I'm brushing up on English grammar and using this page as a living notebook - every rule, example, or exception I collect goes here so I can review it from my phone, laptop, or anywhere else without digging through folders. It will keep growing over time.
Links & Resources
Books, channels, and other resources I'm using to learn English — a few links per row to keep it compact.
| Link 1 | Link 2 | Link 3 | Link 4 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Keith - English Speaking Academy | Asad Yaqub Official | another note | |
1. Sentence Structure
Notes coming soon.
2. Tenses
Notes coming soon.
3. Subject-Verb Agreement
Plural forms: gentry, people.
Basic Rule: Nouns joined by "and"
If two nouns are connected using and, the subject becomes plural, so the verb must be plural.
| Example | Answer | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Jamal and Kamal is/are going. | are | Jamal and Kamal together are plural. |
Exceptions (idiomatic pairs)
Some noun pairs joined by and are treated as a single idea, so they stay singular even though there appear to be two nouns.
| Example | Answer | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Horse and carriage is/are ready. | is | Treated as one unit, so singular. |
| Time and tide waits/wait for none. | wait | |
| Bread and butter is/are my favourite. | is | One combined idea (a single dish/idea), singular. |
Singular verbs to remember: is, was, has, does.
Correlative Conjunctions
With or / nor / but joining two nouns, the verb agrees with the noun closest to it — not with the whole subject.
| Example | Answer | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Shima or her friends have/has joined in the party. | have | "her friends" (plural) is closest to the verb. |
Common correlative pairs: either … or, neither … nor.
Indefinite Pronoun Subjects
Sentences starting with each, every, everybody, everyone, everything, somebody, someone, something, nobody, no one, nothing, anybody, anyone, anything are singular, so the verb must be singular.
| Example | Answer |
|---|---|
| Every mother love/loves her child. | loves |
"Of" Phrases
The verb agrees with the head word of the subject, not the noun after "of".
| Example | Answer | Why |
|---|---|---|
| A selection of Kazi Nazrul's poems is/are my favourite. | is | Head word "A selection" is singular. |
| Some of my students have/has passed in the exam. | have | "students" is plural here, so plural verb. |
Remember, phrases like one of, some of, either of, neither of, none of usually take a singular verb — check the head word case by case.
Uncountable Nouns
If the subject is an uncountable noun (oil, water, a lot of money, furniture), the verb should be singular.
| Example | Answer |
|---|---|
| A lot of money have/has been spent. | has |
"With / Along With" Phrases
Rule: with, along with, together with, no less than, in addition to — when two subjects are joined this way, the verb agrees with the main subject only, not the added phrase.
| Example | Answer | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Father with his three sons have/has been invited in the party. | has | "Father" is the main subject, and it's singular. |
Fractions
If the fraction's value is more than one and the noun is countable, the subject is plural, so the verb should be plural. If the noun is uncountable, the verb stays singular regardless of the fraction.
| Example | Answer | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Two thirds of the students have/has passed in the exam. | have | "students" is countable and plural. |
| Two third of the work have/has been done. | has | "work" is uncountable, so singular verb. |
Definite Quantity as Subject
If the subject is formed by a definite/specific quantity adjective (a pair of, a specific number), the verb is singular.
| Example | Answer | Why |
|---|---|---|
| A pair of shoes has/have been bought for me. | has | "A pair" is singular. |
| Ten miles is/are a long distance. | is | A definite number before the noun makes the verb singular. |
| Many a man have/has tried to complete the job. | has | "Many a man" = singular ("a man", not "men"). |
Gerund & Infinitive Subjects
If the subject is a gerund (verb + ing) or an infinitive (to + v1), it is treated as singular, so the verb should be singular.
| Example | Answer | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Telling lies is/are a great sin. | is | "Telling" is a gerund subject, singular. |
| To walk is/are good for health. | is | "To walk" is an infinitive subject, singular. |
Singular ↔ Plural Verb List
A quick-reference list of common verbs and their singular/plural forms.
| Singular verb | Plural verb |
|---|---|
| is | are |
| was | were |
| has | have |
| does | do |
| works | work |
| lives | live |
| goes | go |
| comes | come |
| likes | like |
| needs | need |
| wants | want |
| makes | make |
| takes | take |
| gives | give |
| gets | get |
| uses | use |
| finds | find |
| knows | know |
| thinks | think |
| says | say |
| tells | tell |
| looks | look |
| seems | seem |
| becomes | become |
| helps | help |
| provides | provide |
| shows | show |
| means | mean |
| includes | include |
| contains | contain |
| requires | require |
| allows | allow |
| offers | offer |
| creates | create |
| causes | cause |
| increases | increase |
| decreases | decrease |
| changes | change |
| improves | improve |
| reduces | reduce |
| affects | affect |
| depends | depend |
| appears | appear |
| occurs | occur |
| happens | happen |
| exists | exist |
| plays | play |
| tries | try |
| studies | study |
| carries | carry |
Important special cases
These modal verbs do not change between singular and plural:
| Singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| had | had |
| did | did |
| could | could |
| would | would |
| should | should |
| might | might |
| must | must |
| can | can |
| will | will |
| may | may |
The main pattern to memorize
For present simple normal verbs:
Singular: verb + s/es · Plural: base verb
Examples: works → work, goes → go, needs → need, studies → study, watches → watch, tries → try.
But the three big irregular ones are: is → are, has → have, does → do.
And in the past: was → were, had → had, did → did.
That's the core Subject–Verb Agreement list to remember.
4. Articles
Notes coming soon.
5. Prepositions
Notes coming soon.
6. Pronouns
Notes coming soon.
7. Modal Verbs
Notes coming soon.
8. Conditionals
Notes coming soon.
9. Passive Voice
Notes coming soon.
10. Gerund & Infinitive
Notes coming soon.