Day-21
Grammar Sandwiches
Language Focus 14
Subject Verb Agreement
Part A
Input Time
Please listen and repeat each word, phrase and sentence at least four times as you have heard.
Part - 1
Classification of subjects
First person
| Singular | Plural |
| I | we |
Second person
| Singular | Plural |
| You | You |
Third person
| Singular | Plural |
| He She It This That |
they these those |
| My father My mother My brother My sister This cat |
my parents my siblings these cats |
| Anybody Anyone Anything Everybody Everyone Everything One of the.. Nobody No one Nothing Somebody Someone Something |
few many all (the whole) |
| Either (= one or the other of two) Neither (= not one nor the other of two things or people) |
both (the two) |
| A policeman Family (a unit) A or B A with B |
the police family (members) A and B A and B |
Part-2
Classification of verbs
| Verb | Singular | Plural |
1.Verb ‘ be’ |
am/is was |
are were |
2.Verb ‘do’ (Action verbs) |
do/does did play/plays played work/works worked |
do did play played work worked |
| 3.Verb ‘have’ | have/has had |
have had |
| 4.Verb ‘become’ | become/becomes became |
become became |
5.Modal Verbs |
can could may might must shall/will would |
can could may might must shall/will would |
Part-3
Subject Verb Agreement
Definition: The verb of the sentence should agree with the subject in number and person.
Rule 1 : A singular subject should have a singular verb.
Rule 2 : A plural subject should have a plural verb.
1.Subjects with verb ‘be’
Subject Verb
| I We |
am are |
a schoolboy. schoolchildren. |
| You You all |
are are |
smart. clever children. |
Rule-3: Nouns which we can substitute with pronouns ‘he’, ‘she’ and ‘it’ are third person singulars.
Rule-4: Nouns which we can substitute with the pronoun ‘they’ are third person plurals.
Subject Verb
| He Siva(He) My father(He) She Sita(She) Your sister(She) Your brothers(They) |
is is is is is is are |
my cousin. my classmate. a school teacher. my friend. my neighbour. one of my team Members. my friends |
| One of my friends A bunch of keys (It) |
is is |
a minister. on the table. |
Rule-5 : In the simple present tense if the subject of the sentence is a third person singular the verb must have an ‘s’.
Example:
● He does his duties with interest and involvement.
● Sherina has travelled Africa.
● It becomes cold in the evening.
● No one has ever landed on Mars.
● Someone has turned the TV off. Who is thar?
● Nothing comes from nothing
1.Subjects with verb ‘be’ both present and past simple
Example:
● I am a school boy.
● I am in grade viii.
● Last year I was in grade vii.
● We are tourists.
● We are from Andaman.
● An hour ago we were at the airport.
● You are precious to me.
● You all are welcome to our school day celebration.
● You were fairly punctual for the celebration.
● He is an excellent teacher.
● Last year he was at the College of Education.
● Until March 2020 she was working in a software company.
● But now she is an organic farmer.
● "Where is my mobile? It is on your desk.
● What was the weather like in London last summer? It was quite warm.
● What kind of people are they? They are very nice people.
● Why were they late to the meeting? They were busy with some other work.
● My father is a catering supervisor.
● My mother is studying agricultural science in New Zealand.
● My parents are family counsellors.
● My parents were born in Morocco.
● My brother is the eldest child of my parents.
● My sister was one of the top ten at NEET Exam last year.
● My siblings are very caring kids.
● My cat is in constant pain so I must take it to the veterinarian.
● These cats are not pure breeds.
● Their ancestors were not of the same breed.
● Is anybody waiting for the doctor?
● I don’t think anyone is waiting.
● Somebody is crying in the next room. Who is that?
● Someone is crying with a severe headache.
● One of the basic tastes is sweetness.
● A group of scientists is coming to visit the flood hit areas of our district.
● Either side of the street is open for parking.
● There are two candidates waiting at the door. Either is welcome.
(Either = one or the other of two; it does not matter which)
● You have recommended two candidates. Unfortunately neither of them is suitable for the job.
● Our secretaries have submitted two reports. Neither report is acceptable.
(Neither = not one nor the other of two things or people)
● Somebody from India is waiting to see the CEO. Shall I let him come in?
● Someone from India is waiting to see you. Shall I allow him to enter?
● Something is wrong somewhere. I don’t know what to do.
● Is there anyone waiting at the door?
● Is there anybody at the door?
● No, no one is waiting outside the hall.
● Everybody is inside the hall. So you can close the door.
2. Subjects with verb ‘do’/ action verb
Example: -
● I always do my work happily.
● Did you greet the principal on his birthday?
● Yes I did.
● What do you do for a living?
● We do an export business.
● What does your father do for a living?
● He works in a supermarket.
● How does your mom go to work?
● She drives to her office.
● He does everything neatly.
● My manager does everything according to plan.
