Subject–Verb Agreement — One-Page NotesThe subject determines the verb form · Singular with singular, plural with plural · There is/are and There was/were1️⃣ What is a Subject and a Verb?ElementDefinitionExampleSubjectThe person, thing, or idea that does the action in a sentence.Shelikes coffee.VerbAn action word.Shelikescoffee.2️⃣ Core Rule: Singular Subject Singular Verb; Plural Subject Plural Verb✅ Singular Subjecthe, she, it, or one person/thingIn the present simple, the verb usually takes-s / -es.Heworksevery day.Junelikeslearning English.Shegoesto school by bus.✅ Plural Subjectthey, we, you, or multiple people/thingsDonotadd-s / -esto the main verb; use the base form.Theyworkevery day.The schoolsopenat 7 AM.WelikeEnglish.3️⃣ There is / There are (Present Tense)StructureFollowed byExampleThere isSingular nounThereisa problem.Thereisone student in the room.There arePlural nounThereareseveral problems.Therearea lot of students in the room.⚠️There is a growing problem with pollution.(singular)⚠️There is a significant difference between the two options.(singular)4️⃣ There was / There were (Past Tense)StructureFollowed byExampleThere wasSingular nounTherewasa problem.Therewasa time when people didn’t use smartphones.There werePlural nounThereweremany problems.Thereweremany reasons why I chose this university.5️⃣ Quick Reference TableTenseSingularPluralPresentThereis singularThereare pluralPastTherewas singularTherewere pluralGeneral verbsSubject verb-s/-esSubject base verb6️⃣ Common MistakesWrongCorrectReasonHeworkevery day.Heworksevery day.Singular subject verb takes -s.Theyworksevery day.Theyworkevery day.Plural subject base verb.Thereismany problems.Therearemany problems.Plural noun takesare.Therewasmany reasons.Thereweremany reasons.Plural noun takeswere.The schoolopenat 7 AM.The schoolopensat 7 AM.Singular subject -s.The schoolsopensat 7 AM.The schoolsopenat 7 AM.Plural subject base verb.✅ One-Sentence SummaryIf the subject is singular, the verb takes the singular form (add -s/-es in the present simple); if the subject is plural, the verb uses the base form.There is / was takes a singular noun; There are / were takes a plural noun.Printable · Copyable · Best kept on your deskTeacher’s Script: Subject–Verb AgreementTime:About 8–10 minutesLevel:Beginner to ElementaryTopic:Subject–Verb Agreement — singular/plural, there is/are, there was/were1. Greeting and Warm-up (1 minute)Teacher:Good morning, everyone. Today we are going to learn aboutsubject–verb agreement.This means the subject and the verb in a sentence must match.First, let’s review two important words:subjectandverb.Thesubjectis the person, thing, or idea that does the action.Theverbis the action word.Look at this sentence:She likes coffee.Who is the subject?(Students: She.)What is the verb?(Students: likes.)Good.Sheis singular, andlikesends with-s. That is subject–verb agreement.Today we will learn the rules for singular and plural subjects, and also forthere is / there areandthere was / there were.2. Singular and Plural Subjects (2 minutes)Teacher:Let’s start with the basic rule.(Write on the board.)Singular subject → singular verbPlural subject → plural verbIn the present simple, a singular verb usually takes-sor-es.Look at these examples:Singular:Heworksevery day.Junelikeslearning English.Shegoesto school by bus.Here, the subjects arehe, June, she— all singular.The verbs areworks, likes, goes— all with-sor-es.Now look at plural subjects:Plural:Theyworkevery day.The schoolsopenat 7 AM.WelikeEnglish.Here, the subjects arethey, the schools, we— all plural.The verbs arework, open, like— no-s.(Point to the board.)So remember:He works. They work.She likes. We like.Let’s repeat together:He works every day.They work every day.She likes English.We like English.(Students repeat.)3. There is / There are (1.5 minutes)Teacher:Now let’s look at a very common structure:There isandThere are.We useThere iswith asingular noun.We useThere arewith aplural noun.