Subject-verb agreement means choosing a verb form that matches the subject in person and number. Compare the student works with the students work. In the present simple, most verbs add -s or -es with he, she, it or a singular noun. Use the base form with I, you, we and they: I work, even though I means one person.
The verb be has its own forms: I am, you are, she is, we are. Below, check the chart, work through common traps, then try twelve original exercises with explained answers.
Subject-verb agreement chart: I, you, he, she, it, we, they
| Subject | Most verbs | Be | Have | Do |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I | I work | I am | I have | I do |
| You: one person or more | You work | You are | You have | You do |
| He / she / it / one student | She works | She is | She has | She does |
| We / they / the students | They work | They are | They have | They do |
Do not use the shortcut “only one -s in a sentence.” It fails with Chris works, the children play and the news is surprising. Find the subject and the verb form instead. A verb can express a state as well as an action: the room is quiet.
In questions and negatives, do/does carries the present-simple agreement: Does she work here? and She doesn't work here. Do not add another -s to work. See the auxiliary verb chart and practice for be, have and do.
These patterns concern standard English statements and questions. An imperative uses the base form: Open your book. Most past-simple verbs also stay the same across subjects: I worked; they worked. Past be changes: I/he/she/it was and you/we/they were in ordinary past statements.
Rules and common subject-verb agreement mistakes
1. Match the main subject, not a nearby noun
The list of names is on the desk. The head of the subject is list; of names describes it. Likewise, one of the apples is rotten. A phrase beginning with with, including or as well as does not automatically make the subject plural.
Try covering the intervening phrase: The organiser with the two volunteers checks the tickets. Keep the subject's meaning when you uncover it.
2. Two separate subjects with and usually take a plural verb
The manager and the team lead discuss the timetable. There are two people. But two words can name one dish or one concept: Fish and chips is my usual order. Meaning matters; do not count the nouns mechanically.
3. With either/or or neither/nor, check the nearer subject
For a singular/plural pair in standard edited English, the usual pattern is agreement with the nearer part: Neither the students nor the teacher is ready, but Neither the teacher nor the students are ready. A noun inside an intervening phrase does not become the subject just because it is close.
If the result sounds awkward, rephrase: The teacher is not ready, and the students are not ready either. Compare the meanings and structures in our either/or and neither/nor guide.
4. Everyone, somebody and each take singular agreement
Everyone has a ticket. Each of the speakers gets five minutes. The plural noun after of does not change each. A later singular they does not change this either: Everyone has a ticket, and they should keep it safe.
5. Some and all depend on what they refer to
Compare some of the cake is missing with some of the cookies are missing. The first means an amount of cake; the second refers to individual cookies. With none, both singular and plural agreement occur with plural count nouns. None of the equipment is working uses singular agreement because equipment is uncountable. A formal house style may prefer singular none of; do not teach “none is always singular” as an absolute rule.
6. Collective nouns vary with meaning and variety of English
The team is ready presents the team as one unit. British English also commonly permits plural agreement when considering the members: The team are changing into their uniforms. American English generally favours singular agreement with the group noun. The team members are changing makes the individual meaning explicit in either variety.
Do not mark every team are or committee have sentence wrong without checking the intended variety and meaning. See American Heritage's collective noun usage note for the distinction.
7. Endings alone do not tell you the number
The news is encouraging and mathematics requires practice use singular agreement. By contrast, the children play has a plural subject without a final -s. These scissors are sharp refers to scissors; this pair of scissors is sharp has pair as its head.
8. An amount can be one total
Ten dollars is the price treats the money as one amount. Three hours is enough time treats the duration as a whole. Compare individual objects: Ten dollar bills were scattered on the floor.
9. Check agreement in there is/are and questions
In standard edited English, use There is one spare chair and There are two spare chairs. You may hear there's before plural nouns in conversation; use there are for the plural pattern in formal writing and in the practice below.
Questions keep the same agreement: Where are my keys? Compare My keys are here. For a present-simple action question, compare Does the shop open early? with The shop opens early.
10. Modal verbs do not add -s
She can swim, they can swim, and the bus will arrive keep the same modal and base verb. Avoid she cans swim and she can swims. This is another reason a universal “singular verbs end in -s” rule does not work.
