If your subject is...

two subjects

connected by and (unless

referring to the same

thing)

use a plural verb

two or more objects

joined by or or nor

use a verb that agrees

with the nearest subject

remember to ignore any prepositional phrases between

the subject and the verb!

a fraction or percentage (e.g., three-fourths or

35 percent)

Is the target of the

fraction singular or plural, or is

it a collective

noun?

SINGULAR: use a singular

verb COLLECTIVE NOUN

(e.g., team, jury, committee,

crowd, couple, family, faculty,

group, staff, army, audience,

club, class)

Is the group described

by the collective

noun working in

unity?

YES: use a

singular verb

NO: use a plural verb; may

need to rewrite for clarty, e.g., by using members

a pronoun from this

list: it, each, either,

anyone, everyone, much, no

one, nothing,

someone, such

use a singular

verb

an organization's

name

is the subject in the

organization's name singular

or plural?

PLURAL:use a plural

verb

SINGULAR (e.g.,

Association of...):

use a singular verb

PLURAL (e.g., Businesswomen

of...): use a plural verb

the words number, majority,

total

is it followed by

the or a?

THE: use a

singular verb

A: use a plural

verb

a "noncountable" noun (e.g.,

politics, athletics, scissors)

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