Subject-Verb Agreement

Every agreement question is solved in two steps. First decide whether the subject is singular or plural. Then give it the verb that belongs to that number.

You is always plural in grammar, even when you are speaking to one person. We and they are plural too. If two names are joined by and, they are two persons.

✔ Radhika is a doctor. (singular)
✔ Radhika and Kavita are friends. (two persons)
✔ You are my best friend. (you is always plural)
✘ This boy are not prepared for the test. (use is)
✘ These boys is not prepared for the test. (use are)

The word I has its own verbs. I names one person, but we never write I is or I are. The present verb is am, the past verb is was, and we use have and do. In the present indefinite the verb stays in V1, so we write I get, never I gets.

✘ I is angry with myself. (use am)
✘ I gets a handsome salary. (use get)

Only the first word of the verb carries the number. In does not go, has been, can go or did not see, the first word decides. Once does has taken the singular, the main verb after it stays in V1.

✘ He does not goes to school. (use go)
✔ He does not go to school.
✔ She can sing well. (a modal never takes -s)

Watch the singular-looking and plural-looking words.

• A title or a name is one thing, however it looks. Three Idiots is one film and Malgudi Days is one book, so both take a singular verb.
• Some words come from Latin and Greek. Bacterium and phenomenon are singular. Bacteria and phenomena are plural. So we write These phenomena do not occur here and The bacterium was found in the sample.
• No is neither singular nor plural. The verb follows the noun that comes after it. (This is dealt with fully in the unit on and.)

Subjunctive mood is outside these concepts. The present subjunctive always uses the base form, and the past subjunctive uses were or had + V3, never was.

✔ May God bless you. (base form bless, even though God is singular)
✔ I wish I were a king. (were, even with I)

Exams often use nouns whose form is misleading. The five groups below should be studied carefully.

[[chips: news | mathematics | physics | measles | ethics | billiards]]

1. Uncountable nouns are singular. We cannot count them one by one, so they are written in the singular form and always take a singular verb. They never take -s and never come after a few or many.

Uncountable nouns that come often in the exam: luggage, baggage, knowledge, damage, garbage, poetry, crockery, machinery, stationery, scenery, jewellery, cutlery, food, fuel, money, handicraft, work, furniture, advice, information, education, experience, hair, evidence, harm, health, bread, paper, glass, chalk, clothing, music, traffic, weather, mischief, behaviour, travel, equipment, hardware, junk, hatred.

✘ He gave me some advices. (use advice)
✘ I have bought a few furnitures. (use furniture)
✘ Milks are sweet. (use Milk is sweet)

2. Nouns that look singular but are plural. These words have no -s, yet they mean many. So no -s is added to them, and the verb is plural: people, police, children, poultry, gentry, peasantry, clergy, vermin, cattle.

✘ There are five childrens in the room. (use five children)
✘ There are six peoples working together. (use six people)
✔ The police have arrested the culprit.

3. Nouns that look plural but are singular. These end in -s, but each names one subject, one disease or one game: news, mathematics, physics, politics, measles, rickets, mumps, shambles, phonetics, billiards, dominoes, athletics, civics, linguistics, ethics.

✘ The news were greeted with astonishment. (use was)
✘ Billiards are known as the rich man's game. (use is)
✘ Measles have caused havoc in the town. (use has)

> When politics, mathematics, statistics and similar words are used in some sense other than the name of a subject, they are treated as plural nouns.

✘ Politics are my favourite subject of study. (use is; here it is the name of a subject)
✘ His politics is weak and that is why he cannot take part in social conversation. (use are; here politics means his views and understanding)

4. The + adjective = a group of people. When the and an adjective stand as the subject, they name a whole class or community, so the sense is plural. They take a plural verb, and we never add -s to the adjective.

The blind, the deaf, the destitute, the poor, the dead, the rich, the wealthy, the dying, the elderly, the faithful, the homeless, the injured, the insane, the jobless, the old, the young

✘ The rich has always exploited the poor living in the slum areas. (use have)
✘ The poor doesn't go to the cinema. (use don't)
✘ We should help the poors. (use the poor)

5. Titles and names are one thing. The Arabian Nights is one book, so it takes has, not have.

✔ The Arabian Nights has many interesting stories for readers.

