Business Writing Tips from The Writing Center
Sentence Structure -- Subject-Verb Agreement (2)
November 23, 2006
Number three of our 12 essential subject-verb
agreement rules
- If the subject of
the sentence is a singular pronoun, use a singular verb.
The 'e' pronouns and their
negatives are always singular:
each
each one
either, neither
everybody, nobody
everyone, no one
everything, nothing
Examples:
Everybody (singular) in our department donates
(singular) to United Way.
Each (singular)
of the
executives
wants
(singular)
his or her own office.
These pronouns are
also always singular:
one
anyone
anybody
someone
somebody
Example:
Somebody
(singular)
in the audience is arguing
(singular)
with her husband.
These pronouns are
also always singular:
one
anyone
anybody
someone
somebody
Examples:
All of the work is
(singular)
finished.
None of the reports are
(plural)
finished.
NOTE: None,
used alone, may also be singular or plural. When the sense is "no
persons or things," the plural is used: The
proofreaders checked for errors, but none were found (none
= no errors). When the sense is "not one," the singular is used:
Of all my reports, none was as well
written as my latest (none = not one).
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This edition was adapted from our
Business Grammar Program.
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