Question

Circle the subjects and underline the verbs. Make an arrow from the verb to its subject. If the sentence has a subject-verb agreement error, cross out the incorrect verb and write the correct verb form above it.
1. Sara and Desmond is organizing the food.
2. Many of my classmates are arriving early to decorate the party room.
3. The party start at 8:00.
4. Each of us are bringing a small gift that cost less than $10 for another person. 5. Mike, like many other students, have been trying to decide on the best gift to buy.
6. Mike does not want to get something serious; he like to make people laugh.
7. Unfortunately, all the funny things is too expensive.
8. Soo Min is making a cake, and Maria is buying some special chips.​

Answer 1

Since it is impossible for me to circle and make arrows here, I will answer by stating what is what.

Answer:

1. subject: Sara and Desmond;

verb: is organizing;

error: is --> are

2. subject: many of my classmates;

verb: are arriving

3. subject: the party;

verb: start;

error: start --> starts

4. subject: each of us;

verb: are bringing;

error: are --> is

5. subject: mike;

verb: have been trying;

error: have --> has

6. subject: Mike;

verb: does . . . get;

subject: he;

verb: like;

error: like --> likes

7. subject: all the funny things;

verb: is;

error: is --> are

8. subject: Soo Min;

verb: is making;

subject: Maria;

verb: is buying

Explanation:

The subject is the topic of a sentence, that is, what the sentence is about. The verb refers to the subject, expressing an action or a state/condition of that subject. For that reason, the verb and the subject must agree, that is, if the subject is singular, the verb should also be singular; if it is plural, the verb should also be plural.

Let's take sentence 5 as an example:

5. Mike, like many other students, have been trying to decide on the best gift to buy.

The phrase "like many other students" is what makes the sentence confusing. "Students" is a plural word and, because it is closer to the verb, we feel like using a plural verb as well. However, the subject is "Mike", which is a singular proper noun. Therefore, we should use a singular verb to agree with it. The correct sentence is:

- Mike, like many other students, has been trying to decide on the best gift to buy.