Some nouns name a group but look singular: jury, team, family, committee, class, board, panel, staff. They can take a singular or a plural verb. The meaning decides, and the test is simple: is the group acting as one body, or are its members acting separately?

[[chips: jury | team | family | committee | class | board | panel | staff]]

• Unified sense (one body, one decision): singular verb and singular pronoun (it, its, itself).
• Divided sense (members acting or thinking separately): plural verb and plural pronoun (they, their, themselves).

✔ The jury has given its verdict unanimously. (one verdict from one body)
✔ The jury were arguing among themselves. (members arguing, so themselves, not itself)
✔ The committee was praised for its thorough research and analysis.
✔ The committee were divided and postponed the vote until Monday.
✔ The class consists of 50 students.
✔ The team are packing their bags to travel from Mumbai to Chennai. (bags belong to the players, not to the team)

> The pronoun used later in the sentence must match the verb. If has appears with their, or were with its, one of them is wrong.

[[say:radhika| How can we know which sense the examiner wants?]]

[[say:sir| Read the rest of the sentence. Words like verdict, decision, unanimous, agreement point to one body. Words like arguing, divided, among themselves, their bags point to separate members. If the question keeps both a verb and a pronoun, they must agree with each other.]]

Plural forms of these nouns. If the noun itself is written in the plural (teams, families, committees), it always takes a plural verb and a plural pronoun.

✔ Our families have faith in our relationship.

Do not confuse the group noun with the people inside it. In A part of the rural population has migrated to the cities, the subject is a part, taken as a single piece, so the verb is singular.

Words that measure time, distance, height or amount (hour, year, metre, inch, rupee) are always written in the plural form. Their verb depends on how we look at them.

• If they act as one block, the verb is singular.
• If they show different units, counted one by one, the verb is plural.

Test: speak the sentence in Hindi. Would it be said as "बीस साल एक लंबा समय है" (one block), or "बीस साल बीत गए" (one after another)?

✔ Twenty years is a long time. (one block of time)
✔ Twenty years have passed. (the years passed one by one)
✔ One kilometre is equal to 1000 metres.
✔ Ten thousand rupees is a small amount.
✔ Five kilometres is a big distance to cover on foot.

> A measure is usually treated as one unit when a linking verb follows it and the article a / an comes after that: *Twenty years is a long time*. Do not make the verb plural just because the number is big.

Days counted one by one, or one period?

✔ The first 20 days of our journey were painful. (each day was painful)
✔ The first 20 days of our journey was a painful period. (all twenty days together, one period)

When the real subject is the activity, not the number. If the number is followed by of + something, check what is being talked about.

✔ Ten hours of focused writing before dawn has unlocked the stalled chapter. (we are speaking about the writing)
✔ Twenty days of rigorous training has made him stronger. (we are speaking about the training, not the days)

Coins or notes counted one by one. ₹1000 in mixed coins, where each coin is counted separately, takes a plural verb: The coins were counted twice.

All three structures talk about a group, but the verb follows only one person or thing.

1. One of + the + plural noun + singular verb. The real subject is one. The plural noun after of only tells us which group the one comes from. So the noun is plural and the verb is singular.

✘ One of the girl are sitting here. (use girls ... is)
✘ One of the dress are my favourite. (use dresses ... is)
✔ One of my closest friends lives in Pune.

> Say *one of the boys*, not one of boys. The pattern needs the article or a possessive, and the noun after it must be plural.

2. More than one. The words more than one are followed by a singular noun and a singular verb. The reason: the word that really counts is one.

If the noun comes between more and than, the noun is plural and the verb is plural. And with a number above one (more than two, more than five), everything is plural.

• More than one + singular noun → singular verb
• More + plural noun + than one → plural verb
• More than two / five / hundred + plural noun → plural verb

✔ More than one player is injured.
✔ More players than one are injured.
✔ More than five books have been written by me.
✘ More students than one is absent. (use are)
✘ More than one cars were involved in the race. (use car was)

3. Many a. Many a means many, but it always takes a singular noun and a singular verb. A pronoun that follows is singular too.

✔ Many a man has succumbed to his temptation.
✔ Many a thing is used for the show.

Words that tell how much or how many come in two kinds. Some let the noun after them decide the verb. Others fix the verb by themselves.