12 subject-verb agreement exercises with answers
Choose the form that fits standard written English. Before revealing an answer, identify the subject and explain your choice. Items 1–11 have one intended answer; item 12 explicitly asks you to consider two acceptable patterns.
On school days, I (walk / walks) to the station.
Answer 1 and explanation
walk. I takes the base form in the present simple. Being one person does not make it I walks.
Speaking to one learner: “You (is / are) next in the queue.”
Answer 2 and explanation
are. You takes are whether it refers to one person or several people.
Our guide (have / has) a map of every walking route.
Answer 3 and explanation
has. Our guide is third-person singular. Our describes the guide; it does not make the subject plural.
The children (play / plays) chess during the lunch break.
Answer 4 and explanation
play. Children is plural even though it does not end in -s.
The box of spare pencils (is / are) beside the door.
Answer 5 and explanation
is. Box is the singular head of the subject. Pencils belongs to the describing phrase of spare pencils.
Mina and her brother (helps / help) at the library on Saturdays.
Answer 6 and explanation
help. Two separate people joined by and form a plural subject.
Each of the classroom doors (has / have) a number.
Answer 7 and explanation
has. Each takes singular agreement. Do not match have to the nearer plural noun doors.
Using the nearer-subject pattern: Neither the volunteers nor the organiser (know / knows) the access code.
Answer 8 and explanation
knows. The nearer subject, the organiser, is singular. Reversing the order gives: Neither the organiser nor the volunteers know the access code.
For a formal notice: There (is / are) three exits from the hall.
Answer 9 and explanation
are. Use there are with the plural phrase three exits in this standard written pattern.
Choose a present-simple question: (Do / Does) your sister work at the museum?
Answer 10 and explanation
Does. Your sister is third-person singular. The main verb remains work after does.
This scanner can (copies / copy) both sides of a document.
Answer 11 and explanation
copy. Can is followed by the base form. The singular subject does not add -s to the modal or to copy.
Consider both choices: None of the three proposed dates (works / work) for everyone. Can both forms occur? Explain.
Answer 12 and explanation
Both can occur. Works presents none as not one; work presents it as not any of those dates. Singular agreement is often preferred in formal none of constructions, while plural agreement with plural count nouns is established usage. Follow a required house style, but do not treat plural agreement as universally wrong.
Apply the rules: edit a club notice
This fictional notice contains four agreement errors. Rewrite it for a school newsletter, then explain each correction.
Our photography tutor meet the club every Thursday. Each of the members bring a camera or a phone. The organiser with two helpers check the equipment. There is six spare cameras for beginners.
Show the edited notice and reasoning
Our photography tutor meets the club every Thursday. Each of the members brings a camera or a phone. The organiser with two helpers checks the equipment. There are six spare cameras for beginners.
Meets agrees with the singular tutor; brings with each; checks with organiser; and are with six spare cameras. The phrases of the members and with two helpers do not change the singular agreement.
Try a fresh example: write three sentences for a different club: one starting with I, one with Each of the members, and one with There plus a plural noun. Underline the subject or agreeing noun phrase and circle the verb. A partner should explain the match before changing anything.
For teachers: group errors by pattern rather than treating a total score as proof of mastery. If I/you forms caused problems, return to the chart. If intervening nouns caused problems, compare the box/pencils and organiser/helpers examples. Follow up with a new sentence the learner writes independently, or choose a short check from the ESL exit-ticket templates.
For online follow-up, the grammar practice guide explains the platform's typed-answer activities and recorded results. This page's printable practice is available without an account; it is not automatically imported into a teacher assignment. Use your browser's print command for a learner copy with answers hidden. Open the answer panels on screen for the explanations.
Sources and preparation
Revised October 21, 2026 with AI-assisted drafting and checks against the grammar references below. The chart, club notice and practice are teaching examples, not reports of classroom trials. This revision corrects the earlier overgeneralised -s mnemonic, I/you rules, collective-noun advice and unsupported learning statistics.
- British Council: present simple — third-person forms, questions and negatives.
- Purdue OWL: making subjects and verbs agree — intervening phrases, compound subjects and standard edited-English patterns.
- Cambridge English Grammar Today: no, none and none of — agreement choices and formal-style guidance.
- Cambridge English Grammar Today: modality forms — modal verbs and the base form.
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