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Step 1
Identify the subject of the sentence, since this is half the battle. The subject is one or more nouns or pronouns. A noun is a person, place or thing. A pronoun substitutes for a specific noun. Examples of pronouns are "I," "him," "she," and "who."
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Step 2
Use a singular verb or "action word," when the subject is a singular noun or pronoun. Examples are: "Hawaii is beautiful," "He swims laps" and "Who wants coffee?" These sentences demonstrate tense agreement because the subject and the verb are both singular in each example.
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Step 3
Apply plural verbs to plural subjects. Examples of subject-verb agreement are "The teams are playing tomorrow" or "They went to the movies."
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Step 4
Determine whether the sentence has a "compound" subject. In other words, two or more nouns or pronouns linked by the conjunction "and" comprise the overall subject of the sentence. Use plural verbs with compound subjects. Examples are: "Christine and the cat are napping" and "He and his brother are swimming."
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Step 5
Look for the words "or" or "nor." If two nouns or pronouns are linked by "or," they don't comprise a compound subject. Use a singular verb. Examples are: "Bill or Scott is planning the fishing trip" and "Neither Anne nor Karen is managing the program this year."
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Step 6
Beware of complex sentences that interpose additional phrases between the subject and the verb. For example, in the sentence "The book, despite its great reviews, is disappointing" the subject is "book" and not "reviews." Therefore, the singular verb "is" makes the subject and verb agree.
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Step 7
Treat most indefinite pronouns like "someone," "everyone" and "nobody." as singular subjects that need singular verbs. There are exceptions, but this is the rule of thumb. Examples are: "Nobody wants cake" and "Someone asked me that question."