1. The noun decides: fractions, some, all, any, most, half. With *some of, a lot of, plenty of, one third of, two fifths of, all of, most of, half of, 50%, 50% of*, look at the noun that follows of.

• Uncountable or singular noun → singular verb.
• Plural noun → plural verb.

✔ Two thirds of the cows were grazing in the field. (cows, plural)
✔ Two thirds of the book was rubbish. (book, singular)
✔ Some of the water has been wasted. (water, uncountable)
✔ Most of the furniture was sold. (furniture is uncountable)
✔ Half of my friends live abroad.
✔ More than half the drain has been desilted.

All and some at the start follow the same concept: some / all / any + uncountable noun → singular verb; some / all / any + plural noun → plural verb. These words are not normally used with a singular countable noun (we do not say some book); any can be used with one.

✘ Some book was left on the table. (use Some books were)
✘ Some water were wasted. (use was)

> When all stands alone, the meaning decides. All is well means everything is well (singular). All are well means all the people are well (plural).

2. The word itself fixes the verb.

• Uncountable: much (of), little (of), less, a great deal of, a large amount of. An uncountable noun follows and the verb is singular. ✔ Much of the water is polluted. ✔ A large amount of money was invested.
• Plural: both, few, a few, many, a great many, several, a dozen, a million, a number of, a large number of. A plural noun and a plural verb follow. ✔ A number of trees are planted in the ground. ✔ Both sides wanted peace. ✔ Few boys were absent yesterday.

A number of and the number of.

• A number of = many, so the verb is plural. ✔ A number of boys have arrived.
• The number of = the exact figure, so the verb is singular. ✔ The number of boys has increased.

> A fraction is usually followed by of. One third is singular in form; two thirds is plural in form. Even so, the verb is decided by the noun after of.

These words look at people or things one at a time, so the verb is singular.

[[chips: each | either | neither | everyone | everybody | nobody | none]]

1. Always singular: each, either, neither, every, everyone, everybody, everything, someone, somebody, something, anyone, anybody, anything, no one, nobody, nothing, none.

✘ Everyone were enjoying the party. (use was)
✘ Everybody are going on the picnic. (use is)
✔ Everything is ready.

2. Each of / either of / neither of / any of / none of + plural noun + singular verb. The noun after of is plural, but the verb follows the first word.

✘ Each of my friend is kind. (use my friends)
✘ Neither of the students have attended the lecture. (use has)
✔ Each of the pictures has been signed by the football star.
✔ Neither of the proposed strategies seems to address the core issue.
✔ None of the passengers was found sitting in his seat.
✔ Are any of the candidates ready? (in a question, any of commonly takes a plural verb)

> Some dictionaries allow a plural verb after none of. In exam questions, follow the singular verb that SSC keys prefer: none of the passengers was found sitting in his seat. A plural verb (none of the books are missing) is common and not wrong in everyday English.

Any has two faces. Any of the suggestions is acceptable (with of, singular). Any suggestions are welcome (no of, plural noun, plural verb).

3. A singular countable noun comes straight after each, every, either, neither, another, many a. No of, no plural.

✘ Each students have been given his own email address. (use student has)
✘ She wears a ring on each fingers. (use finger)
✘ Every of the students came. (every is only a determiner; it cannot be followed by of)

4. Each after a plural subject. Each is sometimes placed after a plural subject. Then the subject decides, and the verb is plural.

✘ They each has been given an apple. (use have)
✘ We each needs food, water and shelter to live. (use need)

5. The possessive follows the verb. Words that make a singular subject (everyone, everybody, each, either, neither, none of, one of, many a) take a singular possessive: his / her / its, not their. Remember the line: जैसी verb, वैसा possessive।

✔ Everyone must bring his own book.
✔ None of the passengers was found sitting in his seat.
✔ One of the boys forgot his bag.
✘ Everyone must bring their own book. (the exam key prefers his; their is accepted in modern English)

In most sentences the subject comes first and the verb follows. In the sentences below, the verb comes before the subject. The verb is still decided by the subject, so you must find it after the verb.

1. Sentences that begin with There or Here. There and here are only adverbs; they are not the subject. The verb agrees with the noun or pronoun that comes after it.

