Quick Help: Editing for subject-verb agreement

• Identify the subject that goes with each verb. Cover up any words between the subject and the verb to identify agreement problems more easily.
• Check compound subjects. Those joined by and usually take a plural verb form. With those subjects joined by or or nor, however, the verb agrees with the part of the subject closest to the verb.
• Check collective-noun subjects. These nouns take a singular verb form when they refer to a group as a single unit but a plural form when they refer to the multiple members of a group.
• Check indefinite-pronoun subjects. Most take a singular verb form. Both, few, many, others, and several take a plural form; and all, any, enough, more, most, none, and some can be either singular or plural, depending on the noun they refer to.