3.

Bring vs Take

"When we go to the party on Saturday, let’s bring a bottle of

wine."

This is INCORRECT.

When you are viewing the movement of something from the point of arrival, use “bring”:

* "When you come to the party, please bring a bottle of wine."

This is CORRECT.

When you are viewing the movement of something from the point of departure, use “take”:

* "When we go to the party, let’s take a bottle of wine."

This is CORRECT.

4. Fewer vs Less

Sign at the checkout of a supermarket: “Ten items or

less”.

This is INCORRECT.

You can count the items, so you need to use the number word “fewer”. These nouns are
countable.

* "Ten items or fewer."

This is CORRECT.

If you can’t count the substance, then you should use “less”. These nouns are uncountable.

* "You should eat less meat."

This is CORRECT.
 5. However

"We were supposed to go to the dance last night, however, it was cancelled because of
lack of interest."

This is INCORRECT.

A semicolon, rather than a comma, should be used to link these two complete sentences:

* "We were supposed to go to the dance last night; however, it was cancelled because of
lack of interest."

This is CORRECT.

It should be noted that there ARE situations in which you can use a comma instead of a semi-
colon:

* "The match at Wimbledon, however, continued despite the bad weather."

This is CORRECT.

There is only one complete sentence in this example. It is not a compound sentence.

10. Its vs It's

"Its going to be sunny tomorrow."

This is INCORRECT.

It’s is the contraction of It is:

* "It’s going to be sunny tomorrow."

This is CORRECT.

"What’s that? I can’t remember it’s

name."

This is INCORRECT.

Its is a possessive pronoun that modifies a noun:

* "What’s that? I can’t remember its name."

This is CORRECT.

Basic The basic rule states that a singular subject takes a singular verb, while a
Rule. plural subject takes a plural verb.
NOTE: The trick is in knowing whether the subject is singular or plural. The
next trick is recognizing a singular or plural verb.

Hint: Verbs do not form their plurals by adding an s as nouns do. In order
to determine which verb is singular and which one is plural, think of which
verb you would use with he or she and which verb you would use with they.

Example talks, talk

: Which one is the singular form? Which word would you use with
he? We say, "He talks." Therefore, talks is singular. We say,
"They talk." Therefore, talk is plural.

Rule Two singular subjects connected by or or nor require a singular verb.

1.

Example My aunt or my uncle is arriving by train today.

:

Rule Two singular subjects connected by either/or or neither/nor require a

2. singular verb as in Rule 1.

Examples Neither Juan nor Carmen is available.

:
Either Kiana or Casey is helping today with stage decorations.

Rule When I is one of the two subjects connected by either/or or neither/nor, put
3. it second and follow it with the singular verb am.

Example Neither she nor I am going to the festival.

:

Rule When a singular subject is connected by or or nor to a plural subject, put the
4. plural subject last and use a plural verb.

Example The serving bowl or the plates go on that shelf.

:

Rule When a singular and plural subject are connected by either/or or

5. neither/nor, put the plural subject last and use a plural verb.

Example Neither Jenny nor the others are available.

:

Rule As a general rule, use a plural verb with two or more subjects when they are
 6. connected by and.

Example A car and a bike are my means of transportation.

:

Rule Sometimes the subject is separated from the verb by words such as along
7. with, as well as, besides, or not. Ignore these expressions when determining
whether to use a singular or plural verb.

Examples The politician, along with the newsmen, is expected shortly.

:
Excitement, as well as nervousness, is the cause
of her shaking.

Rule The pronouns each, everyone, every one, everybody, anyone, anybody,
8. someone, and somebody are singular and require singular verbs. Do not be
misled by what follows of.

Examples Each of the girls sings well.

:
Every one of the cakes is gone.
NOTE: Everyone is one word when it means everybody. Every
one is two words when the meaning is each one.

Rule With words that indicate portions—percent, fraction, part, majority, some,
9. all, none, remainder, and so forth —look at the noun in your of phrase
(object of the preposition) to determine whether to use a singular or plural
verb. If the object of the preposition is singular, use a singular verb. If the
object of the preposition is plural, use a plural verb.

Examples Fifty percent of the pie has disappeared.

: Pie is the object of the preposition of.

Fifty percent of the pies have disappeared.

Pies is the object of the preposition.

One-third of the city is unemployed.

