IBA English Grammar
Rule #1
Subject-Verb Agreement
The main verb must match the real subject of the sentence.
Rule #2
Multiple Subjects with "and"
When two or more singular subjects are joined by "and", the verb should be plural.
Rule #3
Subject Placed After the Verb
When the subject comes after the verb, make sure the verb still agrees with the real subject, especially if the subject includes multiple things.
Rule #4
Either and Neither
The words "either" and "neither" always take a singular verb, even if the sentence feels plural.
Rule #5
Either…or and Neither…nor
When using “either...or” or “neither...nor”, the main verb matches the subject after “or/nor”.
Rule #6
Singular Indefinite Pronouns (Everyone, each, anyone…)
Singular indefinite pronouns take singular verbs. Plural indefinite pronouns take plural verbs.
Rule #7
Collective Nouns: Act Together = Singular, Act Apart = Plural
Collective nouns take a singular verb and pronoun when the group acts as one unit, and a plural verb and pronoun when members of the group act individually or are clearly divided.
Rule #8
A Number of vs. The Number of
The number of → Takes a singular verb.
A number of → Takes a plural verb
Rule #9
Latin and Greek Plurals
Some English words come from Latin or Greek, and their plural forms look different from regular English words. You must use the correct verb based on whether the word is singular or plural.
Rule #10
Compound Subjects with Pronouns
When two or more subjects are joined by “and”, all parts of the subject must be in the subjective case (I, he, she, we, they), not in the objective case (me, him, her, us, them).
Rule #11
Compound Objects with Pronouns
When you have two or more objects joined by “and”, all of them must be in the object form (me, him, her, us, them), not the subject form (I, he, she, we, they).
