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AGREEMENT = NUMBER
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*HELPFUL
HINTS:
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(1) Find the
VERB
first. Then ask, "Who or what did that?"
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(2) Don't look in
Prepositional Phrases
for Subjects;
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(3) Beware the
PASSIVE VOICE,
in which the Subject receives the action of the
Verb;
-
the Subject is acted upon;
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the Subject is in a “by”
phrase
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another good reason to avoid
the passive voice.
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At the college level,
our sentence structure tends to be more complex than
it was when we were in elementary school.
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Therefore, we add
certain words or groups of words to our sentences
that come between the subject and the verb.
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These
words can cause confusion when determining
subject-verb agreement:
(1) SUBORDINATE
CLAUSES:
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begin with
subordinating conjunctions (since,
when, although, because, if)
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because they are
clauses, they possess subjects and verbs
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which
must agree in number, too
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because they are
subordinate, these clauses are “under”
the main idea of the sentence and are
not the main clause
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these subjects and
verbs are not the main subjects
and verbs of the sentence
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so do not match,
for example, the subject of a
subordinate clause with the main verb
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Although
her friends give her advice,
Alberta has to make up her own mind.
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“her friends
give” are the subject and verb of
the subordinate clause
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“Alberta has”
are the subject and verb of the main
clause
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(2) RELATIVE CLAUSES:
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begin with a
relative pronoun (who,
that, which)(whom,
whose, where, when, why)
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"that"
is often omitted -- (like "you" in a
command)
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"that"
is needed if the next word is a verb
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because
they are clauses, they possess subjects
and verbs
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these
subjects and verbs are not the main
subjects and verbs of the sentence
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so do not
match, for example, the main subject
with the verb of a relative clause
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nonetheless, the subjects and verbs of
relative clauses must agree with each
other
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The
cheerleader who has a sore throat
whispers every cheer.
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“who
has” are the subject and verb of the
relative clause
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“The
cheerleader whispers” are the
subject and verb of the main clause
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Relative Clauses as Adjective Clauses:
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these
relative clauses often
function
as adjectives
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modifying nouns and pronouns
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location -
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most
single-word adjectives can be
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before the modified
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or
after a Linking Verb
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adjective clauses = typically after
the modified
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in
terms of Subject-Verb Agreement -
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singular with singular, plural with
plural still applies
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BUT
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(1)
sounds funny
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(2)
difficult to match the modifier with the
proper modified
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the
verb in the adjective clause
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must
agree with the proper noun or pronoun
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(3)
singular sense
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if the
sense of the sentence is singular, then
the verb in the relative clause will be
singular
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if the
subject and only the subject performs
the action, then the sense is singular
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the
words "only" or "just" are used
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Jerry is one of those students who
never study for tests.
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the
italicized adjective clause modifies the
plural "students"
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The
Process Essay is the only essay
that does not require research
in my class.
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the
italicized adjective clause modifies
"essay" & is preceded by the "singular
sense" word "only"
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Question #7 was one of those types
that are easily misunderstood.
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the
italicized adjective clause modifies the
plural "types"
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(3) PREPOSITIONAL
PHRASES:
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the noun (or
pronoun) functioning as the Object of
the Preposition does not function
as the subject of the sentence
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remember:
only one function per sentence
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the only time the
Object of the Preposition is going to
have an effect on the verb is when the
subject is one of six Indefinite
Pronouns (any,
all, more, most, none, some)
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Jessica with
the red glasses is absent today.
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“glasses” is
the object of the preposition AND
has no effect on the verb
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(4) INFINITIVES:
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the verb
within the infinitive does not
function as the main verb of the
sentence
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remember: only one function
per sentence
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I went
to the grocery store to buy supplies
for my camping trip.
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“to
buy” the infinitive
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“I
went” are the subject and verb of
the main clause
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HELPFUL
HINT:
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underline all
Prepositional Phrases AND Infinitives;
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with them eliminated, your
choices for Subject and Verb should be clearer;
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circle all SC and Relative
Pronouns, too.
(1) SIMPLE RULE:
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Use a
SINGULAR
verb with a singular subject.
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Use a
PLURAL
verb with a plural subject.
(SINGULAR) |
(PLURAL) |
NOUN = NO –S |
NOUN = +S |
VERB = +S |
VERB = -S |
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(2)
HELPING VERB RULE:
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Use
is, was,
has, does
OR is
not, was not, has not, does not
with a SINGULAR subject.
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Use
are, were,
have, do
OR are
not, were not, have not, do not
with a PLURAL subject.
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Ex:
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The
boy was waiting.
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The
boys were waiting.
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Joe
does look like you.
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The
brothers do look alike.
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(3)
SENTENCE ARRANGEMENT RULE:
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Do not
let sentence arrangement fool you:
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You
will not be writing only
S+V+O
sentences.
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In
some cases, the subject comes
after the verb. (*not speech)
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a) Turn
questions into statements.
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Are
the girls ready?
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The
girls are ready.
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b) Do not
be misled by sentences having the
subject after the verb.
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(*here/there, prepositional phrases)
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Here
come the teams.
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On
this page are your orders.
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There
were not any delays.
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There
are no changes.
- HINT:
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Say
the sentence with the subject
before the verb:
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Your orders are on this page.
