Masterclass: SC – Subject-Verb Agreement • GMATCourse.mba

Core Philosophy: The Grammar of Agreement

Subject-verb agreement is one of the most frequently tested SC concepts on the GMAT. The core rule is simple: singular subjects take singular verbs; plural subjects take plural verbs. But the GMAT hides the subject under layers of modifiers, prepositional phrases, and inverted sentence structures.

The challenge is not knowing the rule — it is finding the true subject when the sentence is deliberately designed to confuse. High scorers develop a habit of stripping sentences down to subject-verb pairs before evaluating agreement.

Core Insight: The subject of a verb is never inside a prepositional phrase. Strip prepositional phrases to expose the true subject.

How to Find the True Subject

Subject-Finder Decision Tree

Step 1: Remove all prepositional phrases (of, in, for, with, by...)

"The list of requirements [for the application] are/is long." → Subject = "list" (singular)

Step 2: Remove relative clauses (who, which, that...)

"The players, who won every game, deserves/deserve awards." → Subject = "players" (plural)

Step 3: Check for inverted sentences

"There is/are three reasons for this." → Subject = "reasons" (plural) → needs "are"

Step 4: Match subject number to verb

Singular subject → singular verb (is, was, has, does). Plural → plural (are, were, have, do).

The Strip-and-Match Method

Identify the main verb in the underlined portion

The verb is what you are being asked to agree with its subject. Find it first.

Strip all phrases between subject and verb

Remove prepositional phrases, relative clauses, and parenthetical information to isolate the subject-verb pair.

Determine subject number

Is the true subject singular or plural? Apply the special rules for tricky subjects (everyone, each, neither/nor, etc.).

Eliminate choices that violate agreement

Filter based on agreement first; use other criteria (concision, idiom) to choose among remaining options.

Worked Examples: Tricky Agreement

Example 1 — Prepositional Phrase Trap

✗ "The impact of the new regulations have been significant."

✓ "The impact of the new regulations has been significant."

Subject = "impact" (singular). "of the new regulations" is prepositional — cannot be the subject.

Example 2 — Collective Noun

The committee has/have reached its decision.

✓ "The committee has reached its decision." (Collective noun = singular in GMAT American English)

GMAT treats collective nouns (committee, team, jury, board) as singular unless the context emphasizes individual members acting separately.

Example 3 — Neither/Nor Rule

Neither the manager nor the employees was/were informed.

✓ "Neither the manager nor the employees were informed."

With neither/nor and either/or: the verb agrees with the subject CLOSER to the verb ("employees" is plural → "were").

12 Subject-Verb Agreement Traps

1. Prepositional phrase interference

The noun in "of the X" phrase is never the subject. "A list of errors" → subject is "list."

2. Collective noun trap

Committee, board, team, jury = singular in GMAT Standard English.

3. Inverted sentence trap

"There is/are" constructions: subject follows the verb.

4. Neither/nor proximity rule

Verb agrees with the closer subject: "neither A nor B" → B determines the verb.

5. Either/or proximity rule

Same as neither/nor: verb matches the nearer subject.

6. Intervening clause trap

"The report, which covered six countries, were/was..." — ignore the clause.

7. Indefinite pronoun trap

"Everyone," "nobody," "each," "either" = singular. "Both," "few," "many" = plural.

8. "Number" vs "A number"

A number of = plural. The number of = singular.

9. Compound subject trap

X and Y = plural. But "X and Y" referring to a single entity can be singular.

10. Subject after verb

In questions and inverted sentences, the subject may come after the verb.

11. "More than one" trap

"More than one student has..." — despite the implication of plurality, this is singular.

12. Gerund as subject trap

A gerund phrase as subject is always singular: "Running marathons requires training."

Agreement Quick Reference

Subject Type	Number	Example
Collective noun (committee, team)	Singular	The team has won.
Everyone, nobody, each, either	Singular	Everyone is here.
Both, few, many, several	Plural	Both are correct.
Neither A nor B	Matches B	Neither the reports nor the memo was filed.
A number of	Plural	A number of errors were found.
The number of	Singular	The number of errors is surprising.
Gerund phrase as subject	Singular	Managing teams requires skill.

10 GMAT-Style Practice Questions

Select your answer, then reveal the step-by-step explanation. Each question reflects real GMAT difficulty and format.

Question 1 of 10 GMAT Verbal

The committee reviewing all pending applications [has/have] not yet reached a consensus on the new eligibility criteria. Which of the following best completes the sentence?