One-third of the people are unemployed.

NOTE: Hyphenate all spelled-out fractions.

All of the pie is gone.

All of the pies are gone.

Some of the pie is missing.

Some of the pies are missing.

None of the garbage was picked up.

None of the sentences were punctuated correctly.

Of all her books, none have sold as well as the first one.

NOTE: Apparently, the SAT testing service considers none as a singular word only.
However, according to Merriam Webster's Dictionary of English Usage, "Clearly none has
been both singular and plural since Old English and still is. The notion that it is singular
only is a myth of unknown origin that appears to have arisen in the 19th century. If in
context it seems like a singular to you, use a singular verb; if it seems like a plural, use a
plural verb. Both are acceptable beyond serious criticism" (p. 664).

Rule When either and neither are subjects, they always take singular verbs.
10.

Examples Neither of them is available to speak right now.

:
Either of us is capable of doing the job.

Rule The words here and there have generally been labeled as adverbs even
11. though they indicate place. In sentences beginning with here or there, the
subject follows the verb.

Examples: There are four hurdles to jump.

There is a high hurdle to jump.

Rule Use a singular verb with sums of money or periods of time.

12.

Examples Ten dollars is a high price to pay.

:
Five years is the maximum sentence for that offense.

Rule Sometimes the pronoun who, that, or which is the subject of a verb in the
13. middle of the sentence. The pronouns who, that, and which become singular
or plural according to the noun directly in front of them. So, if that noun is
singular, use a singular verb. If it is plural, use a plural verb.

Examples Salma is the scientist who writes/write the reports.

: The word in front of who is scientist, which is singular.
Therefore, use the singular verb writes.

He is one of the men who does/do the work.

The word in front of who is men, which is plural. Therefore, use
the plural verb do.

Rule Collective nouns such as team and staff may be either singular or plural
14. depending on their use in the sentence.

Examples The staff is in a meeting.

: Staff is acting as a unit here.

The staff are in disagreement about the findings.

The staff are acting as separate individuals in this example.

The sentence would read even better as:

The staff members are in disagreement about the findings.
 Self Teaching Unit:
Subject - Verb Agreement
© 2000, 1978 Margaret L. Benner All rights reserved.

Although you are probably already familiar with basic subject-verb agreement, this
chapter begins with a quick review of basic agreement rules.

Subjects and verbs must AGREE with one another in number (singular or plural).
Thus, if a subject is singular, its verb must also be singular; if a subject is plural, its
verb must also be plural.

In the present tense, nouns and verbs form plurals in opposite ways: nouns ADD an
s to the singular form; verbs REMOVE the s from the singular form.

These agreement rules do not apply to verbs used in the simple past tense without
any helping verbs.
The agreement rules do, however, apply to the following helping verbs when they
are used with a main verb: is-are, was-were, has-have, does-do.

The agreement rules do not apply to has-have when used as the SECOND helping
verb in a pair.
They do NOT apply to any other helping verbs, such as can, could, shall, should,
may, might, will, would, must.

The subject-verb agreement rules apply to all personal pronouns except I and you,
which, although SINGULAR, require PLURAL forms of verbs.
 Now click onthe link below to do exercise 1.

Link to Exercise 1

The remainder of this teaching unit deals with some more advanced subject-verb
agreement rules and with exceptions to the original subject-verb agreement rule

Compound Subject

The word “compound” means “made up of two or more parts.” Two or more words
can be compounded or linked by joining them with any of three words:

and, or, and nor

Here are some examples of compounding:

Compound nouns can function as a “compound subject.” In some instances, a

compound subject poses special problems for the subject-verb agreement rule (+s,
-s).
However, instead of using two sentences (as above), we may choose to give the
above information in one sentence.

This sentence makes use of a compound subject (two subject nouns joined by
and), illustrating a new rule about subject-verb agreement.

Although each part of the compound subject is singular (ranger and camper),
taken together (joined by and), each one becomes a part of a plural structure and,
therefore, must take a plural verb (see) to agree in the sentence.

SUBJECT-VERB RULE #1 – Two or more singular (or plural) subjects joined by

and act as a plural compound subject and take a plural verb (singular + singular
= plural).

You can check the verb by substituting the pronoun they for the compound subject.

Or and nor as joiners word somewhat differently from and. While the word and
seems to ADD things together, or and nor do not. They suggest a CHOICE.
Look at this sentence.