✔ There is a book on the table.
✔ There are two books on the table.
✔ Here are the keys you were looking for.
✘ There is no seats in this compartment. (use are)
✘ There have been a tornado watch issued for Texas. (use has been; the subject is a tornado watch)
✘ There is too many pieces of glass on the ground. (use are)

2. An adverb of place at the start. When a place word or phrase opens the sentence, the verb is written before the subject (inversion). The structure is:

• Adverb of place + singular verb + singular noun
• Adverb of place + plural verb + plural noun

✔ Above the clouds is a beautiful sky. (subject: sky)
✔ Along the northern boundary of India lie the Himalayas. (subject: Himalayas)
✔ Attached to the parcel was a handwritten note. (subject: note)

[[parse: A=Along the northern boundary of India | V=lie | S=the Himalayas]]

Along the northern boundary of India is only a place phrase; the word India is not the subject, so it cannot decide the verb. (The full inversion concepts are in the chapter on Inversion.)

3. Negative or emphatic words at the start. After words like rarely, never, not only, so + adjective, the helping verb comes before the subject. Again, find the subject after it.

✔ Rarely, if ever, has there been a time when dissent was met with institutional disregard. (subject: a time)
✔ Not only does the report fail to address the structural gaps, but it also overlooks the pressing issue of exclusion.
✔ So delicate were the negotiations that a single leak could derail them. (normal order: the negotiations were so delicate)

The method for every case: rewrite the sentence in the normal order mentally. Put the subject first and the verb after it, then check.

When two subjects are joined by and, the first question is: how many persons or things are there? The counting concept: count the articles and determiners. Once means one, twice means two.

1. Two singular subjects joined by and → plural verb.

✔ Radhika and Kavita were friends.
✘ A book and a pen has been bought. (use have)
✘ Radhika and Kavita was friends. (use were)
✘ Taylor, Richard and Francis plays for the state team. (use play)

Exception: names of companies, firms and books are one unit. A name stays singular even if it contains and or a plural-looking word.

✔ Chaudhary and Sons imports raw materials.

2. The article concept: one person or two? If the article or determiner appears only before the first noun, the two nouns name one person or thing, and the verb is singular. If it appears before both, there are two, and the verb is plural.

• Article + N + and + N → one person / thing → singular verb
• Article + N + and + Article + N → two persons / things → plural verb

✔ The principal and the teacher are coming. (two persons)
✔ The principal and teacher is coming. (one person who is both principal and teacher)
✔ A black and a white shirt were stolen. (two shirts)
✔ A black and white shirt was stolen. (one shirt, in two colours)
✔ My friend and benefactor has come. (one person)
✔ The poet and the author are present. / The actor and singer has arrived.

3. Some pairs always mean two persons. Family pairs cannot be one person (one person cannot be both a brother and a sister), so the verb is plural.

Brother and sister, mother and father, uncle and aunt

✔ My brother and sister are coming today.

4. Some pairs mean one single thing. These fixed pairs name one idea or one dish, so the verb is singular: bread and butter, horse and carriage, rice and curry, hammer and sickle, macaroni and cheese, bag and baggage, slow and steady.

✔ Bread and butter is my favourite dish.
✔ Bread and butter is all we want. (it means a livelihood)
✔ Slow and steady wins the race.
✔ Bag and baggage is always singular.

But when the two items are really two separate things, the verb is plural: ✔ Bread and butter are sold here. (two items in a shop)

> Time and tide is the exception in the list. It takes a plural verb: ✔ Time and tide wait for no man.

5. Each, every and no with and. If each or every stands before the nouns, the verb is singular, however many nouns follow. Never write every of.

• Each and every + singular noun → singular verb
• Each + noun + and + each + noun → singular verb
• Every + noun + and + every + noun → singular verb

✔ Every teacher and every student is present.
✘ Each boy and each girl were given a pen. (use was)

With no, the verb follows the noun: a singular noun takes a singular verb and a plural noun takes a plural verb.

✔ No boys and no girls are present in the class.
✔ No boy and no girl is present in the class.

When two subjects are joined by a correlative pair, the verb agrees with the subject that is nearer to the verb. It can be put in four words: पास वाले के हिसाब से।

The pairs: either ... or, neither ... nor, not only ... but also. The concept also holds for a plain or and a plain nor.

