English/English in use/Subject-verb agreement
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English/English in use/Subject-verb agreement
English features a loose conjugation and declension pattern. For this reason, subject-verb agreement is of paramount importance.
Subject-Verb agreement is a rule which states that the number present in a noun must agree with the number shown in the conjugated form of the verb that is being used, and that the person of the noun must agree with the person of the conjugated form of the verb that you are using.
Proper Subject-Verb agreement:
* TO BE: I am - you are - he is - we are - you are - they are
* TO WORK: I work - you work - he works - we work - you work - they work
Where the subject is a pronoun or complex or modified as part of an adjectival phrase, or modified by parenthetic expressions, or clarified in meaning by common knowledge or something that occurs later in the sentence, then subject-verb agreement can become a little more complicated. Some grammar rules say that the complex part of the subject closest to verb in the sentence should determine the verbal agreement. However, many examples can be found that make this sound funny. A better rule is to consider the entire complex subject phrase as one subject, and then think about what kind of thing it represents.
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