Concord: the academic writing style guide

There are many different writing styles that can be used for academic writing. However, Concord is the academic writing style guide that is most commonly used by scholars and students. This guide provides an overview of the Concord style and how it can be used to write papers and essays.

Subject-verb agreement relations are one of the most basic and important aspects of grammar. They are also one of the most commonly misused aspects of grammar. The subject and the verb must agree in number and in person. This seems simple enough, but there are a few tricky situations that can trip you up. In this blog post, we will go over some of the most common subject-verb agreement mistakes and how to avoid them.

One of the most common subject-verb agreement mistakes is using a plural verb with a singular subject. This usually happens when a subject is a group of people or things. For example, you might say “The class is studying for their final exams.” This is incorrect because the subject, class, is singular. The correct way to say this would be “The class is studying for its final exams.”

Another common mistake is using a singular verb with a plural subject. This often happens when the subject is a collective noun, such as “team” or “family.” For example, you might say “My family is going on vacation.” This is incorrect because the subject, family, is plural. The correct way to say this would be “My family are going on vacation.”

Finally, there are a few situations where the subject and verb do not agree in number, but they agree in person. This happens when the subject is first person singular (I, me, my, mine) but the verb is third person singular (he, she, it, they). For example, you might say “I am going to the store.” This is incorrect because the subject, I, is first person singular but the verb, am, is third person singular. The correct way to say this would be “I am going to the store.” Remember, subject-verb agreement is one of the most important aspects of grammar. If you can master it, you will sound more confident and professional in your writing.

There are three main rules of subject-verb agreement:

1. A singular subject takes a singular verb.

2. A plural subject takes a plural verb.

3. Some subjects can be either singular or plural, depending on their meaning.

The following are some examples of subject-verb agreement errors:

1. Singular subjects with plural verbs: The data shows that a majority of Americans support the death penalty.

2. Plural subjects with singular verbs: The data show that a majority of Americans support the death penalty.

3. Some subjects can be either singular or plural, depending on their meaning: The data (singular) show (plural) that a majority of Americans support the death penalty. To avoid making subject-verb agreement errors, it is important to know the rules and to be able to identify the subject and verb of a sentence. If you are unsure about whether the subject is singular or plural, you can always check a dictionary.

In conclusion, subject-verb agreement is a important grammatical rule in English. It is important to be aware of the different rules in order to avoid making mistakes in speaking or writing. Thank you for taking the time to read this article.

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