This sentence makes use of a compound subject (two subject nouns joined
together by or). Each part of the compound subject (ranger, camper) is singular.
Even though both words function together as subject (joined by or), the subject still
remains SINGULAR (ranger or camper) since a CHOICE is implied.

This compound subject, therefore, requires a singular verb to agree with it.

SUBJECT-VERB RULE #2 – Two or more SINGULAR subjects joined by or (or

nor) act as a singular compound subject and, therefore, take a singular verb to
agree.

Note: Two or more plural subjects joined by or (or nor) would naturally take a
plural verb to agree.

However, or and nor can pose a more difficult problem.

Thus far we have been working with compound subjects whose individual parts are
both either singular or plural
What if one part of the compound subject is singular and the other part is plural?

What form of a verb should be used in this case? Should the verb be singular to
agree with one word? Or should the verb be plural to agree with the other?

Solution:

1. If the individual parts of the compound subject are joined by and, always use a
plural verb.

2. If the individual parts of the compound subject are joined by or or nor, use the
verb form (singular or plural) which will agree with the subject closer to the
verb.
 Now click onthe link below to do exercise 2.

Link to Exercise 2

Group Nouns

Some nouns which name groups can be either singular or plural depending upon
their meaning in individual sentences.

Because they can describe either the individuals in the group (more than one –
plural), or the group as a single entity (one only – singular), these nouns pose
special problems.

However, there are some guidelines for deciding which verb form (singular or plural)
to use with one of these nouns as the subject in a sentence.

If we refer to the group as a whole and, therefore, as a single unit, we consider the
noun singular. In this case, we use a singular verb.
If, on the other hand, we are actually referring to the individuals within the group,
then we consider the noun plural. In this case, we use a plural verb.

Of course group nouns, like other nouns, can also appear in plural forms (with an s).

When used in the plural form, group nouns mean MORE THAN ONE GROUP.
Thus, it uses a plural verb.

Thus, there are three important subject – verb agreement rules to remember when a
group noun is used as the subject:
1. Group nouns can be considered as a single unit, and, thus, take a singular
verb.

2. Group nouns can be considered as individual members within a single unit

and, thus, take a plural verb.

3. Group nouns can be given plural forms to mean two or more units and, thus,
take a plural verb.

Now click onthe link below to do exercise 3.

Link to Exercise 3

Plural Form / Singular Meaning Nouns

Some nouns are regularly plural in form, but singular in meaning.

Even though these nouns APPEAR to be plural because they end in s, they actually
refer to only one thing made up of smaller, uncounted parts. Therefore, they are
considered singular.

You can see that substituting that pronoun it instead of they makes more sense
here.

Another group of plural form nouns end in –ics.

Similarly, it is a more suitable substitute for any of these words than is they.

These nouns appear to be plural (end in s), but generally refer to only one thing and
are, therefore, generally considered singular.

NOTE: Occasionally, however, the –ics nouns can have a plural meaning: We can
speak about individual parts of these wholes. In this case, we apply the same rule
as applies to group nouns when we consider the individual members within the
group (see Section 3.3): We use a plural verb.

Note the difference in meaning and, therefore, in the verb chosen (singular or plural)
between the two uses of the –ics noun, statistics.
 Now click onthe link below to do exercise 4.

Link to Exercise 4

Indefinite pronouns can pose special problems in subject – verb agreement.

The difficulty is that some indefinite pronouns sound plural when they are really
singular.

As subjects, the following indefinite pronouns ALWAYS take singular verbs. Look
at them closely.

These should be easy to remember.

However, the following indefinite pronouns ALWAYS take plural verbs.

EXCEPTIONS:
A third group of indefinite pronouns takes either a singular or plural verb depending
on the pronoun’s meaning in the sentence. Look at them closely.

(“SANAM”)

Now click onthe link below to do exercise 5.

Link to Exercise 5

So far we have considered subjects that can cause subject-verb agreement

confusion: compound subjects, group noun subjects, plural form – singular
meaning subjects, and indefinite subjects.

The remainder of this teaching unit examines subject – verb agreement problems
that can result from word placement in sentences. There are four main problems:
prepositional phrases, clauses beginning with who, that, or which, sentences
beginning with here or there, and questions.
Here is a list of frequently used prepositions:

A prepositional phrase may be placed between the subject and verb.

