How do you create subject-verb agreement when a prepositional phrase interrupts the subject and verb?

Answer 1

To ensure subject-verb agreement when a prepositional phrase interrupts the subject and verb, follow these steps:

1. Identify the subject of the sentence.
2. Pay attention to any prepositional phrases that come between the subject and verb.
3. Ignore the prepositional phrases and focus on the subject.
4. Make the verb agree with the subject.

Here's an example to illustrate this:

Incorrect: The group of students were playing in the park.
Correct: The group of students was playing in the park.

In this example, "group" is the subject, while "of students" is the prepositional phrase that separates it from the verb "were." Since the subject is "group," which is singular, the verb should be "was" (singular) instead of "were" (plural).

Remember that prepositional phrases do not affect subject-verb agreement. Therefore, it's essential to identify the subject separate from any intervening prepositional phrases and then match the verb accordingly.