(Write on the board.)There is singular nounThereisa problem.Thereisone student in the room.There are plural nounThereareseveral problems.Therearea lot of students in the room.Teacher:Look at these two sentences:There is a growing problem with pollution.Here,a growing problemis singular, so we useis.There is a significant difference between the two options.Here,a significant differenceis singular, so we useis.If the noun is plural, we must useare.For example:There are many reasons.Let’s repeat:There is a problem.There are many problems.There is one student.There are a lot of students.(Students repeat.)4. There was / There were (1 minute)Teacher:Now let’s change to the past tense.(Write on the board.)There was singular nounTherewasa problem.Therewasa time when people didn’t use smartphones.There were plural nounThereweremany problems.Thereweremany reasons why I chose this university.Teacher:So the rule is the same:wasfor singular,werefor plural.Repeat after me:There was a problem.There were many problems.There was a time.There were many reasons.(Students repeat.)5. Common Mistakes (1 minute)Teacher:Let’s correct some common mistakes. I will say the wrong sentence. You say the correct one.Wrong:He work every day.Correct:Heworksevery day.Wrong:They works every day.Correct:Theyworkevery day.Wrong:There is many problems.Correct:Therearemany problems.Wrong:There was many reasons.Correct:Thereweremany reasons.Wrong:The school open at 7 AM.Correct:The schoolopensat 7 AM.Wrong:The schools opens at 7 AM.Correct:The schoolsopenat 7 AM.(Students repeat the correct sentences.)Teacher:Remember:Singular subject → verb -s/-es.Plural subject → base verb.There is/was→ singular noun.There are/were→ plural noun.6. Quick Practice (1 minute)Teacher:Now let’s practise. Fill in the blank with the correct verb.(Write on the board or say aloud.)She ___ (like) coffee.They ___ (work) every day.There ___ (be) a problem.There ___ (be) many students in the room.There ___ (be) a time when people didn’t use smartphones.There ___ (be) many reasons why I chose this university.He ___ (go) to school by bus.The schools ___ (open) at 7 AM.(Students answer. Teacher corrects.)Answers:likesworkisarewasweregoesopen7. Summary and Homework (30 seconds)Teacher:Let’s summarise.Subject–verb agreementmeans the subject and verb must match.Singular subject → singular verb (add-s/-esin the present simple).Plural subject → plural verb (base form).There is / was→ singular noun.There are / were→ plural noun.Your homework:Write five sentences using subject–verb agreement.Use at least one singular subject, one plural subject, onethere is/are, and onethere was/were.That’s all for today. Thank you, everyone. See you next class!End of Teacher’s Script Subject–Verb Agreement 主谓一致 · 一页笔记主语决定动词形式 · 单数配单数复数配复数 · There is/are 与 There was/were1️⃣ 什么是主语和动词成分定义例子Subject 主语句子中做动作的人、事物或想法Shelikes coffee.Verb 动词表示动作的词Shelikescoffee.2️⃣ 核心规则单数主语 单数动词复数主语 复数动词✅ 单数主语 Singular Subjecthe, she, it, 一个人/一个事物一般现在时中动词通常加-s / -esHeworksevery day.Junelikeslearning English.Shegoesto school by bus.✅ 复数主语 Plural Subjectthey, we, you, 多个人/多个事物动词不加 -s / -es用原形Theyworkevery day.The schoolsopenat 7 AM.WelikeEnglish.3️⃣ There is / There are现在时结构后面接例子There is单数名词Thereisa problem.Thereisone student in the room.There are复数名词Thereareseveral problems.Therearea lot of students in the room.⚠️There is a growing problem with pollution.单数⚠️There is a significant difference between the two options.单数4️⃣ There was / There were过去时结构后面接例子There was单数名词Therewasa problem.Therewasa time when people didn’t use smartphones.There were复数名词Thereweremany problems.Thereweremany reasons why I chose this university.5️⃣ 快速对照表时态单数复数现在时Thereis 单数Thereare 复数过去时Therewas 单数Therewere 复数一般动词主语 动词-s/-es主语 动词原形6️⃣ 常见错误错误正确原因Heworkevery day.Heworksevery day.单数主语 动词加 -sTheyworksevery day.Theyworkevery day.复数主语 动词原形Thereismany problems.Therearemany problems.复数名词用 areTherewasmany reasons.Thereweremany reasons.复数名词用 wereThe schoolopenat 7 AM.The schoolopensat 7 AM.单数主语 -sThe schoolsopensat 7 AM.The schoolsopenat 7 AM.复数主语 原形✅ 一句话总结主语是单数动词用单数形式现在时加 -s/-es主语是复数动词用原形。There is / was 接单数名词There are / were 接复数名词。可打印 · 可抄写 · 建议贴在书桌前