In the above example, the singular verb is agrees with the singular subject boy.

Sometimes, however, a prepositional phrase inserted between the subject and verb
makes agreement more difficult.

Car is the singular subject. Was is the singular helping verb which agrees with car.
If we aren’t careful, however, we may mistakenly label riders as the subject since it
is nearer to the verb than car is. If we choose the plural noun, riders, we will
incorrectly select the plural verb were.

Solution to the Prepositional Phrase Problem

1. Learn the major prepositions (see page 28).

2. Be alert for prepositional phrases placed between the subject and verb, and
identify the noun in the phrase immediately as the object of a preposition: An
object of a preposition can NEVER be a sentence subject.

3. Locate the true sentence subject and choose a verb which agrees with it.

4. Remember the indefinite pronoun EXCEPTIONS considered in Section 3.5,

p.18: Some, Any, None, All, and Most. The number of these subject words IS
affected by a prepositional phrase between the subject and verb.

Now click onthe link below to do exercise 6.

 Link to Exercise 6

A clause beginning with who, that, or which and coming BETWEEN the subject and
verb can cause agreement problems.

Like the prepositional phrase, the who / that / which clause never contains the
subject.

TO AVOID SUBJECT – VERB AGREEMENT ERRORS . . .

1. Identify who / that / which clauses immediately.

2. Locate the true sentence subject and choose a verb that agrees with it.

Now click onthe link below to do exercise 7.

Link to Exercise 7

When a sentence begins with there is – there are / here is – here are, the subject
and verb are inverted. After all that you have learned already, you will undoubtedly
find this topic a relatively easy one!

The verb in such constructions is obviously is or are. The subject, however, does
not come BEFORE the verb.

Instead, the subject in this kind of sentence comes AFTER the verb, so you must
look for it AFTER the verb.

In this example, because the subject, book, is singular, the verb must also be
singular.

If the subject is plural, however, then the verb must be plural.

In this example, because the subject, books, is plural, the verb is also plural.

Remember: In here is – here are / there is – there are constructions, look for the
subject AFTER the verb and choose a singular (is) or a plural (are) verb to agree
with the subject.

And finally, sometimes creating a question will cause the subject to follow the verb
as well. Here, identify the subject and then choose the verb that agrees with it
(singular or plural).
Parallel Structure

Parallel structure means using the same pattern of words to show that two or more ideas have the
same level of importance. This can happen at the word, phrase, or clause level. The usual way to
join parallel structures is with the use of coordinating conjunctions such as "and" or "or."
Words and Phrases

With the -ing form (gerund) of words:

Parallel: Mary likes hiking, swimming, and bicycling.

With infinitive phrases:

Parallel: Mary likes to hike, to swim, and to ride a bicycle.

OR

Mary likes to hike, swim, and ride a bicycle.

(Note: You can use "to" before all the verbs in a sentence or only before the first one.)

Do not mix forms.

Example 1

Not Parallel:
Mary likes hiking, swimming, and to ride a bicycle.

Parallel:
Mary likes hiking, swimming, and riding a bicycle.

Example 2

Not Parallel:
The production manager was asked to write his report quickly, accurate ly, and in a
detailed manner.

Parallel:
The production manager was asked to write his report quickly, accurately, and
thoroughly.

Example 3

Not Parallel:
The teacher said that he was a poor student because he waited until the last minute
to study for the exam, completed his lab problems in a careless manner, and his
motivation was low.

Parallel:
The teacher said that he was a poor student because he waited until the last minute
to study for the exam, completed his lab problems in a careless manner, and lacked
motivation.

Clauses

A parallel structure that begins with clauses must keep on with clauses. Changing to another
pattern or changing the voice of the verb (from active to passive or vice versa) will break the
parallelism.

Example 1
Not Parallel:
The coach told the players that they should get a lot of sleep, that they should
not eat too much, and to do some warm-up exercises before the game.

Parallel:
The coach told the players that they should get a lot of sleep, that they should
not eat too much, and that they should do some warm-up exercises before the game.

— or —

Parallel:
The coach told the players that they should get a lot of sleep, not eat too much,
and do some warm-up exercises before the game.

