Subject-Verb Agreement in the English Language: Basic Grammatical Concerns

Subject–Verb Agreement in Academic and Scientific Prose: A Complete Guide

Agreement errors are small on the page but loud in peer review. This guide reframes the basics as field-tested rules, quick diagnostics, and edit-ready patterns you can apply to manuscripts, theses, and grant proposals.

1) Why Agreement Matters

Subject–verb agreement is the contract at the centre of every English clause: the verb’s form must match the subject’s number (singular vs. plural) and—especially with to be—its person (first/second/third). When the contract breaks, meaning blurs and credibility slips. Reviewers tolerate complex science, not basic grammar errors. Fortunately, agreement follows logic; the rules below handle almost all cases encountered in scholarly writing.

2) The Core Patterns (Start Here)

• Singular subject → singular verb. Dave writes the paper. / I am revising my chapter.
• Plural subject → plural verb. They write their papers together. / We were conducting our research last week.
• Subjects joined by and are plural. Dave and Mary write the paper.
• There is/are inversion: the subject follows the verb: There is a stack of papers… / There are fifty papers…

3) Or/Nor and the Proximity Rule

When alternatives form the subject (either…or / neither…nor), agree with the noun closest to the verb.

• Either the supervisor or the students are attending.
• Neither the participants nor the PI was present.

Mixed number subjects often read awkwardly. Prefer to rewrite for clarity when possible:

4) Ignore the “Noisy Neighbours”

Agreement is between the true subject and the verb. Do not let intervening phrases change number.

• The set of assumptions is unrealistic.
• The results, which the student obtained despite delays, have been verified.

5) Collective Nouns and Organisation Names

Words such as team, committee, faculty, cohort, data set can be singular or plural by meaning and dialect.

• AmE default: treat as singular when acting as a unit: The committee is meeting.
• BrE option: plural to emphasise individuals: The committee are divided.

6) Indefinite Pronouns and Quantifiers

• Each of the variables was centred.
• Many of the participants were commuters.
• None of the evidence is compelling. / None of the arguments are compelling.

Fixed idioms: More than one → singular (has); a number of → plural; the number of → singular.

7) Percentages, Fractions, and Measures

Agree with the noun after of—or with how the quantity is conceptualised.

• Sixty percent of the sample is male. (unit)
• Sixty percent of the participants are male. (individuals)
• Two litres is sufficient. (single amount)
• Two litres were spilled on the floor. (separate portions)

8) Words That Look Plural (or Singular) but Aren’t

• Plural-looking but singular: mathematics, physics, economics, linguistics, news → Mathematics is challenging.
• Pluralia tantum (always plural): scissors, trousers, premises, contents → The scissors are missing.
• Foreign plurals: bacterium → bacteria, criterion → criteria, phenomenon → phenomena. Match your field’s norm for data (plural in many STEM venues, singular mass in some social sciences)—but be consistent.
• Titles/quoted terms: Treat as singular: “Findings and Perspectives” is the most cited section.

9) Special Constructions That Trap Writers

9.1 “Along with / as well as / in addition to”

These add modifiers; they do not make the subject plural.

9.2 Appositives

Nouns that rename the subject do not change number:

9.3 “One of the … who/that …”

The verb in the relative clause agrees with the plural antecedent:

9.4 Gerunds and Infinitives as Subjects

• Measuring baseline variability is essential.
• To replicate the analysis takes time.

9.5 “What” Clauses

Most often singular by sense:

• What we need is better replication.
• What remain are unresolved anomalies.

10) Agreement Inside Relative Clauses

Verbs inside who/that/which clauses agree with the antecedent, not with a nearby noun.

• The researchers who analyse the data…
• The researcher who analyses the data…

11) Discipline and Dialect Preferences (Pick and Stick)

• Data & statistics: Decide your treatment (e.g., “data are” vs “data is”) according to target journal or thesis guide; record in your style sheet and use consistently.
• AmE vs BrE collectives: Pick one approach and align pronouns to match (its vs their).

12) Before → After: Edit-Ready Repairs

1) The group of applicants are large.
→ The group of applicants is large.            [Subject = group]

2) Each of the variables were centered.
→ Each of the variables was centered.          [Each = singular]

3) The data was processed and the outliers was removed.
→ The data were processed and the outliers were removed.
   [Make both plural, or adopt singular consistently per field]

4) Either the reviewers or the editor were mistaken.
→ Either the reviewers or the editor was mistaken.
   [Proximity rule → editor (singular)]

5) The samples that was contaminated were discarded.
→ The samples that were contaminated were discarded.
   [Verb agrees with samples inside the relative clause]

6) A number of limitations is acknowledged.
→ A number of limitations are acknowledged.    [“A number of” = plural]

13) Quick Decision Tests (Use During Revision)

• Strip test: Remove modifiers and prepositional phrases; agree with the core subject.
• Nearest-noun test: With or/nor, agree with the noun closest to the verb (or rewrite).
• Unit vs members: For collectives, choose singular for the whole unit, plural for individuals.
• Quantity sense: For percentages/fractions/measures, decide if you mean one amount or many items.

14) A Fast Revision Workflow

1. Circle the main verbs. Draw a line from each verb to its true subject; fix mismatches.
2. Mark edge cases. Flag or/nor, collectives, and quantity expressions; apply the tests above.
3. Standardise terms. Add decisions (e.g., data are) to a 1-page style sheet; enforce document-wide.
4. Rewrite to avoid contortions. If proximity rules create clunkiness, rephrase the sentence.

15) Frequently Asked Questions

Q: “More than one” feels plural—should I use a plural verb?
A: No. It’s a fixed singular trigger: More than one researcher has raised the issue.

Q: Do I treat media as plural?
A: In many academic registers, yes (the media are). In some disciplines and general prose, singular mass appears. Choose and be consistent.

Q: How do I avoid mixed-number either…or headaches?
A: Make the nearer noun match your intended verb, or recast: The protocol—not the instruments—was flawed.

16) Agreement Checklist (Print This)

• [ ] Each finite verb agrees with the true subject, not a nearby noun.
• [ ] And-subjects use plural verbs; or/nor-subjects follow the proximity rule (or are rewritten).
• [ ] Collective nouns handled consistently (unit vs members) with matching pronouns (its/their).
• [ ] Indefinite pronouns correct (each/every = singular; many/few = plural; flexible quantifiers by meaning).
• [ ] Percentages/fractions/measures agree with sense or the of-noun.
• [ ] Relative-clause verbs agree with their antecedents (who/that/which).
• [ ] There is/are matches the noun that follows the verb.
• [ ] Discipline/dialect preferences (e.g., data) are standardised in a style sheet.

17) Practice Set (Try These, Then Check)

1. The list of references are incomplete.
2. Either the figures or the appendix need revision.
3. More than one reviewer have requested raw data.
4. The committee have submitted their report. (AmE context)
5. Fifty percent of the sample were vaccinated.
6. The number of citations are increasing.
7. The researchers who analyses the images will present.

18) Final Thoughts

Agreement is not pedantry; it is precision. In scholarly contexts—where claims must be replicable and arguments exact—choosing the right verb form is one of the simplest ways to make your reasoning read as rigorous as your methods. Match verbs to the true subject, standardise discipline-sensitive terms, and recast any sentence that forces the reader to do number gymnastics. Do that, and your prose will sound as professional as your research is.

Need a last-pass check for grammar, parallelism, and style sheet consistency (AmE/BrE; “data are/is”)? Our editors can review a sample and apply rule-consistent agreement across your manuscript.