Question

subject: the topic of the sentence. this is what the sentence is about.
verb: the action of the sentence that the subject participates in.
the subject and its verb in a sentence must agree with each other in terms of being singular or plural.
a singular noun must be accompanied by a singular verb, and a plural noun must be accompanied by a
plural verb.

directions: underline the subject and circle the correct verb to make the verb agree with the subject.
example: mary ( like (likes) chocolate.

1. people go to the bank to ( deposit / deposits ) their checks.
2. there ( is / are ) many different breeds of dogs at the dog show today.
3. she ( was / were ) going to go to the store today, but decided not to.
4. there ( is / are ) only one popsicle left in the freezer.
5. the group of girls ( walk / walks ) to the convenience store after school on tuesdays to buy candy.
6. students in mrs. potters geography class ( work / works ) on their continent projects.
7. a student in mrs. potters geography class ( work / works ) on her continent project.
8. the group of students in the quad ( is / are ) practicing a dance routine.
9. the students in the gymnasium ( is / are ) practicing for the volleyball tournament.
10. both sara and jean ( is / are ) sitting on the bench.
11. after winning the big game, the team ( celebrate / celebrates ) its victory.
12. the movie theater ( was / were ) packed on the opening night of the film.
13. please make sure that alma ( has / have ) all of her belongings.
14. please make sure that both of the children ( has / have ) all of their belongings.

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Explanation:

For each sentence, we identify the subject (the noun or pronoun that the sentence is about) and then select the correct verb based on subject - verb agreement rules (singular subject takes singular verb, plural subject takes plural verb).

• In sentence 1, “People” is plural, so the verb “deposit” (plural form) is correct.
• In sentence 2, “many different breeds of dogs” is plural. In “there - be” sentences, the verb agrees with the noun that follows. So “are” is correct.
• In sentence 3, “She” is singular. The past - tense form of the verb “to be” for singular third - person is “was”.
• In sentence 4, “one popsicle” is singular. In “there - be” sentences, the verb agrees with the noun that follows. So “is” is correct.
• In sentence 5, “The group of girls” is considered a singular entity (the group as a whole), so “walks” (singular verb) is correct.
• In sentence 6, “Students” is plural, so “work” (plural verb) is correct.
• In sentence 7, “A student” is singular, so “works” (singular verb) is correct.
• In sentence 8, “The group of students” is considered a singular entity (the group as a whole), so “is” (singular verb) is correct.
• In sentence 9, “The students” is plural, so “are” (plural verb) is correct.
• In sentence 10, “Both Sara and Jean” (two people) is plural. When using “both...and...”, the verb is plural. So “are” is correct.
• In sentence 11, “the team” can be considered a singular entity (the team as a whole), so “celebrates” (singular verb) is correct.
• In sentence 12, “The movie theater” is singular. The past - tense form of the verb “to be” for singular third - person is “was”.
• In sentence 13, “Alma” is singular. The present - tense form of the verb “to have” for singular third - person is “has”.
• In sentence 14, “both of the children” is plural. When using “both...of...”, the verb is plural. So “have” is correct.

Answer:

1. Underline “People”, circle “deposit”.
2. Underline “many different breeds of dogs”, circle “are”.
3. Underline “She”, circle “was”.
4. Underline “one popsicle”, circle “is”.
5. Underline “The group of girls”, circle “walks”.
6. Underline “Students”, circle “work”.
7. Underline “A student”, circle “works”.
8. Underline “The group of students”, circle “is”.
9. Underline “The students”, circle “are”.
10. Underline “Both Sara and Jean”, circle “are”.
11. Underline “the team”, circle “celebrates”.
12. Underline “The movie theater”, circle “was”.
13. Underline “Alma”, circle “has”.
14. Underline “both of the children”, circle “have”.