Lesson 4: Knowing Your Grammar Part 3

Objectives:

• To learn the basic of subject-verb agreement
• To familiarize oneself on common errors in line with subject-verb agreement.
• To introduce the common writing mistakes and ways to avoid them.

Quick Navigation through the Lesson 4: Knowing your Grammar Part 3:

• Lesson Proper
• Grammar Rule 1,2 and 3
• Grammar Rule 4,5 and 6
• Grammar Rule 7,8 and 9
• Grammar Rule 10,11 and 12
• Grammar Rule 13,14 and 15
• Grammar Rule 16,17 and 18
• Grammar Rule 19 and 20
• Inconsistent Verb Tenses
• Disarrangement of Adjectives
• Mistakes in Adverbs
• Spelling Errors
• Incorrect Use of Articles
• Informal Writing

Lesson Proper:

A writing composition can be seen as a mathematical equation wherein both sides of the equation must be equal. This means that in writing subjects must always agree with the verb being used. The rule of thumb in subject-verb agreement is:

Singular subject takes singular tense of the verb and plural subjects take the plural tense of the verb.

Examples of sentences that follow the rule of thumb are as follows:

The verb is became are to denote the plural form.

The verb barks became bark to denote the plural form.

The verbs needs became need to denote the plural form.

Following the given table above, notice how the verb of each sentences change as they adjust to the number of subject given. This means that the basis of all the subject-agreement rules should agree with one another by number (singular or plural).

To be able to master the correct subject-verb agreement, one must take several years of practice and learning. Subject and verb agreement is the top area of mistakes that students and even professional writers commit because it can be intimidating and confusing in a lot of ways. Below is the list oF 20 other rules of thumb that summarize what is needed to be remembered in basic subject-verb agreement.

RULE 1:

Words that come in between of the subject and verb should NOT affect the agreement.

Examples:

The boy, who holds five apples, is the son of Martha.

Her advocacies, though not what I expected to be, are presented very well earlier.

RULE 2:

Indefinite pronouns are always singular. Anyone, someone, everyone, no one, nobody are samples of indefinite pronouns.

Examples:

Someone has been keeping an eye over you.

Everyone is suspect in this crime.

• “All” and “some” are kinds of indefinite pronouns that take either singular or plural tense of the verb depending on how it is used in a given sentence.

Example:

Some are not convinced with what he said.

All is well.

• “None” on the other hand is the only indefinite pronoun that can be singular or plural no matter how it is used in a given sentence.

Example:

None of you are my best friend.

None of you is my best friend.

RULE 3:

Prepositional phrases defined as phrases that describes a word and introduced by a preposition should NOT affect the agreement.

Examples:

The lady with blue eyes is pretty.

Those building next to the parking lot are owned by Mrs. Vera.

The dogs are asleep in his bed.

RULE 4:

“There” and “here” are not subjects. These two should follow the tense of the verb depending on what is written after the verb.

Examples:

There are rules that should be followed.

Here comes the bride.

RULE 5:

Doesn’t should always follow a singular subject for it is a contraction of does not while don’t should always follow a plural subject for it is a contraction of do not.

Examples:

She doesn’t talk much about him.

They don’t listen to you anymore.

RULE 6:

Take note that the subject doesn’t always come after the verb so view correctly the given sentence.

Example:

Where are the numbers written on the board?

RULE 7:

Plural form of the verb should be given for subjects joined by conjunction “and.”

Example:

I and Donna follow the rules and regulations of the school.

RULE 8:

If the subjects joined by conjunct “and” refer to the same person or the same thing use the singular form of the verb.

Examples:

Dancing is his bread and butter.

My favorite breakfast is red beans and rice.

RULE 9:

Subjects that are in singular form but joined with conjunctions or, nor, neither-nor, either-or, and not only/but also takes the singular form of the verb.

Examples:

Neither John nor Mark sings the alma mater well.

Kevin or Sam is to be blame for Kris’ misfortune.

RULE 10:

Fractional expressions such as a percentage of, half of, a portion of, a whole can be singular or plural depending on how they are used in a given sentence. Mathematical sums and products should be expressed in singular form thus taking the singular form of the verb. “More than enough” takes the singular form of the verb.

Examples:

Half of the apple was eaten.

Half of the jewelries were stolen.

One plus one is two.

Five times three equals 15.

More than enough hatred has consumed her heart after Brian left.

RULE 11:

Units of measurement or time take the singular form of the verb.

Examples:

10 lbs. is all that she has to gain before the competition.

Tomorrow is another day.

RULE 12:

Plural subjects separated by and, or, nor, neither-nor, either-or takes should have the plural form of the verb.

Examples:

Dogs and cats are her favorite pets.

Thieves or criminals are banned to enter this building.

RULE 13:

If in a sentence the first subject is singular and the second one is plural separated by and, or, nor, neither-nor, either-or, use the verb form nearest to the verb.

Example:

Neither the class officers nor the class president is to take full responsibility if what happened.

RULE 14:

Title of articles, books, novels, television programs etc. takes the singular form of the verb.

Examples:

The Lovely Bones is her favorite book

Keeping up with the Kardashians is one of the worst reality show ever.

RULE 15:

Collective nouns take the singular form of the verb. Crowd, class, herd and senate are some of the examples of collective nouns.

Example:

The class is misbehaving badly that I ever thought.

RULE 16:

Infinitives that are separated by and take the plural form of the verb.

Example:

To give action and to serve justice are some of the things she will do in the senate.

RULE 17:

Expressions such as including the, accompanied with, in addition to and together with follows the singular form of the verb.