✔ Neither the manager nor the employees have received the letter. (employees is nearer)
✔ Neither the employees nor the manager has received the letter. (manager is nearer)
✔ Neither I nor my sisters were present. (sisters is nearer)
✔ Either he or I am mistaken. (I is nearer, so am)
✔ Not only his books but also his understanding of the subject is remarkable. (understanding is nearer)
✔ Not only the minister but also the bureaucrats have been accused. (bureaucrats is nearer)

[[parse: X=Neither | S=the actor | CONJ=nor | S=the crew members | V=were]]

The verb follows the crew members (plural), so the verb is plural. The first subject does not matter at all.

> Students very often apply the concept to the farther subject. The farther subject can be forgotten the moment you reach the verb. Look at the word just before the verb.

Pronoun and possessive follow too. The pronoun that comes later in the sentence must also match the nearer subject.

✘ Neither Amit nor Raju are staying with his parents. (the nearer subject is Raju, so use is)

Keep the pair correct. The standard pairs are either ... or, neither ... nor and not only ... but also. Traditional exam English prefers but also; and also is for informal use.

This is the central trap of the chapter. Two nouns are joined by a preposition or a prepositional phrase, and the second noun looks like part of the subject. It is not.

The noun after a preposition is its object, never the subject. The verb is used only and only according to the subject, so the verb follows the first noun.

Prepositions and phrases that SSC often uses: as well as, in addition to, besides, like, unlike, with, along with, together with, accompanied by, led / headed / guided by, except, rather than, less than, in company of, and not.

Ignore the middle part and the second noun. Riya is the subject, so the verb is is.

✔ The PM along with the other ministers has left for America.
✔ Saurabh, together with his friends, is going to Mumbai.
✔ He, like his brothers, is a doctor.
✔ The mother as well as her children was brought to the hospital.
✔ The singer accompanied by musicians has arrived.
✔ The child, in company of his parents, was present.
✔ Radhika, and not her parents, was present. (and not works like a preposition)
✔ The principal and not the teachers is responsible for the decision.
✘ The manager together with his staff have gone for lunch. (use has)
✘ He as well as his brothers were present. (use was)

> As well as is not strictly a preposition, but treat it like one for these questions.

Same noun, joined by a preposition. When two identical nouns are joined by a preposition (town after town, city after city), both nouns and the verb are singular.

✘ Towns after towns were searched. (use town after town was)
✘ Cities after cities were destroyed by the army. (use city after city was)

Nothing but and none but. These mean only, so the verb follows the noun that comes after them.

✔ None but you are my best friend.
✔ Nothing but painting is my hobby.

Everything / anything / everyone / anyone + but or except. Here but (= except) is a preposition and the word after it is its object. The subject is everything or everyone, so the verb is singular.

✘ Everything but clothes were stolen. (use was)
✘ Everyone but you have to do it. (use has)

Examiners often push the verb far away from its subject by placing a phrase or a clause in between. The verb must still agree with the real subject. Four things can come in between.

1. An of-phrase or another prepositional phrase. The noun inside the phrase is an object, not the subject.

✘ The box of paper clips are kept in the drawer. (use is)
✘ The call of the seas have always found an echo in me. (use has)
✘ The behaviour of these students leave much to be desired. (use leaves)

2. An appositive between two commas. Sometimes, right after the subject, an extra part that tells us the subject's identity is placed between two commas. This is called an appositive. The verb agrees with the real subject, never with the appositive.

How to recognise it: read the sentence after removing the part between the two commas. The subject of the sentence that remains is the real subject.

Structure: Subject + , + appositive + , + verb (verb agrees with the subject)

✔ Radhika, a beautiful girl, has been my best friend for years.
✔ Vincent Johnson, a musician, is going to lead an 80-member band.
✔ Mr Das, my friend and principal of this college, has agreed. (one person)
✘ Shyamlal, the businessman and philanthropist, were starting a new venture. (use is; one person, one article)

3. A participle or adjective phrase. The comma concept: there is no comma between a subject and its verb. If a comma comes there, the middle part is a participle or adjective phrase added to the subject. A participle phrase is a relative clause in short form: *The reforms being recommended by the panel are ...* is the short form of *The reforms that are being recommended ...*

✘ Her critique, couched in ironic precision, invite a reconstitution. (use invites)
✘ The official documents submitted by the vendor lacks some information. (use lack)
✘ The new guidelines issued last month has not yet been implemented. (use have)
✔ The secretary and treasurer, invested with dual responsibilities, was absent. (one person, so was)

4. A that-clause that explains a noun. The fact that ..., The perception that ..., The news that ...: the clause explains the noun, so the noun is the subject.

