English for Academic and

Professional Purposes
Quarter 1 – Module 1
Reading and Writing Academic Texts

Department of Education ● Republic of the Philippines

SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT
Basic Principle: Singular subjects need singular verbs; plural subjects need plural verbs.
My brother is a nutritionist. My sisters are mathematicians.

The indefinite pronouns anyone, everyone, someone, no one, nobody are always singular
and, therefore, require singular verbs.

• Everyone has done his or her homework.

• Somebody has left her purse.

Some indefinite pronouns — such as all, some — are singular or plural depending on what
they're referring to. (Is the thing referred to countable or not?) Be careful choosing a verb to
accompany such pronouns.

• Some of the beads are missing.

• Some of the water is gone.

On the other hand, there is one indefinite pronoun, none, that can be either singular or plural; it
often doesn't matter whether you use a singular or a plural verb — unless something else in the
sentence determines its number. (Writers generally think of none as meaning not any and will
choose a plural verb, as in "None of the engines are working," but when something else makes us
regard none as meaning not one, we want a singular verb, as in "None of the food is fresh.")

• None of you claims responsibility for this incident?

• None of you claim responsibility for this incident?
• None of the students have done their homework. (In this last example, the
word their precludes the use of the singular verb.

Some indefinite pronouns are particularly troublesome. Everyone and everybody (listed
above, also) certainly feel like more than one person and, therefore, students are sometimes
tempted to use a plural verb with them. They are always singular, though. Each is often followed
by a prepositional phrase ending in a plural word (Each of the cars), thus confusing the verb
choice. Each, too, is always singular and requires a singular verb.

Everyone has finished his or her homework.

You would always say, "Everybody is here." This means that the word is singular and nothing
will change that.

Each of the students is responsible for doing his or her work in the library.
Don't let the word "students" confuse you; the subject is each and each is always singular
— Each is responsible.

Phrases such as together with, as well as, and along with are not the same as and. The
phrase introduced by as well as or along with will modify the earlier word (mayor in this case),
but it does not compound the subjects (as the word and would do).

• The mayor as well as his brothers is going to prison.

• The mayor and his brothers are going to jail.

The pronouns neither and either are singular and require singular verbs even though they
seem to be referring, in a sense, to two things.

• Neither of the two traffic lights is working.

• Which shirt do you want for Christmas?
Either is fine with me.

The conjunction or does not conjoin (as and does): when nor or or is used the subject
closer to the verb determines the number of the verb. Whether the subject comes before or after
the verb doesn't matter; the proximity determines the number.

• Either my father or my brothers are going to sell the house.

• Neither my brothers nor my father is going to sell the house.
• Are either my brothers or my father responsible?
• Is either my father or my brothers responsible?

Because a sentence like "Neither my brothers nor my father is going to sell the house" sounds
peculiar, it is probably a good idea to put the plural subject closer to the verb whenever that is
possible.

The words there and here are never subjects.

• There are two reasons [plural subject] for this.

• There is no reason for this.
• Here are two apples.

With these constructions (called expletive constructions), the subject follows the verb but still
determines the number of the verb.

Verbs in the present tense for third-person, singular subjects (he, she, it and anything those
words can stand for) have s-endings. Other verbs do not add s-endings.
 He loves and she loves and they love_ and . . . .

Sometimes modifiers will get betwen a subject and its verb, but these modifiers must not
confuse the agreement between the subject and its verb.

The mayor, who has been convicted along with his four brothers on four counts of
various crimes but who also seems, like a cat, to have several political lives, is finally
going to jail.

Sometimes nouns take weird forms and can fool us into thinking they're plural when
they're really singular and vice-versa. Consult the section on the Plural Forms of Nouns and the
section on Collective Nouns for additional help. Words such as glasses, pants, pliers, and
scissors are regarded as plural (and require plural verbs) unless they're preceded the phrase pair
of (in which case the word pair becomes the subject).

• My glasses were on the bed.

• My pants were torn.
• A pair of plaid trousers is in the closet.

Some words end in -s and appear to be plural but are really singular and require singular
verbs.

• The news from the front is bad.

• Measles is a dangerous disease for pregnant women.

On the other hand, some words ending in -s refer to a single thing but are nonetheless plural and
require a plural verb.

• My assets were wiped out in the depression.

• The average worker's earnings have gone up dramatically.
• Our thanks go to the workers who supported the union.

The names of sports teams that do not end in "s" will take a plural verb: the Miami
Heat have been looking … , The Connecticut Sun are hoping that new talent … . See the section
on plurals for help with this problem.

Fractional expressions such as half of, a part of, a percentage of, a majority
of are sometimes singular and sometimes plural, depending on the meaning. (The
same is true, of course, when all, any, more, most and some act as subjects.) Sums and
products of mathematical processes are expressed as singular and require singular
verbs. The expression "more than one" (oddly enough) takes a singular verb: "More
than one student has tried this."
 • Some of the voters are still angry.
• A large percentage of the older population is voting against her.
• Two-fifths of the troops were lost in the battle.
• Two-fifths of the vineyard was destroyed by fire.
• Forty percent of the students are in favor of changing the policy.
• Forty percent of the student body is in favor of changing the policy.
• Two and two is four.
• Four times four divided by two is eight.

