Agreement with Complex Subjects & Clauses

Subject-Verb Agreement (SVA) can become complicated when the subject is separated from the verb by other phrases, when the sentence structure is inverted, or when nouns have deceptive singular or plural forms.

1. Intervening Phrases

An intervening phrase is a group of words placed between the subject and the verb. These phrases often describe the subject, but they do not change the number of the subject.

  • Key Words to Watch: along with, together with, as well as, in addition to, accompanied by, besides, like, including.

WARNING These phrases are parenthetical and do not function like the conjunction and. The verb must agree only with the main subject before the comma.

Examples:

  • The manager, along with his employees, is attending the meeting. (Main subject manager is singular -> is).
  • The employees, as well as the manager, are attending the meeting. (Main subject employees is plural -> are).
  • Her laptop, in addition to her books, was left in the classroom.

2. Inverted Sentences: There is / There are

In sentences starting with there or here, the word there/here is not the subject. The subject appears after the verb.

Rule: Match the verb to the noun that follows it.

  • There is a letter for you on the table. (Singular noun letter -> is).
  • There are letters for you on the table. (Plural noun letters -> are).
  • Here comes the bus.
  • Here come the buses.

3. Relative Clauses (Who, Which, That)

When the subject of a clause is a relative pronoun (who, which, that), the verb must agree with the noun that the pronoun refers to (its antecedent).

  • She is one of those people who are always happy. (Antecedent people is plural -> are).
  • The book that is on the table belongs to John. (Antecedent book is singular -> is).

4. Tricky Nouns (Deceptive Singulars & Plurals)

Some nouns are tricky because their spelling suggests singular or plural, but their grammatical agreement is the opposite:

A. Plural in Spelling, Singular in Grammar

Nouns representing fields of study (mathematics, physics, economics), diseases (measles, mumps), or games (billiards, darts) require a singular verb.

  • Mathematics is my favorite subject.
  • The news was shocking. (News is uncountable -> singular verb).

B. Singular in Concept, Plural in Grammar

Nouns representing garments or tools consisting of two parts (pants, scissors, glasses, tweezers, binoculars) require a plural verb unless preceded by the phrase a pair of.

  • Without “a pair of”: My scissors are dull.
  • With “a pair of”: A pair of scissors was lying on the table. (Verb matches pair, which is singular).

Complete Sentence Examples

Here are more examples of complex subject-verb agreement:

  1. The house, including the furniture and appliances, was sold for a high price.
  2. There are a few obstacles we need to overcome.
  3. Physics is a challenging branch of science.
  4. She has two pairs of glasses, and one pair was broken.
  5. The children who live next door are very friendly.
  6. The player, accompanied by his coach, has arrived at the stadium.
  7. Here is the key you were looking for.
  8. Measles is highly contagious.

Congratulations! You have completed the study of Subject-Verb Agreement. Next, we will explore Sentence Structure to learn how to construct grammatically complete sentences in English!