Subject Verb Agreement ( Concord)

It is very general that if subject is plural, verb should be plural and if the subject is singular , the concerned verb should be singular respecting the forms of subject , in short there should be perfect concord between subject and verb 

Here are some important rules regarding subject verb agreement which will clear your doubts

Rule 1:  A verb should agree with its subject with its number and person , generally the verb agrees with the number 
   For ex: The progress of these boys is not satisfactory .
                 The result of all the classes is good.

Rule 2: Very simple to mention, if subject is singular , the concerned verb should be singular and in case of plural subject , the verb must belong to the plural form.
  For ex: The student is waiting for me
                The students are waiting for me

Rule 3: If two singular nouns are joined by ‘and ‘, the verb should be plural 
  For ex:  Ram and shyam are my best friends
                Maths and Sci always help to score my percentage.

Rule 4.:But if two singular nouns denote single concept or idea , the verb must be singular 
   For ex:  Rice and dal is my favouite  meal
                 Bread and butter is his favoutie breakfast
                  The rise and fall is the peculiar pattern of our life
                  Slow and steady wins the race
                 Idly and sambar is my desirable dish when I go to south.
                 A horse and carriage was called  to welcome

Rule 4.:  In case of Not only….but also, neither …nor and either …or,the concerned verb should  respect the nearest subject
 For ex:  Not only Ram and Shyam is absent 
              Neither Ram or I am responsible for it
             Either Rahul or my friends are responsible for it

Rule 5. The following subjects or words like each, every, either, neither, everyone, each, someone, no one , anyone, anybody , many a etc  must follow singular verb
 For ex:  Everyone is lucky
               No one is disrespected 
               Many a boy is invited
               Either of them was invited 
               Neither of them was rejected 
               Someone is insulted for it
              No one  is sad today     
              Each student is asked 
               Every student is asked
               Every student and teacher was consulted 
              Every school and college has to follow this 

Rule 6: The  words like a few, many, several  both    always take plural verb 
For ex  Many students are given prizes
             Few students were selected
          A few students attend the exam
         Both Ram and Shyam are praised
        Several officers were transferred
Rule 7. When two singulr nouns are connected with or , the verb should be singular

   For ex  Ram or Shyam is going to be selected
               Jhon or  Mary is the winner 

Rule 8. In case of as well as , the verb agrees with the first subject 

Foe ex:  Nancy as well as her friends is called
                Nancey’s friends or her mother  are informed

Rule 9 : In case of More than + singular subject the verb should be singular

For ex : More than one boy is present
                More than one teacher is needed

Rule 10. One of the structure always needs singular verb
For ex  : One of the boys has done this activity 
               One of cities was selected

Rule 11 ; None is used for singular as well as for plural subject  that’s why the verb should be according to its sense

For ex:   None is ready
                None are ready for it

Rule 12: The words like people, poultry , cattle , police, vermin indicate plural sense that’s why the concerned verb should be plural 

For ex:   The people are ready
               Cattle are grazing
               The Police are ready for the action
          The vermin make me sick

Rule 13: 100 rupees, 100 kms, two weeks, fifty miles such expressions show single amount, in that case the verb should be sigular

For ex: 100 rupees is needed
              100 kms is a long distance
                Two weeks is  more than enough
                 Fifty miles has to be covered

Rule 14:In case of a good deal of , a great deal of followed by uncountables noun, the verb should be singular
For ex: A good deal of time is respected 
             A great deal of hardwork is counted

Rule 15: The following words take singular verb referring to the uncountable
 For ex: Some water is needed for it
               All the oil was wasted for the maintenance for the old vehicles
              Most of the milk is finished
              None of the chemical is useful

Rule 16: The words like some, all, most ,none take plural referring to the countable
 For ex: Some of the students have passed the exam
               All the people are using masks nowadays 
               Most of them expect success in life
             None of the teachers are ready for this project which will invite problems

Rule17:One or Plural noun structure adopts plural verb
  For ex:  One or more students have joined this scheme
                   One or two teachers have finished the syllabus.

Rule 18.Know the difference 

               They statesman and the philosopher is invited
               The statesman and the philosopher are invited

                 Here the first sentence refers to a single person whereas the second one refers to two persons

Rule 19. A lot of structure followed by countable adopt plural verb as if it is followed by uncountable, the verb should be singular

For ex: A lof of students are absent today
              A lof of milk is wasted 

Rule 20: The words trousers, spectacles , glasses, googles, shorts, binoculars are always considered in plural forms, that’s why the concerned verb should be in plural form

For ex: The trousers are loose for me
             The spectacles are here
              The googles of Ray Ban are very popular
              The shorts are common nowadays 
              The binoculars are helpful in jungle safari