Subject Verb Agreement
Subject-verb agreement matches the form of a verb to whether its subject is singular or plural, so a singular subject takes a singular verb, as in 'the dog barks', and a plural subject takes a plural verb, as in 'the dogs bark'. Agreement gets tricky when words sit between subject and verb, or the subject is a collective noun, indefinite pronoun, or joined by 'and'/'or'. It is a key KS3 and GCSE accuracy skill.
Before you start
Make sure you're comfortable with these topics first:
Method
- Find the true subject of the verb by ignoring any phrase that sits between the subject and the verb, e.g. in 'The list of items is long', the subject is 'list', not 'items'.
- Check whether the subject is singular or plural, then choose the matching verb form (singular subjects usually add -s in the present tense, e.g. she runs; plural subjects do not, e.g. they run).
- With two subjects joined by 'and', use a plural verb, e.g. Tom and Jack are here; with subjects joined by 'or'/'nor', match the verb to the nearer subject.
- With indefinite pronouns such as everyone, nobody or each, use a singular verb, even though they can feel like they refer to many people.
- With collective nouns such as team or family, use a singular verb when the group acts as one unit and a plural verb when members act as individuals.
- Read the sentence back checking only the subject and verb together, ignoring all other words, to confirm they agree.
Worked example
Choose the correct verb: 'The box of chocolates (was/were) left on the table.'
- Identify the true subject: 'box' (singular), not 'chocolates', which is inside a phrase describing the box.
- Match the verb to the singular subject 'box'.
- Choose 'was' rather than 'were'.
- Final answer: 'The box of chocolates was left on the table.'
Practice questions
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Exam-style questions
Written in the style of a English exam paper, with a full mark scheme.
Identify and correct the subject-verb agreement error in this sentence: 'The pile of old newspapers were causing a fire risk.'
Explain why the verb in 'Everybody in the class has finished the test' is singular, even though the sentence describes many students.
A student writes: 'The committee, along with several local residents, are planning to raise their concerns, but the number of objections remain low.' Identify both subject-verb agreement errors, explain the rule broken in each case, and rewrite the sentence correctly.
Free printable worksheet
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