PSAT Grammar You love it, you just don’t know it yet…

PSAT Grammar

You love it, you just don’t know it yet…

Subject-Verb Agreement

Singular subject takes singular verb Plural subject takes plural verb

Examples

Subject-Verb Agreement

Intervening phrase• The number of the subject is not changed by

a phrase following the subject.

Examples

Subject-Verb Agreement Practice - Intervening Phrase

1. The theory of plate tectonics (has, have) explained causes of earthquake activity throughout the world.

2. Enormous plates of rock (is, are) moving constantly beneath the earth’s surface.

3. The movements, in addition to the pressure of molten rock, (cause, causes) the plates to collide.

4. The pressure of colliding plates (force, forces) the rock to bend until it breaks.

5. A ridge of these breaks (is, are) called a fault.

Subject-Verb Agreement Practice – Intervening Phrase

1. The cause of most earthquakes (is, are) the release of stress along a fault.

2. The Richter scale, as well as other measurements, (has, have) been used to record the magnitude of earthquakes.

3. The tremors of the great San Francisco earthquake (was, were) estimated to have measured 8.3 on the Richter scale.

4. California, with the San Andreas and Garlock faults, (has, have) about ten times the world average of earthquake activity.

5. The scientific community, especially seismologists and geologists, (is, are) studying the effects of earthquakes.

Subject-Verb Agreement Indefinite Pronouns as Subjects Common singular words:

Each AnyoneEither SomeoneNeither EveryoneOne AnybodyNo One SomebodyEvery one Everybody

Common plural words:Several FewBoth Many

These may be singular or plural (depending on the sentence)Some AnyNone AllMost

Subject-Verb Agreement Practice – Indefinite Pronouns

1. Each of the pictures (was, were) in a silver frame.

2. One of my friends (play, plays) the tuba.

3. All of our belongings (is, are) still unpacked.

4. Some of these rare books (has, have) leather covers.

5. None of the people in the theater (was, were) pleased with the film.

Subject-Verb Agreement Practice – Indefinite Pronouns

Every one of these jeans (is, are) too small. A few in my class (was, were) asked to help

out. The lack of funds (present, presents) a

problem. Everybody living in Lewis Heights (go, goes)

to Carver High School. A band with two trumpet players and thirty-

five clarinetist (sound, sounds) terrible.

Subject-Verb Agreement

Compound subjects• Subjects joined by AND take a plural verb

• When a singular and a plural subject are joined by OR or NOR, the verb agrees with the nearer subject.

Examples

Subject-Verb Agreement Practice – Compound Subjects

1. One of the most precious resources in the nation (is, are) water.

2. The water supply for all the states (come, comes) from either surface water or underground water.

3. Not one of the water sources (is, are) free from pollution.

Subject-Verb Agreement Practice – Compound Subjects

1. The government, in addition to environmentalists, (is, are) worried about the quality of water.

2. The causes of contamination (is, are) varied.

3. Salt for melting ice on city streets (cause, causes) pollution.

4. Each one of the fifty states (has, have) a stake in preserving sources of water.

Subject-Verb Agreement

Collective Nouns• May take singular or plural… depends on

whether the speaker is thinking of the individual members of the group, or the group as a unit.

Examples

Subject-Verb Agreement

Statements of Amount• Usually singular if the amount is considered a

unit.

Examples

Subject-Verb Agreement

EVERY or MANY A before words or a series of words:• Followed by a singular verb

Examples

Subject-Verb Agreement

ONE OF THESE• Verb clauses that follow “one of those” are

almost always plural

Examples

Subject-Verb Agreement Practice

1. Neither the knife nor the scissors (was, were) sharp enough.

2. Forty dollars (is, are) too much to pay for jeans.

3. (Where’s, where are) his coat and boots?4. Many a gymnast (dreams, dream) of

participating in the Olympics.5. There (seems, seem) to be something for

everyone.

