One-third Subject Verb Agreement: A Common Grammar Mistake
Subject verb agreement is a fundamental grammar rule that every writer should know. It refers to the correct matching of a subject and its corresponding verb form. However, this basic rule can sometimes be challenging, leading to common mistakes, such as one-third subject verb agreement.
One-third subject verb agreement occurs when a singular subject is followed by a plural verb form or vice versa. This error often happens when the subject is part of a fraction, percentage, or any other quantity that involves a part of a whole.
For instance, consider the following sentence:
One-third of the team are injured.
In this example, the subject is “one-third,” which is a singular noun. However, the verb form “are” is plural, which makes the sentence grammatically incorrect. Instead, the verb should agree in number with the subject, resulting in:
One-third of the team is injured.
Another example:
Fifty percent of the students fails the exam.
Here, “students” is a plural noun, but the verb “fails” is singular, which creates a one-third subject verb agreement mistake. The correct version should be:
Fifty percent of the students fail the exam.
Why is one-third subject verb agreement a big deal?
Firstly, it can affect the clarity and credibility of your writing. Grammatical errors can make your content unclear, confusing, or even misleading. Moreover, it can diminish your reputation as a writer, editor, or content creator.
Secondly, one-third subject verb agreement can weaken your SEO efforts. Search engines like Google and Bing prefer content that is grammatically correct, easy to read, and free of errors. If your content has numerous grammar mistakes, it may affect your rankings, reducing your chances of appearing on the first page of search results.
Therefore, it`s crucial to avoid one-third subject verb agreement and other grammar mistakes. Here are some tips:
– Always check the agreement between your subject and verb, especially when you`re dealing with fractions, percentages, or quantities. Remember that the form of the verb should match the number of the subject. For example, singular subject, singular verb; plural subject, plural verb.
– Be mindful of tricky nouns that can cause one-third subject verb agreement errors, such as collective nouns (like team, family, or staff) or nouns that describe a group of people (like audience, group, or committee). These types of nouns can be confusing because they can be singular or plural, depending on how they`re used in the sentence.
– Use a grammar checker or proofreading tool to help you spot errors in your writing. These tools can save you time and effort by highlighting mistakes and providing suggestions for corrections. However, don`t rely too much on these tools and still review your work manually.
In conclusion, one-third subject verb agreement is a common grammar mistake that can affect your writing, SEO, and credibility as a writer. Be vigilant, review your work thoroughly, and strive to produce content that is grammatically correct, clear, and engaging.