Correct Answer: (A)

(A) is correct. "Committee" is a collective noun treated as singular in GMAT Standard English. The verb must be singular: "has not yet reached." (B) uses "have" — plural, incorrect. (C) uses "are" — plural and also changes the tense unnecessarily. (D) changes to past tense with no justification. (E) uses the correct singular "has" but the progressive "been reaching" is awkward and imprecise.

Question 2 of 10 GMAT Verbal

Neither the project manager nor the engineers [was/were] informed about the deadline change before the announcement. Which form of the verb is correct?

Correct Answer: (B)

(B) is correct. With "neither...nor," the verb agrees with the subject CLOSER to the verb. "Engineers" is plural and is closer to the verb → "were informed." (A) applies the wrong rule (treating "neither" as the subject). (C) invents a rule about compound subjects. (D) changes meaning unnecessarily. (E) is present tense with no justification.

Question 3 of 10 GMAT Verbal

A number of problems with the company's financial reporting system [has/have] been identified by the auditors. Which is correct?

Correct Answer: (B)

(B) is correct. "A number of" is always plural — it functions like "many" or "several." Compare: "The number of problems has increased" (singular) vs. "A number of problems have been found" (plural). (A) confuses "a number of" with "the number of."

Question 4 of 10 GMAT Verbal

The data collected from all twelve research sites, as well as the preliminary findings from the control group, [suggests/suggest] a strong correlation between the variables. Which is correct?

Correct Answer: (C)

(C) is correct. "As well as" is NOT a coordinating conjunction like "and." It does not create a compound subject. The main subject remains "data" (singular in GMAT Standard English). Verb: "suggests." (A) misidentifies "as well as" as creating a compound. (B) same error. (D) "data" can be treated as plural in academic English, but GMAT treats it as singular.

Question 5 of 10 GMAT Verbal

Each of the proposed solutions to the resource allocation problem [requires/require] significant capital investment and regulatory approval. Which verb form is correct?

Correct Answer: (B)

(B) is correct. "Each" is always singular, regardless of the noun that follows it in a prepositional phrase. "Each of the solutions requires" — the subject is "each," not "solutions." (A) and (E) wrongly treat "solutions" as the subject.

Question 6 of 10 GMAT Verbal

There [is/are] several compelling reasons to reconsider the company's expansion timeline. Which is correct?

Correct Answer: (B)

(B) is correct. In "there is/are" constructions, "there" is an expletive (placeholder), not the true subject. The real subject is "reasons," which is plural → "there are." (A) treats "there" as the subject — wrong. (C) "several" does not determine verb number. (D) is correct but for the wrong reason.

Question 7 of 10 GMAT Verbal

The board of directors, along with several senior executives, [is/are] expected to vote on the merger next Tuesday. Which form is correct?

Correct Answer: (B)

(B) is correct. "Along with" (like "as well as," "in addition to," "together with") does not create a compound subject. The main subject is "board of directors" → singular → "is." (A) misidentifies "along with" as creating a compound subject.

Question 8 of 10 GMAT Verbal

Running five miles every morning and lifting weights three days a week [requires/require] significant discipline and time management. Which is correct?

Correct Answer: (B)

(B) is correct. When two gerund phrases are joined by "and" and refer to a single unified concept or regime, the subject is treated as singular. Here, both activities form one fitness routine → "requires." If the two activities were clearly separate and independent, "require" could work, but the structure here implies a single regimen.

Question 9 of 10 GMAT Verbal

More than one analyst [has/have] predicted that interest rates will rise in the fourth quarter. Which is correct?

Correct Answer: (B)

(B) is correct. "More than one" is an idiomatic expression that takes a singular verb, despite its apparent plural meaning. This is a standard GMAT rule: "More than one analyst has..." (A) applies logical reasoning but violates idiom. This is a pure memorization point.

Question 10 of 10 GMAT Verbal

The effectiveness of the three new marketing strategies [has/have] not been fully evaluated by the research team. Which is correct?

Correct Answer: (B)

(B) is correct. Strip the prepositional phrases: "The effectiveness [of the three new marketing strategies] has not been evaluated." Subject = "effectiveness" → singular → "has." (A) wrongly treats "strategies" (inside a prepositional phrase) as the subject.

Key Takeaways

1. Strip to find the subject

Remove all prepositional phrases and relative clauses to isolate the true subject.

2. Key singular traps

Each, everyone, more than one, collective nouns, gerund phrases = singular.

3. Neither/nor: match closer subject

The verb agrees with the subject immediately before it in neither/nor and either/or constructions.

4. A number vs. the number

"A number of" = plural. "The number of" = singular. This is a frequently tested distinction.