5. Subject-verb concord.pptVIP

To climb mountains requires courage. Playing tennis is a very good exercise. Reading Ibsen and solving a quadratic equation are entirely different assignments. 7.3 Concord in relative clauses In the construction of “one of + plural noun + relative clause”, the principle of grammatical concord is generally observed. Sometimes, especially in British English, in order to lay emphasis on “one”, the verb can also take the singular form. When “one” is preceded by “the” or “the only”, the verb can only be singular. For example, Joan is one of those people who go out of their way to be helpful. Jasper White is one of those rare people who believes/believe in ancient myths. Keves is the only one of the players who has/*have learned all the rules. Reports from a survey Jack is one of those individuals who ______ decided on a definite career. Jack is one of the best students that ______ ever come to this school. I am one of those who ______ equal rights. have -16%; has- 84% have -14%; has- 86% favor -35%; favors- 65% I live next-door to a family who frequently ______ quarrels/quarrel among themselves. I live next-door to a family which _____ dates/date back to the Norman Conquest. Which is better? And why? 7.4 Subject-verb concord in cleft-sentences Subject-verb concord in that- / who-clause is generally determined by the number of the focal element functioning as subject in the clause. It should be noted that when the focal element is “I”, the verb TO BE agrees with “I” in both person and number; If, on the other hand, the focal element is “me” the verb TO BE should take the third person singular number. For example, It is I who am to blame. It is me that is to blame. 7.5 Subject-verb concord in existential sentences Determined generally by the number of the “notional subject”; When the notional subject is a coordinate construction, the verb form goes with the first coordinate element of the notional subject, singular or plural. But in informal style, especial