| Subject-Verb Agreement Group Nouns There are many English words that are used to name a group of people or things as a unit. Some common group nouns: family, committee, band, herd, team. Ordinarily, group nouns are used to describe a number of people or things as a whole and require a third-person singular verb. In the picture to the right is a shepherd with a flock of sheep. The flock is traveling with the shepherd. In this sentence, the flock is thought of as a group, so the third-person singular verb is used. The same is true of the following sentence - The flock needs to be fed. Again, the subject of the sentence is the group noun flock which requires a third-person singular verb. As a rule of thumb (translation: a short rule that usually applies), when a group noun appears in a Praxis I Writing test, it usually requires a third-person singular verb. There are, and you may have discovered this already, exceptions to almost every English grammar rule. Even though you may not encounter a group noun that needs a third-person plural verb on the Writing test, you may wish to use group nouns in your essay. Please read on to learn about some exceptions to the group nouns rule. Sometimes sentences with group nouns as the subject tell about a collection of people or things engaged in the same or similar activities individually. In these instances, and third-person plural verb may be used. As an example: The shepherd's family hope the flock is healthy. Even though a family is a group, this sentence describes the feelings of the individual family members. The third-person verb have is correct because each of the family is hoping individually. On the other hand this sentence is also correct: The shepherd's family hopes the flock is healthy. In this sentence, the third-person singular verb is used to indicate that the family is hoping as a whole. These exceptions occur most often when a group noun that indicates amount is used. If the subject of the sentence refers to an amount or group as a whole unit (a specific number) it requires a third-person singular verb. A dozen is a good size for a flock. The majority of the flock is female. However, if the subjects of the sentence are doing the same thing individually or at different times a third-person plural verb should be used. A dozen are being sheared tomorrow. The majority are walking behind the shepherd. The sheep will each be sheared individually, and they are all walking at an individual pace; thus, the group nouns in these sentences require plural nouns. There is a fairly simple rule for determining which verb-person to use after the word number when it is used as a group noun. See if you can discover it as you consider the next two examples. A number of sheep are in the picture. The number of sheep in the flock is hard to determine. In the first sentence, number is preceded by the indefinite article a. The words a number followed by a prepositional phrase mean many; many used as an adjective modifies plural nouns. Plural nouns require plural verbs. In the second sentence, number is preceded by the definite article the. These two words together indicate a specific number or amount. A rule of thumb for deciding which verb-person to use with the word number: if it is preceded by the indefinite article, a, it means many and takes a third-person plural verb; if it is preceded by the definite article the it means a specific number or amount - like seven, or two pounds - and takes a third-person singular verb. Which forms of the verb to be would you use in the following sentence? A number of sheep ____ walking with the shepherd; the number ____ not large. |
| For more on subject-verb agreement visit Capital City College's Guide to Writing and Grammar. |
| Common Group Nouns - Things array, assortment, batch, battery, bunch, bundle, canon, collection, fleet, handful, medley, pair, variety |
| The flock follows the shepherd whenever he calls them. |
| Common Group Nouns - Animals drove, flock, herd, litter, pack, pod, pride, school, swarm, team |
| Common Group Nouns - People audience, band, cast, chorus, club, committee, company, couple, crowd, duo, family, firm, government, jury, mob, panel, party, public, quartet, squad, team, troop, troupe, unit |
| The shepherd's family lives in this village. |
| Please don't be alarmed! Sentences like these to the right are too ambiguous to appear in Praxis I. If you come across a group noun on the test, you may safely presume that the noun requires a singular verb. |
| The shepherd's family live in different parts of the village. |
| A group considered as a whole takes a third-person singular noun. A group considered as individuals takes a third-person plural noun. |
| A couple is watching the shepherd from the window. |
| Common Group Nouns - Amounts couple, dozen, half, majority, minority, number, quarter, quintet, trio |
| A couple of sheep are ahead of the shepherd. |
| Remember! a number = many A number of people are shepherds. the number = a specific amount The number of shepherds in this village is high. |
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