Does 'everyone' take a singular or plural verb?

'Everyone' is an indefinite pronoun and is treated as singular. You should write 'Everyone is here,' not 'Everyone are here.'

What if the subject has two things joined by 'and'?

Subjects joined by 'and' make a compound subject, which is plural. For example, you would write 'The cat and the dog are playing.'

How do I handle 'either/or' and 'neither/nor'?

When using 'either/or' or 'neither/nor', the verb should match the part of the subject that is closest to it. For example, 'Neither the coach nor the players are ready,' but 'Neither the players nor the coach is ready.'

What is subject-verb agreement?

Subject-verb agreement is the grammatical rule that the subject and verb in a sentence must match in number. If the subject is singular, the verb must be singular, and if the subject is plural, the verb must be plural. Think of it like matching shoes. You wouldn't wear one sneaker and one dress shoe. In a sentence, the subject and verb are a pair that need to coordinate so the sentence sounds right and makes sense to the reader.

What it means to agree

In English, subjects (who or what does the action) and verbs (the action) have forms for singular (one) and plural (more than one). Agreement means pairing a singular subject with a singular verb, or a plural subject with a plural verb. For example, we say 'The dog runs' (singular) and 'The dogs run' (plural).

Why it matters

Matching numbers help the reader understand who is doing what without confusion. When they do not match, the sentence feels jarring, much like playing a wrong note in a song. Proper agreement keeps your writing smooth and easy to follow.

Where students often slip up

Tricky subjects are the most common cause of agreement errors. Phrases that come between the subject and verb (like 'The box of chocolates') can trick you into matching the verb with the wrong word. Always find the true subject. Other common traps include collective nouns like 'team' or 'family', and indefinite pronouns like 'everyone' or 'each', which are usually singular.

Worked through

Identify and fix the subject-verb agreement error in this sentence: 'The group of students are studying for the exam.'

First, identify the verb, which is 'are studying'. Next, ask who or what is studying. The subject is 'group', not 'students'. The words 'of students' make up a prepositional phrase describing the group. Since 'group' is a singular noun, it requires a singular verb. The correct sentence is: 'The group of students is studying for the exam.'

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Where this comes from: Purdue OWL: Subject/Verb Agreement · Khan Academy: Subject-verb agreement · OpenStax: Writing Guide with Handbook