Subject-Verb Agreement Practice

1. Every one of her quilts (has, have) been sold.

2. Macaroni and cheese (is, are) on the menu again.

3. Neither civics nor mathematics (is, are) his best subject.

4. Each of the packages (contain, contains) a gift.

Subject-Verb Agreement Practice

1. Each year, a faculty member and a student (talk, talks) to the student body.

2. In the USA, there (are, is) a wide variety of ethnic groups.

3. Can you believe that Leo (don’t, doesn’t) go anywhere without his pocket calculator.

4. My sister is one of those people who (make, makes) guests feel welcome.

Subject-Verb Agreement Practice

1. Some of the criticism aimed at children’s cartoons (is, are) perceptive and accurate.

2. The number of serious accidents that happen at home (is, are) surprisingly large.

3. The musical Cats (was, is) based on a group of poems by T.S. Eliot.

4. Every morning during swim season, each of the girls on the team (were, was) at the pool by 6 am.

Pronoun and Antecedent Agreement

A pronoun agrees with its antecedent in number and gender

Examples

Pronoun and Antecedent Agreement Singular pronouns The following words are referred to by a

singular pronoun (him, he, his, she, her, hers, it, its):

Each EitherNeither OneEveryone EverybodyNo one NobodyAnyone AnybodySomeone Somebody

Pronoun and Antecedent Agreement

Singular antecedents joined by OR or NOR should refer to singular pronouns

Two or more antecedents joined by AND should refer to a plural pronoun.

Examples

Pronoun/Antecedent Agreement Practice

1. Each of the skiers waxed _________ skis before leaving the lodge.

2. I believe that anybody should be free to express _________ opinion.

3. No one brought ________ camera to the party.4. Neither of the male soloists pronounced ____________

words very clearly.5. Neither of the newborn kittens seemed very steady or

secure on ____ feet.6. As far as I could see, neither of the women made a

mistake while presenting _______ argument during the debate.

Pronoun/Antecedent Agreement Practice

1. The number of accidents (has been, have been) startling.

2. (Has either, have either) of the brothers traveled before?

3. (How is, how are) the heat and humidity in Florida?

4. This is one of those cars that (has, have) a fuel injection system.

Pronoun/Antecedent Agreement Practice

1. Anyone who speaks a foreign language increases (their, his/her) chance for a job.

2. The increase in taxes (have met, has met) resistance.

3. A person who admits (his, their) mistakes is respected by all.

4. Each student needs a chance to think for (himself, themselves).

5. (Is, are) there film and batteries in the camera?

Uses of Who and Whom

Nominative: Who, whoever Objective: Whom, whomever Possessive: Whose, whosever

Examples

Uses of Who and Whom

Pronouns in incomplete construction• Occurs when something is omitted after the

word THAN or AS in a comparison.

Examples

Uses of Who and Whom

The –selves…• Pronouns ending in –self, -selves are usually

used only to refer to another word in the sentence.

Example

Nominative Forms

To determine the correct pronoun in a compound subject, try each subject separately with the verb.• Example:

• Her and me are teammates. [Her is a teammate? Me am a teammate?]

• She and I are teammates. [She is a teammate? I am a teammate?]

Nominative Form – Practice

Have you lived in this city as long as (they, them)?

I don’t know Brenda as well as (she, her). Eva is shorter than (I, me). The senior class scored higher than (them,

they). The trip will benefit Roger more than (I, me). Is she six months older than (I, me)? I understand him better than (she, her).

Nominative Form - Practice

Brenda sat between Sheryl and (I, me). The two people in this class you can always

rely on are Dave and (her, she). When Ann and I were young, (us, we) kids

used to love to ride bikes. When Andy and I study together, nobody in

our class does better than (us, we). The two students nominated were Bill and (I,

me).

Nominative Form – Practice The guests thanks Rita and (she, her). Gloria and (I, me) have matching outfits. (We, us) girls are studying self-defense. Of course, I remember Monica and (she, her). We knew it was (he, him). Did Jean and (he, him) sing in the musical? Give (we, us) girls the message as soon as possible. Jana and (she, her) are active members. I will call Jody and (they, them) tomorrow. You and (he, him) have been practicing singing a lot.