Subject-verb agreement objective questions can be tricky, even for experienced writers. It`s important to understand the basic rules of subject-verb agreement in order to answer these types of questions correctly.
First and foremost, it`s important to recognize that a subject and its verb must agree in number. This means that if the subject is singular, the verb must be singular as well. Conversely, if the subject is plural, the verb must be plural too.
For example, consider the sentence “The cat chases the mice.” In this sentence, “cat” is the singular subject, and “chases” is the singular verb that agrees with it.
However, when we change the sentence to “The cats chase the mice,” we see that “cats” is now the plural subject, and “chase” is the plural verb that agrees with it.
It`s also important to pay attention to the intervening words between the subject and verb, as they can often be confusing. For example, in the sentence “The group of students is studying for their exams,” there seems to be a disagreement between the singular “group” and the plural “their.” However, the intervening phrase “of students” does not change the number of the subject, “group,” which is singular. Therefore, the correct verb form is “is.”
In subject-verb agreement objective questions, you may be asked to choose the correct verb form based on the number and type of subject in the sentence. It`s important to carefully read the entire sentence and identify the subject and verb so that you can choose the correct answer.
In addition to number, it`s also important to remember that the subject and verb must agree in person. This means that if the subject is in the third person singular (he, she, it), the verb must have an “s” or “es” added to the base form. For example, “He eats breakfast every day” uses the third person singular verb “eats” to agree with the third person singular subject “he.”
However, if the subject is in any other person, including third person plural (they), the verb does not need an “s” or “es” added to the base form. For example, “They eat breakfast every day” uses the base form of the verb “eat” to agree with the third person plural subject “they.”
In conclusion, subject-verb agreement objective questions can be challenging, but with a solid understanding of the basic rules of subject-verb agreement, you can effectively answer them. Remember to identify the subject and verb, pay attention to intervening phrases, and ensure that the subject and verb agree in both number and person. With these skills, you`ll be well-equipped to tackle any subject-verb agreement objective question that comes your way.