Home / / Right Forms of Verbs | Grammatical Rules | English Grammar

Right Forms of Verbs | Grammatical Rules | English Grammar

 

Right Forms of Verbs (Sentence)

Rule No. 1

Ø  Sub + Prepositional Phrase (not, among, with, along with, together with, accompanied by/with, as well as, in addition to, for both) + Verb (According to first Noun/Pronoun)

Example:

  1. Several theories on this subject (has/have) been proposed.
  2. The view of these disciplines (varies/vary) from time to time.
  3. The danger of forest fires (is/are) not to be taken lightly.
  4. The effects of that crime (was/are) likely to be devastating.
  5. The actress along with her manager and some friends (is/are/were) going a party tonight.
  6. Mr. Jones accompanied by several members of the committee (has/have) proposed some changes of the rules.
  7. The quality of these recordings (is/are) not very good.
  8. The use of credit cards in place of cash (has/have) increased rapidly in recent years.
  9. Living expenses in this country as well as in many others (is/are) at an all-time high.


Rule No. 2

Ø  Either……….or, Neither……….nor, Both……….and, Not only……….but also (Form of the verb will be taken according to the second subject)

Example:

  1. Neither John nor his friends (is/are) going to the beach today.
  2. Either the boys or Carmen (has/have) seen this movie before.
  3. Maria or Bill (is/are) bringing the car.


Rule No. 3

Ø  Either, Neither, No, Any, Some, Every, Each + Singular Noun/Pronoun/Verb

Example:

  1. If either of you (takes/take) a vacation now, we will not be able to finish this work.
  2. Nobody (works/work) harder than John does.
  3. Anyone who (has/have) lost his ticket should report to the desk.


Rule No. 4

Ø  (None, No) can take either a singular or plural verb, depending on the noun which follows it.

Example:

  1. None of the counterfeit money (has/have) found.
  2. None of the students (has/have) finished the exam yet.
  3. No example (is/are) relevant to this case.
  4. No examples (is/are) relevant to this case.

 

Rule No. 5

Ø  Flock of birds, Flock of sheep, School of fish, Herd of cattle, Pride of lions, Pack of dogs + Singular Verb

Ø  Uncountable Noun (Time, Money, Measurement = Weight, Distance, Length) + Singular Verb

NB But their units can be plural.

Example:

  1. The flock of birds (is/are) circling overhead.
  2. A school of fish (is/are) being attack by shark.
  3. 20 minutes (is/are) not enough time to finish this test.
  4. Twenty dollars (is/are) too much to pay for the shirt.
  5. 100 miles (is/are) too much to run in one day.


Rule No. 6

Ø  Gerunds (Verb + ing)/Infinitive (to + Verb) as subjects = Singular Verb

Example:

  1. Knowing her (has/have) made what he is.
  2. Not studying (has/have) caused him many problems.
  3. Writing many letters (makes/make) her happy.

 

Rule No. 7

Ø  Majority can be singular or plural. If it is alone, it is usually singular. If it is followed by a plural noun, it is usually plural.

Example:

  1. The majority (believes/believe) that we are in no danger.
  2. The majority of the students (believes/believe) him to be innocent.

 

Rule No. 8

Ø  A many/A number of + Plural Noun + Plural Verb

Ø  Many a/The number of + Singular Noun + Singular Verb

Example:

  1. A number of students (is/are) going to the picnic.
  2. A number of the applicants (has/have) interviewed.
  3. Many a boy (is/are) present.


Rule No. 9

Ø  Plural Noun = Scissors, Shorts, Pants, Jeans, Trousers, Tongs, Eyeglasses, Pliers, Tweezers + Plural Verb

Ø  A pair of………. = Singular Noun + Singular Verb

Example:

  1. The pants (is/are) in the drawer.
  2. A pair of pants (is/are) in the drawer.
  3. These scissors (is/are) on the table.
  4. This pair of scissors (is/are) on the table.

 

Rule No. 10

Ø  Same thing + and + Same thing = Singular Verb

Ø  Different thing + and + Different thing = Plural Verb

Example:

  1. Two and two (makes/make) four.
  2. Tea and coffee (is/are) popular.
  3. Time and tide (waits/wait) for none.
  4. Trade and commerce (is/are) essential for quick development.
  5. Slow and steady (wins/win) the race.
  6. Bread and butter (is/are) is my favorite breakfast.
  7. The headmaster and secretary (is/are) present in the meeting
  8. The headmaster and the secretary (is/are) present in the meeting.


