RSP92
daagh GMATNinjaWould be great to have your thoughts on this.
I am still not clear with how a compound subject can be followed by "are" and then "the cause" instead of "the causes"?
Ex: Sugar and chocolate are the main components of the dish.
(or the above example is also incorrect and it should be "component" instead of "components")
Thanks!
When a sentence has more than one subject per verb, those subjects form a compound subject. Compound subjects can be singular, plural, or a mix of both:
TWO SINGULAR: The dog and the cat bother me.
TWO PLURAL: The dogs and the cats bother me.
ONE SINGULAR, ONE PLURAL: The dog and cats bother me.
Compound subjects can also be joined by "and," "or" (sometimes "either...or"), and "nor" (sometimes "neither...nor"):
The dog and the cat...
(Either) The dog or the cat...
(Neither) The dog nor the cat...
Deciding which verb to use can be tricky. Here are the general rules:
1. A compound subject whose parts are joined by and usually takes a plural verb regardless of whether those parts are plural or singular:
TWO SINGULAR: The dog and the cat bother me.
TWO PLURAL: The dogs and cats fight all the time.
ONE SINGULAR, ONE PLURAL: Joe and the kids need me.
2. A compound subject made up of two singular parts that are joined by or or nor takes a singular verb:
(Either) James or John knows who is coming to the party.
(Neither) James nor John knows who is coming to the party.
3. A compound subject made up of one singular part and one plural part that are joined by or or nor must use a verb whose number matches the number of the part of the subject that is closest to the verb:
CORRECT: (Either) The dog or the kids were making a racket downstairs. [kids were...]
CORRECT: (Either) The kids or the dog was making a racket downstairs. [dog was...]
INCORRECT: (Either) The dog or the kids was making a racket downstairs.
INCORRECT: (Either) The kids or the dog were making a racket downstairs.
CORRECT: (Neither) Joe nor the kids want pizza. [kids want...]
CORRECT: (Neither) The kids nor Joe wants pizza. [Joe wants...]
INCORRECT: (Neither) Joe nor the kids wants pizza.
INCORRECT: (Neither) The kids nor Joe want pizza.
There are two exceptions to these rules.
Exception 1. When the parts of a compound subject are joined by "and" but are generally thought to be a single unit, they take a singular verb, not a plural verb:
CORRECT: Peanut butter and jelly is my favorite.
INCORRECT: Peanut butter and jelly are my favorite.
CORRECT: Two and two equals four.
INCORRECT: Two and two equal four.
Exception 2. When the parts of a compound subject are joined by "and" but the subject is modified by the words "each" or "every", the subject takes a singular verb, not a plural verb:
CORRECT: Every boy and girl gets a merit certificate. [every boy gets...every girl gets]
INCORRECT: Every boy and girl get a merit certificate.
CORRECT: Each business and restaurant has to display a business license. [each business has to...each restaurant has to...]
INCORRECT: Each business and restaurant have to display a business license.
Hope the above examples clarify the subject-verb agreement that compound subject can take depending on the nature of compound subject and coordinating conjunction used.