Verbs and Tense

Verbs and Tenses: Easy Study Material with Emojis 😃⏳

What is a Verb? 🤔

  • A verb is an action word that tells what the subject is doing.
    • Example: Maria sings. 🎤
  • Every complete sentence needs a verb to make sense.
    • Example: Sing! (You is implied.) 🎶

Key Parts of a Sentence 🧩

  • Subject: The doer of the verb. 👤
  • Verb: The action or state. 🏃‍♂️
  • Object: The receiver of the action. 🎯

Subject-Verb Agreement Rules 📏

1. Singular Subject = Singular Verb / Plural Subject = Plural Verb

  • The dog is playing. 🐕
  • The dogs are playing. 🐕🐕🐕

2. ‘And’ Joins Two Subjects = Plural Verb

  • My friend and his mother are in town. 👩‍👦

3. ‘And’ Refers to Same Person/Thing = Singular Verb

  • The captain and coach has been sacked. (One person) 🧑‍✈️

4. Indefinite Pronouns (everyone, someone, nobody, etc.) = Always Singular

  • Everyone is selfish. 🧑

5. Percentages/Parts: Plural Meaning = Plural Verb

  • 40 out of 100 children are malnourished. 👧👦

6. ‘Either/Or’ or ‘Neither/Nor’: Verb Agrees with Nearest Subject

  • Neither you nor your dogs know how to behave. 🐶
  • Either you or I am at fault. 👤

7. ‘Either’/‘Neither’ as Pronouns = Singular Verb

  • Either of the books is fine. 📚

8. Connectives (along with, as well as, together with): Verb Matches First Subject

  • Mr. Ram, accompanied by his wife, was banished. 👨‍🦱👩

9. ‘A number of’ = Plural Verb / ‘The number of’ = Singular Verb

  • A number of students are going. 👨‍🎓
  • The number of questions is 25. 2️⃣5️⃣

10. Units of Measurement/Time = Singular Verb

  • Five gallons of oil was required. 🛢️

11. ‘Few, Many, Several, Both, All, Some’ + Countable Noun = Plural Verb

  • Some men are needed. 👨‍🔧

12. ‘Few, Many, Several, Both, All, Some’ + Uncountable Noun = Singular Verb

  • Some data was stolen. 💻

Practice Questions with Answers & Emojis 📝

  1. Critics allege that the government is trying to leverage last year’s disaster and use the funds they collected for reconstruction…
    • Tip: Use ‘for’ with nouns like ‘reconstruction’. 🏗️
  2. Some of these dams are witnessing record low levels…
    • Use present continuous for ongoing actions. 💧
  3. …what the surveillance cameras may have recorded in or near Epstein’s cell.
    • Use past participle ‘recorded’ with ‘have’. 📹
  4. …says his countries will not be able to hold up its side of an immigration agreement…
    • Use the idiom ‘hold up’ for ‘withstand’. 🤝
  5. It looks like the Supreme Court will score a goal for women…
    • Use ‘will’ for present/future, not ‘had’. ⚽
  6. The cat looked desperate to get inside…
    • Use ‘to’ + base verb (to get). 🐈
  7. Social justice deals with various aspects…
    • Use present tense if the sentence is about a current fact. ⚖️
  8. …most of the scientific advances believed to have been made in Europe…
    • Use past tense ‘believed’ for past context. 🧑‍🔬
  9. The state’s new policy on tourism is supposed to give investors a big advantage.
    • Correct verb form: ‘is supposed to’. 🏨
  10. She let the student who caused the accident off the hook.
    • Correct relative pronoun and verb tense. 🚗

Quick Tips for Verbs & Tenses 💡

  • Always check if the subject and verb agree in number!
  • Watch for common connectors and pronouns that affect verb choice.
  • Use present continuous (‘is/are + -ing’) for ongoing actions.
  • Use the correct tense for the context (present, past, future).
  • For measurement, time, and collective nouns, check if the group acts as one or many.

Practice these rules and examples with emojis for easy recall and exam success! 😃📖