Skip to main content

EASY GRAMMAR: BACKGROUND TO CONCORD

 BACKGROUND TO CONCORD

As earlier taught, a sentence must possess the two features of Subject and Verb. Other parts of a sentence like the Object , Adjunct and Complement may come after the verb.

Subject: The subject can be regarded as the doer/performer of an action, i.e, something or someone that performs an action in a given sentence. The following sentences illustrate what has been said:


a. The man killed the snake . In the sentence, The Man performed an action of "killing" a snake. Thus, The Man is the subject while killed is the verb . The subject is singular because just one person is involved.


b. Emeka and Obinna work for each other. The subject is Emeka and Obinna because they both perform the action "work" (verb). The subject is plural because more than one person is involved.


On the other hand, a Subject can also be regarded a word/phrase or clause that a sentence is built around. In this case, the subject does not show action. The easiest way to learn this particular point is to note that any word, phrase or clause that comes before a verb is its subject. Examples:


a. The buildings are beautiful. "The buildings" is the subject, although the verb "is" does not show action.

b. This is the man I love. "This" is the subject as it comes before the verb, "is."

You may try out your own examples.


SINGULAR VERB / PLURAL VERBS 

A verb can be said to be singular if it ends with the letter 's' and it is in present tense while those that do not end with 's' are plural, i.e

Is (singular)=Are(plural)

Was (singular) = Were (plural)

Has (singular) = Have (plural)


RULE 1 GUIDING CONCORD

i. When the subject of a verb is singular and it is a noun, it takes a singular verb, but when the subject is plural and it is a noun, it takes a plural verb, i.e

a. Emeka(singular subject) has (singular verb) a car.

b. The children (plural subject) have (plural verb) a car.

You can suggest more examples.


ii. When two nouns are joined with the conjunction 'and', the verb takes the plural form , i.e


a. Chioma and Sandra have returned.

b. His father and her mother were here today.


iii. When two complementary nouns(nouns that always go together) are joined with the conjunction 'and', the singular verb is used, ie

a. Rice and stew has been served .

b. Tea and bread is delicious.



PRONOUN CONCORD


The following pronouns go with plural verbs when used as subject in a sentence: I, We, You and They. He, She and It MUST go with singular verbs when used in present tense:

I travel to Jamaica everyday.

We travel to Jamaica everyday.

You travel to Jamaica everyday.

They travel to Jamaica everyday.

He travels to Jamaica everyday.

She travels to Jamaica everyday.

It travels to Jamaica everyday.


Next lesson: Concord by Proximity. For questions or suggestions, contact Chukwudi Anagbogu on +2348022255299 or email: chukwunekerichard@gmail.com


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

LIFE Changer (Questions and Answers) Chapter 1

  Chapter 1 What time does Ummi’s husband usually close from work?.  Ummi’s husband usually closes from work by 5pm. Why does Bint’s mom often enter her children’s bedroom without  knocking  on the door? –  She wanted them to get used to her presence and to always ensure they maintain good hygiene by keeping their room tidy always. How many credits did Omar get in his WAEC? –  Omar got 7 credits in his WAEC including in English and mathematics at his first attempt . Who answered the Teacher’s first  question ? – Bint What did Omar demand his siblings refer to him as. –  Omar demanded Teemah and Jamilar call him “My Learned Brother” . Why didn’t Ummi tell her children a story about her experience in the university?  Ummi’s refused to tell her kids a story about her experience in the university because she felt they were much too young to know about life on campus, especially her own experience. Who is Teemah –  She is Ummi’s first Daughter and also her second child. Who is Bint? –  Bint

Life Changer Chapters 2 and 3(QandA)

  Chapter 2 What is Ummi’s full name? Her name is Ummi Ahmad. Why did Salma say lecturers and policemen are alike? Salma accused lecturers of being corrupt, saying they take bribes just like police officers. Why did Ummi feel uncomfortable while speaking to the HOD? Ummi felt uncomfortable because the HOD referred to her as “my dear”. Why was Salma in shock moments after her discussion with a certain young man on the queue? Salma was surprised to find out that the young man she gossiped with turned out to be the lecturer they have all been waiting for. Why was Ummi scared of young male lecturers? Ummi wasn’t comfortable around young male lecturers because Salma had warned her that they always want to date female students and extort money from the guys. What tribe is Dr. Samuel Johnson from? Ummi’s HOD, Dr. Samuel Johnson is a Yoruba man. What is Ummi’s HOD’s name? Ummi’s HOD’s name is Dr. Samuel Johnson. Why was Ummi in shock when she met the HOD? Ummi was surprised to find out her HOD