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Including even more esoteric reasons to use a singular or plural verb in certain situations
In Part III, let’s look at additional issues that can trip up writers when it comes
Those of a certain age may recall reciting math facts in elementary school, beginning with “one and
” Funny thing is, in American English, it’s long been more popular for writers to write “one
Sometimes it just helps to know whether a certain type of phrase takes a singular or plural
Instead, a singular verb would be used as in “Study after study has shown that most children
Same goes for sentences that use “more than one” as in “more than one study
” Luckily, it also sounds better than “More than one study were clear on the subject
It stands to reason, though, that a verb following the word “one” when it’s used with “
Decades are simple when it comes to subject-verb agreement: They always take a plural verb
“The 1960s were a time of upheaval,” for example, is correct
When different varieties of a thing are mentioned side by side, they take a plural verb as
Consider this example: “Classical and jazz music were widely studied throughout the twentieth century
” When both nouns are plural, it makes sense to use a plural verb as in “Neither the
” An issue arises, though, when a singular and a plural noun are used together in such a
The rule to keep in mind: Base the verb on the noun closest to the verb