Rule No. 11

Ø One-third of + Uncountable Noun (Singular) + Verb (Singular)

Ø One-third of + Countable Noun (Plural) + Verb (Singular)

Example:

  1. One-third of (waters/water) (is/are) pure.
  2. One-third of (students/student) (is/are) present here.

 

Rule No. 12

Ø  Two-third of + Uncountable Noun (Singular) + Verb (Singular)

Ø  Two-third of + Countable Noun (plural) + Verb (Plural)

Example:

  1. Two-third of (waters/water) (is/are) pure.
  2. Two-third of (students/student) (is/are) here.

 

Rule No. 13

Ø  Here, There, Such, No longer + Verb + Subject

Example:

  1. Here/There/No longer (is/are) ten schools.
  2. There (is/are) no lesson today.
  3. Such (is/are) a life.
  4. Here (comes/come) the bus!
  5. There she (goes/go)!


Rule No. 14

Ø  Cannot help, Could not help, With a view to, Look forward to, Come forward to, Get used to, Be used to, Mind, Worth, It is not good, It is no use + (Verb + ing)

Ø  To + V1 (S + used to + V1)

Ø  To.......... (S + be V. + used to + V1 + ing)

Example:

  1. It is no use (talk/talking) to him.
  2. I do not mind (help/helping) the poor.

 

Rule No. 15

Ø  Agree, Allow, Appear, Ask, Attempt, Bother, Core, Choose, Claim, Condescend, Consent, Decide, Decline, Demand, Determine, Deserve, Invade, Intend, Instruct, Expect, Fail, Forget, Guarantee, Happen, Hesitate, Hope, Know, I earn, Long, Manage, Mean, Neglect, Offer, Permit, Plan, Prepare, Pretend, Persuade,  Proceed, Promise, Prove, Refuse, Remember, Require, Resemble, Reserve, Seem, Swear, Tend, Teach, Threaten, Try, Undertake, Vow, Wait, Want = to + Verb

Example:

  1. John expects (begin/to begin) studying law next semester.
  2. The president will attempt (to reduce/reducing) inflation in the next four years.


Rule No. 16

Ø  Make, Let, Help, Need, Dare, Hear, Had better, Would better + Base form of verb

Ø  Help + V1

Ø  Help + to + V1

Example:

  1. I heard the baby (cry/crying) for his food.
  2. Let him (go/going).


Rule No. 17

Ø  The following verbs can be followed by either the infinitive or the gerund with no change in meaning.

(Begin, Can’t stand, Continue, Dread, Hate, Like, Love, Prefer, Regret, Start, Try)

Example:

  1. He started to study after dinner.
  2. He started studying after dinner.

 

A Few Important Exercises

a)       The United States of America (is/are) a rich country.

b)       The horse and carriage (has/have) cost him three thousand taka.

c)       ‘The Arabian Nights’ (delights/delight) many readers.

d)       All that glitters (is/are) not gold.

e)       Many a girl (was/are) present in the class.

f)        Many boys in the field (has/have) been playing for one hour.

g)       The virtuous (is/are) blessed.

h)       No news (means/mean) good news.

i)         Five and five (makes/make) ten.

j)         The crimes committed by him (is/are) unpardonable.

k)       At least a million people (attends/attend) the meeting every year.

l)         The courage of the freedom fighters (is/are) well known.

m)      A few students (responds/respond) in the class.

n)       The color of his eyes (is/are) blue.

o)       Gulliver’s Travels (is/are) a famous book.

p)       To walk in the morning (is/are) good for health.

q)       The agenda (is/are) carefully set.

r)        There (stands/stand) many trees in front of our house.

s)       A mother with his baby (is/are) crying.

t)        There is no rose but (has/have) thorns.

u)       The clergy (is/are) happy.

v)       A pair of shoes (is/are) on the rack.

w)     He is one of the boys who (has/have) written the letter.

x)       Three-fourth of work (has/have/had) not been finished yet.

 

Prepared by Sumon Badsha

Edited by Sheikh Azmain Zunaeid

 

No comments:

Subscribe to: Post Comments ( Atom )
Powered by Blogger.