Example 2

Not Parallel:
The salesman expected that he would present his product at the meeting, that there
would be time for him to show his slide presentation, and that questions would be
asked by prospective buyers. (passive)

Parallel:
The salesman expected that he would present his product at the meeting, that there
would be time for him to show his slide presentation, and that prospective buyers
would ask him questions.

Lists After a Colon

Be sure to keep all the elements in a list in the same form.

Example 1
Not Parallel:
The dictionary can be used for these purposes: to find word meanings,
pronunciations, correct spellings, and looking up irregular verbs.

Parallel:
The dictionary can be used for these purposes: to find word meanings,
pronunciations, correct spellings, and irregular verbs.

Proofreading Strategies to Try:

• Skim your paper, pausing at the words "and" and "or." Check on each side of these words
to see whether the items joined are parallel. If not, make them parallel.
• If you have several items in a list, put them in a column to see if they are parallel.
• Listen to the sound of the items in a list or the items being compared. Do you hear the
same kinds of sounds? For example, is there a series of "-ing" words beginning each item? Or
do your hear a rhythm being repeated? If something is breaking that rhythm or repetition of
sound, check to see if it needs to be made parallel.
Usage - Parallel Structure
Sentence elements that are alike in function should also be alike in construction.
These elements should be in the same grammatical form so that they are parallel.

Using parallel structure in your writing will help with

1) economy 2) clarity 3) equality 4) delight.

Here are five parallelism rules.

1. Use parallel structure with elements joined by coordinating conjunctions.

2. Use parallel structure with elements in lists or in a series.

3. Use parallel structure with elements being compared. (X is more than / better
than Y)
4. Use parallel structure with elements joined by a linking verb or a verb of being.

5. Use parallel structure with elements joined by a correlative conjunction.

Choosing between Active and Passive Voice Verbs

when Writing

Usually, effective writing uses the active voice and shuns the passive. Nevertheless,
some situations are awkward or inappropriate when expressed in the active voice.
Certainly, these situations call for the passive voice.

Reasons to use the passive voice:

• The agent (doer) of the action is unimportant.

 The pyramids were built thousands of years ago.

• The agent is unknown.

 Several robberies were committed during the night.

 • The agent is common knowledge, and mentioning it would be
redundant.

 George Bush was elected in 2000.

• The writer desires to control focus of sentence.

1) to de-emphasize the agent’s role in the action

o The alarm was triggered by my son. [Passive

construction shifts focus away from the son’s responsibility.]

2) to emphasize the party receiving the action

• Jack was kicked by Jill.

Reasons to use the active voice:

• The active voice is shorter and more direct.

 Compare.

Active: The waiter dropped the tray of food.

Passive: The tray of food was dropped by the waiter.

• The active voice is less awkward and clearly states relationship

between subject and action.

 Compare.

Passive: Your request for funding has been denied by the review
committee.
Active: The review committee denied your request for funding.

• The active voice sentence pattern propels the reader forward

through your writing thus avoiding weak prose.

Used with permission from Oregon State University Business Writing web page by
Donna Shaw www.orst.edu

Identifying Passive Voice Verbs AR 1/21/02

Verbs have two voices: active and passive.

In active voice sentences, the verb expresses the action in the sentence, the
subject performs the action, and the object is the recipient of the action. Active
sentences follow the pattern: subject-verb-object.

Jill kicked Jack.

In a passive voice sentence, the subject and object flip-flop. The subject becomes
the passive recipient of the action.

Jack was kicked by Jill.

Form of Passive Voice Verbs

The passive voice requires a "double verb" and will always consist of a form of the
verb "to be" and the past participle (usually the "en/ed/t" form) of another verb.
Example: is kicked

Writers should be familiar with the forms of "to be" so that they can easily identify the
passive voice in their work.

Review the forms of "to be": am, is, are, was, were, be, being, been

Note the forms of "to be" in the examples of the verb "to kick" in various forms of the
passive voice:

is kicked----------------had been kicked

was kicked-------------is going to be kicked
is being kicked---------will be kicked
has been kicked-------can be kicked
was being kicked------should be kicked

Often passive voice sentences will contain a "by" phrase indicting who or what
performed the action. Passive sentences can be easily transformed into active
sentences when the object of the preposition "by" is moved to the subject position in
the sentence.

Passive: The cookies were eaten by the children.

Active: The children ate the cookies.

Passive: The tunnels are dug by the gophers.

Active: The gophers dug the tunnels.