Examples:

These books, including that in the corner, are mine.

Julia, accompanied by security guards, is the special guest of the night.

RULE 18:

The verb in compound sentences that consists of one positive subject and the other is a negative subject should follow the positive subject.

Examples:

The senators not the president are to be introduced in the meeting.

It is not the senators but the president who meets the deadlines on time.

RULE 19:

Gerunds that are used as subject in a given sentence use the singular form of the verb but when joined by the conjunction and should take the plural form of the verb.

Examples:

Singing is my only talent.

Blogging and reading are my hobbies.

RULE 20:

Note that only the subject can affect how the verb in a given sentence. Practice locating the subject first before agreeing to equate its tense with the verb.

In line with the general rule of thumbs in the subject-verb agreement there are other common mistakes that writers tend to do in the sentence construction. Being familiar with these common errors is highly advisable to achieve success in the essay paper assignment.

Mistakes and errors especially in printed materials can be a cause of embarrassment so keen observation to details is important for a better writing product. The six common mistakes in writing and the way to avoid them are written below.

1. Inconsistent verb tenses

Verbs are categorized depending on its tenses. Verbs in the present tense mean that the action is ongoing, verbs in the past tense mean that the action is already done while future tense of the verb mean that the action is to be done in the future. Now most written documents have inconsistencies with the tense of the verb used throughout the content of the paper. Switching from present tense to past tense, future tense and then back to present tense can be easily seen in academic papers.

Tips:

• Establish the tense that will be used in the written assignment.

• Be consistent with the chosen tense by rereading the paperwork between the lines.

• Only change the verb tense when there is a sudden time shift that needs to be highlighted.

2. Disarrangement of Adjectives

Adjectives are words that describe nouns. They are tricky when used more than once to refer to a specific noun. Adjectives follow a general order of: article, judgment, size, shape, age, color, nationality and material.

Example of Correct Adjective Arrangement in a sentence:

The big round new blue balloon is what he holds right now.

Tips:

• Keep in mind the correct order of adjectives in every writing assignment.

• Practice composing sentences with the proper adjective arrangement.

3. Mistakes in Adverbs

Adverbs are most commonly placed in a location where it is too far to the word it modifies. Adverbs should be placed near the word it modifies to properly signify its use in the sentence.

Tips:

• To avoid confusion, always place the adverb near the word it modifies.

• Do not verb an adverb in between the word “to” and a verb (E.g. to slowly walk) to avoid doing the split infinitive in traditional writing system.

4. Spelling errors

Spelling errors are to be avoided in essay writing for it can create confusion in the flow of the content. There are words that once misspelled can change the meaning of the sentence.

Tips:

• Verify with a dictionary or an online spell checker if the word or words seem unfamiliar.

5. Incorrect Use of Articles

The, a and an are three of the most common articles used in English grammar. “The” is a definite noun while “a/an” are called indefinite nouns. Confusion is highly expected with the choice of article to use on a given statement.

• Nouns that can be counted should be preceded by a/an.

• Uncountable nouns should not be preceded by any article.

• “A” is used before a consonant noun.

• “An” is used before a vowel noun.

• “An” is used for words with silent “h” sound such as hour and honor.

• “The” is used to a singular of plural noun that is specific or familiar with to the author.

6. Informal Writing

As an academic requirement and career prerequisite, essays should be written formally following the Basic English grammar rules. Being creative doesn’t have to mean being vulgar and choosing words or terms that are offensive and out of context.

• Choose properly every word that to be used in a sentence.

• Read each sentence and weigh in if it is formal or informal.

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Summary:

• The rule of thumb in subject-verb agreement is:

Singular subject takes singular tense of the verb and plural subjects take the plural tense of the verb.

• The verb of a sentence should change as it adjusts to the number of subject given.
• There are 20 rules in basic subject-verb agreement
  • Words that come in between of the subject and verb should NOT affect the agreement.
  • Indefinite pronouns are always singular.
  • Prepositional phrases should NOT affect the agreement.
  • Doesn’t should always follow a singular subject while don’t should always follow a plural subject
  • The subject doesn’t always come after the verb.
  • Subjects joined by conjunction “and” should be in plural form.
  • Subjects joined by conjunction “and” but refers to the same thing should be in singular form of the verb.
  • Subjects that are in singular form but joined with conjunctions or, nor, neither-nor, either-or, and not only/but should be in singular form of the verb.
  • Fractional expressions, mathematical sum and the term “more than enough” take the singular form of the verb.
  • Units of measurement or time take the singular form of the verb.
  • Plural subjects separated by and, or, nor, neither-nor, either-or takes should have the plural form of the verb.
  • If in a sentence the first subject is singular and the second one is plural separated by and, or, nor, neither-nor, either-or, use the verb form nearest to the verb.
  • Title of articles, books, novels, television programs etc. takes the singular form of the verb.
  • Collective nouns take the singular form of the verb.
  • Infinitives that are separated by and take the plural form of the verb.
  • Expressions such as including the, accompanied with, in addition to and together with follows the singular form of the verb.
  • The verb in compound sentences that consists of one positive subject and the other is a negative subject should follow the positive subject.
  • Gerunds that are used as subject in a given sentence use the singular form of the verb but when joined by the conjunction and should take the plural form of the verb.
  • Note that only the subject can affect how the verb in a given sentence.

   

• There are six most common mistakes writers commit:
  • Inconsistent verb tenses
  • Disarrangement of Adjectives
  • Mistakes in Adverbs
  • Spelling errors
  • Incorrect Use of Articles
  • Informal Writing