✘ The perception that the guidelines are voluntary have led to inconsistencies. (use has)

One subject, many verbs. If one subject has two or three verbs joined by and, every verb agrees with the same subject.

✘ She sings beautifully and dance on the stage. (use dances)
✘ The novel was discovered by chance and were later translated. (use was)

When the subject of a verb is a relative pronoun (who, which, that), the verb agrees with the noun or pronoun that comes before the relative pronoun. This noun is called the antecedent. (Who is used for humans, which for things, and that for both.)

✔ The man who is standing there is my uncle. (antecedent: the man, singular)
✔ The book that was bought last week is on the table. (antecedent: the book)
✔ The pages that contain chapter six are very soft. (antecedent: the pages)
✘ Prema is the girl in my class who write beautiful poems. (use writes; who stands for the girl)
✘ Children who does not read books will never get information. (use do; who stands for children)

How to find the antecedent when it is far away. Read the whole clause after the relative pronoun and ask yourself: who or what is this being said about? That is the antecedent.

• *The pages of the book that was bought last week ...* The buying is about the book, so the verb is singular (was).
• *The pages of the book that contain chapter six ...* Only pages contain chapters, so the verb is plural (contain).

[[parse: S=The pages | P=of the book | X=that | V=contain | O=chapter six]]

One of those who and only one of.

• *One of the boys who are waiting outside has good mathematical skills.* The relative pronoun who stands for the boys, so are. The main verb follows one, so has.
• *Only one of the boys who is waiting outside has good mathematical skills.* The word only makes one the person being talked about, so who is.
• ✔ He is one of those players who have scored the most goals.
• ✔ I am not one of those people who believe in rumours.

When the antecedent is a whole category. In non-native species such as goldfish, which ..., the antecedent is species (the whole category, plural), not only the goldfish.

✘ There are a number of people of every class who doubts the truth of his statement. (use doubt; who stands for people)

Sometimes the subject is not a noun at all. It can be an -ing form, a to-form or a whole clause. The concept is one line: one action, one idea or one clause is one thing, so the verb is singular.

1. V1 + ing + noun. Ask which word is the subject.

• If the noun is the subject, the verb follows the noun: ✔ Working women need to be encouraged. (Working is just an adjective for women.)
• If the -ing word is the subject, the verb is always singular: ✔ Reading books every day helps to improve vocabulary. (Reading is the activity; books is its object.)

✔ Smoking cigarettes is injurious not only to health but also to pocket.
✔ Educating girls has to be part of every family's plans.
✔ Playing cards was a nice experience.

One activity or two? One gerund is one activity, so the verb is singular. Two gerunds joined by and are two activities, so the verb is plural.

✔ Writing poetry is my hobby.
✔ Writing poetry and singing songs are my hobbies.

2. Infinitive as subject. A *to*-form subject takes a singular verb.

✔ To err is human.
✔ To obey the rules is the duty of every citizen.

3. Noun clause as subject. A noun clause starting with that or what (and some other words) is a subject. A whole clause is one thing, so the verb is singular. What means the thing that.

✔ That the committee failed to deliberate adequately on the root causes of community unrest was surprising.
✔ What the committee failed to deliberate on was the policy's objectives.
✘ That the report failed to address the root causes of the community unrest were surprising. (use was; unrest is only a noun inside the clause)
✘ That there exists no recourse for citizens underline a systemic erosion. (use underlines)

> Do not confuse a noun clause subject with a noun + that-clause. In *The fact that dissenting opinions are stifled reflects a trend*, the subject is the fact, and the clause only explains it. In both cases the verb is singular, but the reason is different.

In the CGL 2025 and the 2026 papers, most of the subject–verb agreement questions were long academic sentences. The concepts are the old ones. What has changed is that many words now stand between the subject and its verb, and the eye catches the nearest noun instead of the real subject.

The method: put the middle part in brackets.