If your sentence compounds a positive and a negative subject and one is plural,
the other singular, the verb should agree with the positive subject.

• The department members but not the chair have decided not to teach on Valentine's
Day.
• It is not the faculty members but the president who decides this issue.
• It was the speaker, not his ideas, that has provoked the students to riot.

LET’s TRY

Choose the correct form of the verb that agrees with the subject. Write your answer on a whole
sheet of paper.

1. Annie and her brothers (is, are) at school.

2. Either my mother or my father (is, are) coming to the meeting.
3. The dog or the cats (is, are) outside.
4. Either my shoes or your coat (is, are) always on the floor.
5. George and Tamara (doesn't, don't) want to see that movie.
6. Benito (doesn't, don't) know the answer.
7. One of my sisters (is, are) going on a trip to France.
8. The man with all the birds (live, lives) on my street.
9. The movie, including all the previews, (take, takes) about two hours to watch.
10. The players, as well as the captain, (want, wants) to win.
11. Either answer (is, are) acceptable.
12. Every one of those books (is, are) fiction.
13. Nobody (know, knows) the trouble I've seen.
14. (Is, Are) the news on at five or six?
15. Mathematics (is, are) John's favorite subject, while Civics (is, are) Andrea's favorite subject.
16. Eight dollars (is, are) the price of a movie these days.
17. (Is, Are) the tweezers in this drawer?
18. Your pants (is, are) at the cleaner's.
19. There (was, were) fifteen candies in that bag. Now there (is, are) only one left!
20. The committee (debates, debate) these questions carefully.
21. The committee members (leads, lead) very different lives in private.
22. The Prime Minister, together with his wife, (greets, greet) the press cordially.
23. All of the CDs, even the scratched one, (is, are) in this case.
POST ASSESSMENT

Read the selection below. Identify the thesis statement of the text and summarize using the
three-part structure (introduction, body, conclusion). Observe the subject-verb agreement in
your composition. Write your answer on a whole sheet of paper.

Understanding Calories

A calorie, also known as kilocalorie, is a unit of energy. This unit represents the energy required
to heat a kilogram of water on degree Celsius. While people generally link the term calorie with
food, it is a unit of measurement that can be applied to any substance possessing energy. For
instance, there are 8200 calories in a litter (about one quart) of gasoline.

(2) Calories describe the potential energy in food to maintain bodily functions, grow or repair
tissue, and perform mechanical work such as exercise. Food calories may take the form of fat,
carbohydrates, or proteins. Once consumed, enzymes act on these nutrients through metabolic
processes and break them into their perspective categories of fatty acids, glucose, and amino acids.
These molecules travel through the blood stream to specific cells where they are absorbed for
immediate use or sent on to the final stage of metabolism where they release their stored energy
through the process of oxidation.

(3) The number of calories burned during an exercise depends on various factors including body
weight and the type of exercise. For example, an individual weighing 59 kilograms (130 pounds)
would expend roughly 500 calories per hour swimming or playing basketball. However, this same
person would burn an estimated 200 walking or playing table tennis. In order to survive and
maintain body weight, the average individual requires approximately 2000 to 2500 calories per
day. Gaining or losing weight is a simple process. Add and subtract 7,700 calories over the course
of time to gain or lose a kilogram. Nutrition has nothing to do with it. It is all about calories

Competition and Cooperation

(1) Explanations of the interrelation between competition and cooperation have evolved over the
time. Early research into competition and cooperation defined each of them in terms of the
distribution of rewards related to each. Competition was defined as a situation in which rewards
are distributed unequally on the basis of performance, cooperation on the other hand, was defined
as a situation in which rewards are distributed equally on the basis of mutual interactive behaviour
among individuals. By this definition, a competitive situation requires at least on competitor to fail
for each competitor that wins, while a cooperative situation offers a reward only if all members of
the group receive it.

(2) Researchers have found definitions of competition and cooperation based upon rewards
inadequate primarily because definitions of these two concepts based upon rewards depict them as
opposite. In current understanding, competition is not viewed as opposite of cooperation, instead,
cooperation is viewed as integral component of competition. Cooperation is necessary among team
members, perhaps in a sporting event or in a political race, in order to win the competition, it is
equally important to understand that cooperation is of great importance between teams in that same
sporting event or ground rules of the game or election in order to compete.

(3) Interestingly, the word competition is derived from a Latin verb which means “to seek
together.” An understanding of the derivation of the word competition supports the understanding
that cooperation, rather than evoking a characteristic at the opposite extreme of human nature from
competition, is in reality a necessary factor in competition.

Reminder:

Write your answer on a whole sheet of paper.

A. Let’s Try (Answer only)
B. Post Assessment
1.1. Understanding Calories
1.2. Competition and Cooperation