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c) Do not
be misled by a prepositional phrase or
by some word group beginning with such
words as
accompanied by,
together
with,
including,
as well
as.
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(*commas)(*prepositional
phrases)
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That
box of books looks heavy.
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The
mother, as well as her children,
is here.
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(4)
COMPOUND SUBJECT RULE:
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Use a
PLURAL verb with a compound subject
having its parts joined by and or
both-and, unless only one person,
object, or idea is meant.
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(*“and”)(*“they” replaces subject)
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The owner
and the manager are in
conference.
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two
persons
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They are in a
conference.
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EXCEPTIONS:
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The owner
and manager is Mr. McKee.
(one person,
two positions)
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Macaroni
and cheese is my favorite dish.
(one
object)***
COMPOUND SUBJECTS
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COMPOUND PREDICATES
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(2
or more subjects) + 1 verb
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1
subject + (2 or more verbs)
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having
2 subjects or 2 predicates does not
constitute 2 independent clauses
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having a compound
subject or compound predicate is a way
of combining 2 shorter sentences into 1
longer, more complex sentence
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5) CHOICE RULE:
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For subjects
joined by
or,
nor,
either-or,
neither-nor,
do this:
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(*cannot go by how it sounds)
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(*unlike the previous rule, you
can't always replace the Compound
Subject with the pronoun “they”)
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a) Use a
PLURAL verb if both subjects are
plural; use a SINGULAR
verb if both subjects are singular.
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Neither boys nor girls are here.
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Either
Bob or Jay is wanted.
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b) If the
subjects vary in number, make the verb agree
with the nearer.
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Mom or
my uncles are going.
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Two
girls or a woman is
needed.
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6) MAC & CHEESE RULE:
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Use a
singular verb with nouns plural
in form if they express
a single unit
or idea,
as in indicating amounts or
measurements. (*similar to Rule #4)
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a)
numerical expressions:
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Ten
cents is enough to charge for
microfilm copies.
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Two
fifths of the crop is in. o Three
miles is a long walk.
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b) *notice:
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There
are three miles between the school
and my house.
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(here,
“three miles” is not considered a
single unit of measurement)
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c) also:
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news,
gymnastics, economics, mathematics,
statistics, civics
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Macaroni & Cheese, Rice & Beans,
Spaghetti & Meat Balls, Steak & Eggs
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d) *sports
teams:
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when
referred to by the city, SINGULAR:
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New York has a good team this
year to win its division.
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when
referred to by its nickname, PLURAL:
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The Yankees need to get some
better pitchers for their
bullpen.
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7) LOOKS LIKE A DUCK RULE:
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Use a
PLURAL verb with subjects that look
AND function plural.
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such as
slacks,
jeans, clippers, shears, tweezers,
pliers, scissors, tongs
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Those
jeans have faded.
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The shears
are mine.
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8) COLLECTIVE NOUNS RULE:
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With
Collective Noun subjects,
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use a
SINGULAR verb if a group acts
as a single unit;
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use a
PLURAL verb if the members
act as individuals.
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(*if you can add the word
“individual”)
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(*cannot go by how it sounds)
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The jury
is a good one.
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The jury
are taking their seats.
Collective
Nouns
audience |
band
|
class |
committee |
crowd |
dozen |
family |
flock |
group
|
heap |
herd
|
jury
|
kind |
public |
staff
|
team |
the number
(not “a number”) |
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Honestly,
most student-writers simply write
around this rule:
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The jurors are taking their
seats.
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The members of the jury are
taking their seats.
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*OTHERS:
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"number"
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"a number" = plural
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"the number" = singular
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A number of Cowboy fans dislike
the starting quarterback.
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The number of dropouts seems
to grow each semester.
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languages/people:
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Taiwanese =
singular
(one language)
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the Taiwanese
= plural
(many people)
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Chinese, the Chinese; Japanese, the
Japanese
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Chinese is a difficult
language to learn.
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The Chinese are famous for
their beautiful opera.
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non-count nouns
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singular verb
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mass nouns or non-count nouns
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cannot be counted
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have no plural
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often without a definite article
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money, food, furniture, luggage,
clothing, happiness, honesty
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wood, plastic, aluminum, mercury,
gold, education, leisure
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milk, ice, rice, sand, hair,
oxygen, rain, snow, weather,
research
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homework, hockey, chess, English,
poetry, publicity, photography
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food, material, subjects, sports,
abstractions, liquids, gases,
diseases
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subjunctive mood -
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verb = plural
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statements that are not true, that
are hypothetical
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a wish, a doubt
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something contrary to fact
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if I
were a rich man
(I'm
not, but if I were I would buy that
item)
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if Scully
were there
(she
wasn't, but if she were, she'd have
seen the aliens)
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if Shakespeare were alive
(he's not, but if he were, he'd
dislike Anonymous)
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I wish it
were summer
(it's not, but I wish it were)
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if I were you, I'd put that
away
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if it were not for Superman,
Lois Lane would have died
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were I the President of the
United States, I'd outlaw that
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"oh, I wish I were an Oscar
Meyer wiener, ..."
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(true, there are other forms of the
subjunctive mood, but -)
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* When the
coordinating conjunction "or" links a
compound subject, the noun-subject
closest to the verb will determine if it
is singular or plural.* |
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