Q: Did they lock the door before they left the house?
A: Yes, they did.
Q: Who plays the piano?
A: Ethen plays the piano.
Q: How many matches did the Chennai Team play yesterday?
A: They played two.
Q: Is there anything which comes from nothing?
A: No, nothing comes from nothing. Everything needs something to come from.
Q: Where do the tourists stay this week?
A: They stay in our farmhouse
Q: Who won the Election?
A: Biden won the election?
3.Subjects with verb ‘have’
Example: -
● I have visited Sri Lanka. Have you visited Sri Lanka?
● Yes, we have visited Sri lanka and the Andaman Islands.
● You have got everything you need for a comfortable life. Haven’t you ?
● Of course, we have got everything we need so we are comfortable.
● Hi Philo! You have a sweet voice. You can join our music academy.
● Hi friends! All of you have an invitation to today’s chat show.
● He has got a new computer. So he attends all online classes with interest.
● My parents have an organic farm in our village.
● She has no brothers or sisters. She is the only child of her parents.
● This is a super computer. It has more than one CPU.
● Have a look at my new car. It has built-in microphone and speakers.
I have purchased it for an election campaign.
● Did you have to take a loan to construct a house? Yes, I had to take a loan.
● Does she have to pass the entrance exam before applying for admission to university?
● Yes, everybody has to clear the entrance exam to gain admission to university.
● Have they brought their passport for verification.
● Yes, they have brought their passport and other documents.
● Had they passed the exam before they applied for the job?
● Yes, all of them had passed the exam before they applied for the job.
4.Subjects with verb ‘become’
Example: -
● I become angry when there is no salt in my food.
● We become tired after climbing the stairs.
● Do you become tired after climbing the stairs?
● He becomes cheerful whenever he meets his friends.
● Grandpa becomes irritable whenever children make noise.
● She becomes a principal next year.
● Sylvia becomes an astronaut in another four years.
● Who became the 46th president of America?
● Everybody became calm when the manager started yelling.
● How did our school become famous?
● It became famous by raising its academic standards.
● How did they become rich?
● They worked hard and became rich.
● Hey, Kids! Please return home before it becomes dark.
● How did you become friends?
● We met at our college canteen quite often when we were college students
and became friends.
● How did Mahatma Gandhi become popular?
● Well, he became popular by serving people.
5.Subjects with modal auxiliary verbs
Example: -
Q: How many kilos of rice can you carry on your head?
A: I can carry five kilos.
Q: How many kilos of dates can camels carry on their back?
A: They can carry upto 600 kilos.
Q: Can you meet us tomorrow before we leave for Kenya?
A: We may see you if we get time.
Q: Can anyone make fire without matches?
A: Yes, I can make fire with flint.
Q: When is grandma coming to see us?
A: She may be coming to see us sometime next week.
Q: And grandpa?
A: Perhaps he will accompany grandma?
Q: May I borrow your bike for a day?
A: With pleasure.
Q: We are stuck in a traffic jam. May we come a little late to the meeting?
A: You may come when the traffic congestion eases.
Q: What did they ask you?
A: They asked me if they might come a little late?
Q: What did you tell them?
A: I told them they might come when the traffic congestion eased.
Q: Must you go so soon? Could you stay for dinner?
A: I’m sorry I can’t. I have a visitor from Canada. I must go to the station to receive him.
Your attention,please!
● Visitors must not park their vehicles in front of the gate.
● Baggage must not be left unattended.
● Guests must not smoke in the lounge.
● Passengers must maintain silence after 9p.m.
****
● I will give you a lift. (I’ll give you a lift.)
● I shall give you a lift. (I’ll give you a lift.)
● I must go now but I will return in an hour.
● I will be forty seven years old next month.
● You will reach the station in time if you walk a little faster.
● We will arrange hotel accommodation before you arrive in Kanyakumari.(We’ll..)
● We shall arrange hotel accommodation before you arrive there.(We’ll..)
● You will win the race. Be confident.
● Our train will reach around 1 p.m. So we’ll have lunch at home.
● Shall we hire an auto?
● Of course we shall hire an auto.
● Breakfast will be ready by 8 o’clock.
Q: What would you like to have for breakfast, kids?
A: We would have dosa with honey mom.
Q: What would daddy have?
A: He would eat anything you serve, mom.
Q; I know he would simply eat what comes to the table.What’d grandpa like to eat?
A: He would have idli and sambar as usual.
Q: I’d be pleased to know when you would be ready for breakfast.
A: We’d have it around 8 o’clock, mom.
****
● Will the guide take us around the museum?
● When I was at college I could work all night but never got tired.
● When we were in the village we could walk long distances.
● Children were making so much noise that we couldn’t hear ourselves speak.
● He said he would be in good time for the party but he didn’t come at all.
● Our children were very curious to know where we would take them this weekend for a picnic.
