Most of our music (is, are) fun to listen
to.
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