Subject-Verb Agreement: Rules and Tricky Cases

CorrectNow Editorial Team · 6 min read

Subject-verb agreement means that a verb matches its subject in number. A singular subject takes a singular verb (the report is ready), and a plural subject takes a plural verb (the reports are ready). In short, simple sentences, most writers get this right without thinking.

Errors creep in when the sentence gets longer or the subject is less obvious. This guide covers the basic rule and the tricky cases that cause the most hesitation.

Find the real subject first

Words that come between the subject and the verb do not change the subject. Phrases beginning with of, with, along with, together with and as well as are the usual culprits.

Mentally remove the extra words and match the verb to what is left.

Incorrect: The quality of the photos are poor. – Correct: The quality of the photos is poor. (The subject is quality, which is singular.)
Incorrect: The manager, along with her team, are attending. – Correct: The manager, along with her team, is attending. (Along with her team does not make the subject plural.)

Compound subjects with and, or and nor

Two subjects joined by and usually take a plural verb: Priya and Arun are here. An exception is a pair that names a single thing, as in fish and chips is a popular meal.

With or, either ... or and neither ... nor, the verb agrees with the subject closest to it: Neither the manager nor the staff were told. Either the staff or the manager was told.

Incorrect: My sister and her friend is coming. – Correct: My sister and her friend are coming. (Two people joined by and take a plural verb.)
Incorrect: Neither the printer nor the scanners works. – Correct: Neither the printer nor the scanners work. (Scanners is closer to the verb, so the verb is plural.)

Indefinite pronouns: each, everyone, none and others

Words such as each, every, everyone, everybody, someone, anyone, nobody and either are singular: Everyone is welcome. Each of the rooms has a window.

Both, few, many and several are plural: Both options are fine.

Some, all, most, any and none can be singular or plural depending on what they refer to: Some of the water is gone, but some of the guests are late. With none, both none is and none are are accepted; none is is often seen as the more formal choice.

Incorrect: Everyone in the office have a parking pass. – Correct: Everyone in the office has a parking pass. (Everyone is singular.)

Collective nouns: team, family, staff

Collective nouns name a group. In American English they usually take a singular verb: The team is ready. In British English a plural verb is also common when the focus is on the individual members: The team are arguing about tactics.

Whichever you choose, stay consistent within the sentence and the document. If a plural verb sounds odd, reword with a plural noun: The team members are ready.

Incorrect: The committee has made its decision and are announcing it today. – Correct: The committee has made its decision and is announcing it today. (Keep the verbs consistent: singular throughout, or plural throughout.)

There is, there are and inverted sentences

In sentences that start with there or here, the subject comes after the verb, so look ahead to find it: There is a problem. There are two problems.

Questions and inverted sentences work the same way: Where are the files? On the table sits a single envelope.

Incorrect: There is three options to choose from. – Correct: There are three options to choose from. (The subject is options, which is plural.)
Incorrect: Here's the documents you asked for. – Correct: Here are the documents you asked for. (Documents is plural, so use are.)

Amounts, titles and the number of

Amounts of money, time and distance treated as a single quantity take a singular verb: Ten kilometres is a long walk. Two hours is enough time. Titles of books and films are singular even when they look plural: Great Expectations is on the reading list.

The number of takes a singular verb, while a number of takes a plural verb: The number of applications has increased. A number of applicants have called.

Agreement errors often appear after editing, when you change one part of a sentence and not the other. A grammar checker such as CorrectNow flags a verb that no longer matches its subject and explains the link, which is useful after heavy rewrites.

Incorrect: The number of complaints have dropped. – Correct: The number of complaints has dropped. (The subject is the number, which is singular.)

Frequently asked questions

Is it everyone is or everyone are?

Everyone is. Everyone, everybody, someone and nobody are grammatically singular, even though they refer to many people.

Is it the team is or the team are?

Both are used. The team is is standard in American English, and the team are is also common in British English when the focus is on the members. Be consistent.

Does neither ... nor take a singular or plural verb?

The verb agrees with the subject nearer to it: Neither the teacher nor the students were late. Neither the students nor the teacher was late.

Is data singular or plural?

Both are used. Data is often treated as singular in general writing (the data is clear), while some scientific and academic styles treat it as plural (the data are clear). Follow the style your readers expect.

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