Agreement Errors

SUBJECT/VERB AGREEMENT

In every sentence, the subject and verb must agree. Consider the following example:

CORRECT: This sentence works correctly.

The subject (sentence) agrees with its verb (works). However, in more complicated sentences, there are many places where subject/verb agreement gets confusing. Use the following guidelines to avoid agreement errors in your writing.

Make sure you're looking at the correct subject.

INCORRECT: The writing in those paragraphs are absolutely horrible.

Because paragraphs is the last noun before the verb, it's tempting to treat it as the subject. Actually, it's just the object of a preposition (in). Writing is the subject.

CORRECTED: The writing in those paragraphs is absolutely horrible.

Know which subjects should be considered singular.

Indefinite pronouns (e.g. anybody, everybody, none, etc.)

CORRECT: Everybody needs to pick up after himself.

Collective nouns (e.g. family, congregation, audience, etc.)

CORRECT: My family is going on vacation.

Know which subjects should be considered plural.

Compound subjects joined with and, unless the pieces of the subject form a single unit (e.g. peaches and cream or sticks and stones) or are preceded by each or every (e.g. every girl and boy)

CORRECT: My sister and brother exercise together.

CORRECT: Peaches and cream is a delicious dessert.

Collective nouns when parts of the whole are acting as individuals

CORRECT: The faculty are in disagreement about the curriculum.

When or, nor, either/or, or neither/nor connects two subjects, make the verb agree with the closer subject.

CORRECT: A personal statement or SAT scores are required.

Be careful with inverted sentences.

INCORRECT: There was a doctor and a crew of nurses in the emergency room with me during my surgery.

CORRECTED: There were a doctor and a crew of nurses in the emergency room with me during my surgery.

Because the verb (were) precedes the subject (a doctor and a crew of nurses), it's easy to get confused. Make sure you're identifying the subject correctly in this kind of sentence.

Watch out for subject complements³.

INCORRECT: A good book and a hammock is all the entertainment I need.

CORRECTED: A good book and a hammock are all the entertainment I need.

In this sentence, entertainment is a subject complement, but it could easily be confused with the real subject, which is a good book and a hammock. The verb needs to be plural to agree with the subject, not singular to agree with the complement.

G. Who, which, and that should be followed by verbs that agree with their antecedents(i.e. the words they refer back to).

CORRECT: Pick apples that don't have bruising.

Be aware of certain plural forms that sometimes take singular verbs.

CORRECT: Measles is a very painful disease.

Titles, company names, words mentioned as words, and gerund phrases⁴ should be considered singular.

CORRECT: Twelve Angry Men is a great movie.

CORRECT: Jackson and Sons provides us with fresh produce.

CORRECT: Celebutantes is a nice way of referring to people who are famous for no good reason at all.

CORRECT: Taking detours is annoying, especially when you're late for work.

PRONOUN/ANTECEDENT AGREEMENT

Pronouns must agree with their antecedents (i.e. the words they refer back to). Use the following guidelines to help you find and correct instances of disagreement.

A. Antecedents that are considered singular

Indefinite pronouns (e.g. everybody, nobody, somebody, etc.)

INCORRECT: Everybody should open their book to page 10.

CORRECTED: Everybody should open his book to page 10.

Generic nouns⁵ (e.g. student, athlete, doctor, etc.)

INCORRECT: A student should study hard if they want to do well in school.

CORRECTED: A student should study hard if she wants to do well in school.

Collective nouns (e.g. congregation, audience, jury, etc.)

INCORRECT: The generous congregation gives their fundraising proceeds to charity.

CORRECTED: The generous congregation gives its fundraising proceeds to charity.

Antecedents that are considered plural

Compound antecedents joined by and

CORRECT: Jack and Jill went up the hill, and they fetched water.

Collective nouns when parts of the whole are acting as individuals

INCORRECT: The audience's response was mixed; it wasn't all clapping at the end of the movie.

CORRECTED: The audience's response was mixed; they weren't all clapping at the end of the movie.

When compound antecedents are joined by or, nor, either/or, or neither/nor, the pronoun should agree with the nearer antecedent.

CORRECT: Neither the nurse nor the doctors like when their patients are in pain.

³ "Words or word groups that complete the meaning of the subject by either renaming it or describing it" (Hacker 487).

⁴ "A gerund phrase consists of an -ing verb followed by any objects, complements, or modifiers" (Hacker 195).

⁵ Hacker defines a generic noun as "a typical member of a group" (198).