• Find the verb first. This is the part you have to judge.
• Walk backwards from the verb and find its real subject, the head noun and not a noun inside a phrase.
• Put everything in between in brackets and read the sentence once more without it.

Structure: Subject + [of … / with … / along with … / which … / a phrase between commas] + Verb

1. The of-phrase. The noun inside of … is not the subject.

✘ The paradigm [of rational choice theory] postulate that agents act consistently. (use postulates)
✔ The paradigm of rational choice theory postulates that agents act consistently.

2. The phrase between commas. It does not change the verb.

✘ Language, [in its performative function], shape the very ontology of social relations. (use shapes)
✘ The team's objective, [despite its vagueness], were understood by the evaluators. (use was)
✘ The protest, [though peaceful in nature], were portrayed by official channels as instigated by external forces. (use was)

3. Along with, as well as, together with. The verb agrees with the first subject.

✘ The CEO [along with his deputies] were present during the final negotiations. (use was)
✔ The CEO along with his deputies was present during the final negotiations.

4. Not only … but also, neither … nor, either … or. The verb agrees with the nearer subject.

✘ Not only the minister but also the bureaucrats has been accused. (use have)
✘ Neither the projection of growth nor the estimation of deficit trends appear to have accounted for the constraints. (use appears)
✘ Neither the manager nor the employees has submitted the logs. (use have)

5. A clause or one idea as the subject. All that is needed, What is needed and It is the uncertainty … that … are single ideas.

✘ All that is needed for the bill to pass are a simple majority and a signature. (use is)
✘ It is the uncertainty of how the council intends to proceed that seem to have created unrest. (use seems; that stands for the uncertainty)

6. A plural-looking subject that is really plural. Those most affected by the decision appear to be those who were never consulted. Here those is plural, so the verb is appear.

> In many of the recent questions the verb stood at the beginning of part (2). Check that part first.

These words are chosen by one question: can I count it? Much, little and less go with uncountable nouns. Many, few and fewer go with countable plural nouns. The verb then follows the noun, so one sentence tests the word before of and the verb together.

Much with a countable noun is the error.

✘ Much of the guidelines issued by the ministry were based on speculative models. (guidelines can be counted: use Many of the guidelines)
✘ Much efforts have been made by the development team. (use Many efforts, or Much effort has been made)

Fewer of + plural noun takes a plural verb.

✘ Fewer of the experimental designs was compatible with the theoretical model. (use were)
✔ Fewer of the experimental designs were compatible with the theoretical model.
✔ Many of the volunteers have already reached the camp.

Much of + uncountable noun, or a what-clause, takes a singular verb.

✔ Much of the water has been wasted.
✔ Much of what appears to be coordination is, in fact, coincidental overlap.

Less and fewer. Use fewer for what you count (fewer students, fewer mistakes) and less for what you measure (less time, less money). Less mistakes is wrong.

> Two steps. First, look at the noun after of and ask whether it can be counted; that fixes much or many. Second, the same noun fixes the verb.

Subject–verb agreement is the most tested concept of the 2026 pattern, and it is also the most frequent partner in the P–Q format: two statements, and the options are Only P, Only Q, Both and Neither. Each statement hides its own trap, and a quick reader misses one of them.

The two-step method.

• For each statement, underline the verb, find the real subject and put what stands between in brackets.
• Check the usual traps in this order: of-phrase, comma phrase or along with; then the number of / a number of; then each of / neither of / one of; then either … or / neither … nor / not only … but also (the nearer subject); then one of those … who; then group nouns. After the verb is cleared, check tense, preposition and pronoun case before you call the statement correct.

Judge P and Q separately. Never compare them.

Worked example.

P. The number of students who apply for the scholarship has increased sharply in recent years.
Q. Each of the candidates have submitted the form before the last date.

P: the number of is singular, so has increased is right. Q: each of takes a singular verb, so have submitted must be has submitted. Answer: Only P.

Group nouns can make both statements correct. In British English a group noun such as jury, committee, team or staff takes a plural verb when the members are thought of as acting separately, and a singular verb when the group acts as one. The jury was unanimous (one body) and The jury were divided (separate members) can both be right. The meaning of the sentence tells you which.

> Both correct and Neither correct are normal answers. Do not choose Only P just because P looked fine first.