Subject–verb agreement means the verb matches its subject: a singular subject takes a singular verb (is, has, works), and a plural subject takes a plural verb (are, have, work). Bangla verbs change for person and respect, but not for singular and plural the way English does, so the missing or extra -s is a very common slip. In IELTS Writing, agreement errors appear in the Grammatical Range and Accuracy score, and they are easy marks to win back.
Rule 1: Third person singular needs -s in the present simple
- ✘ My brother work in a garments factory in Gazipur.
- ✔ My brother works in a garments factory in Gazipur.
- ✘ The chart show the percentage of households with internet access.
- ✔ The chart shows the percentage of households with internet access.
- ✘ Everyone need a good education.
- ✔ Everyone needs a good education.
And the opposite error: do not add -s to a verb after a plural subject.
- ✘ Many students prefers online classes.
- ✔ Many students prefer online classes.
Rule 2: Find the real subject, not the nearest noun
Long subjects hide the main noun. Cross out the phrase in the middle and check again.
- ✘ The quality of roads in rural areas are poor.
- ✔ The quality (of roads in rural areas) is poor.
- ✘ One of the biggest problems are air pollution.
- ✔ One of the biggest problems is air pollution.
- ✘ The number of cars on the roads have doubled.
- ✔ The number of cars on the roads has doubled. (see Rule 4)
Rule 3: each, every, everyone, nobody = singular
Each, every, everyone, everybody, someone, nobody, anyone, either, neither all take a singular verb, even when they seem to talk about many people.
- ✘ Every student have to wear a uniform.
- ✔ Every student has to wear a uniform.
- ✘ Each of the countries show a different pattern.
- ✔ Each of the countries shows a different pattern.
- ✔ Neither of the options is perfect.
Rule 4: "The number of" vs "A number of"
This pair appears in almost every Task 1 answer, so learn it well.
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The number of + plural noun → singular verb (the subject is the number)
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A number of + plural noun → plural verb (it means several)
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✔ The number of international students in Malaysia has risen.
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✔ A number of students have complained about the canteen.
The same logic works for the proportion of, the percentage of, the amount of: the verb follows proportion/percentage/amount.
- ✔ The percentage of people who cycle to work was very low.
Rule 5: Collective nouns
Words like government, family, team, staff, police, public, committee refer to a group. In IELTS, the safest choice is:
- Use a singular verb for government, team, family, committee, company: The government has announced new rules.
- Always use a plural verb for police and people: The police are investigating. People are worried.
- Staff usually takes a plural verb when you mean the individual workers: The staff are friendly.
Be consistent: do not write The government has… and they are… in the same sentence.
Rule 6: Uncountable nouns and "-ing" subjects are singular
- ✘ The information in these websites are not reliable.
- ✔ The information on these websites is not reliable.
- ✘ Watching too many short videos affect concentration.
- ✔ Watching too many short videos affects concentration.
- ✔ News travels fast. Mathematics is difficult. Economics is my major.
Rule 7: "There is / There are" follows the noun after it
- ✘ There is many reasons for this trend.
- ✔ There are many reasons for this trend.
- ✔ There is a clear link between diet and health.
Rule 8: "who/which/that" copies the noun it refers to
- ✔ Students who live in hostels save travel time. (who = students, plural)
- ✔ A student who lives far from campus loses time. (who = a student, singular)
Mini exercise
Correct the verb if necessary.
- The number of people using mobile banking in Bangladesh have increased dramatically.
- Every country in South Asia face the problem of flooding.
- The police is trying to control illegal parking in Gulshan.
- Spending time with grandparents help children learn traditional values.
- One of the main reasons for traffic jams are poor planning.
Quick tip: In your final two minutes, underline the main verb in every sentence of your Task 1 and ask "who or what is doing this?" If the answer is one thing, make sure the verb has its -s. This habit is quick and very effective.
Answers
- The number of people using mobile banking in Bangladesh has increased dramatically.
- Every country in South Asia faces the problem of flooding.
- The police are trying to control illegal parking in Gulshan.
- Spending time with grandparents helps children learn traditional values.
- One of the main reasons for traffic jams is poor planning.