Name:
What is subject-verb
agreement?
In any sentence the subject must
agree with the verb so that the
sentence makes sense. If the subject is
singular, the verb must be singular.
If the subject is plural, the verb must be
plural as well.
Example: The dog (singular subject) likes
(singular verb) bones.
Underline the subject in each sentence and put a circle around the correct verbs.
1. Johanna was/were the granddaughter of Jan van Riebeeck.
2.Jan complain/complained that during the night all his male and female slaves
had run away.
3.The interpreters ask/asked for some copper, iron, beads, tobacco and bread as a
reward for their services as interpreters.
4. Johanna do/did not enjoy her visit to the Cape.
5.Johanna even found/find the world-famous Botanical Gardens to be rather
overgrown.
Place a circle around the correct subject for each sentence and underline the
main verb.
6. The castle/castles looks miserably uncared for with a number of buildings of an
ugly style within its walls.
7. The man/men take honey for the women who are ill at home.
8.Rock art/arts, found on the walls of caves and on moveable rocks, was once
thought to depict simple images of the daily lives of the Khoisan.
9.He/they began to compile a book about his experiences, based on letters
and notes he had written when in the Cape.
10.The midwife arrive/arrives to help the pregnant lady give birth to her child.
© e-classroom 2015 www.e-classroom.co.za
GRADE 5
Grade 5 Term 1: English, Home Language; Language Structure and Conventions, Sentence level work
Subject-verb agreement in a sentence
GRADE 5
Underline the subject in each sentence and put a circle around the correct verbs.
1. Johanna was/were the granddaughter of Jan van Riebeeck.
2.Jan complain/complained that during the night all his male and female slaves
had run away.
3.The interpreters ask/asked for some copper, iron, beads, tobacco and bread as a
reward for their services as interpreters.
4. Johanna do/did not enjoy her visit to the Cape.
5.Johanna even found/find the world-famous Botanical Gardens to be rather
overgrown.
Place a circle around the correct subject for each sentence and underline the
main verb.
6. The castle/castles looks miserably uncared for with a number of buildings of an
ugly style within its walls.
7. The man/men take honey for the women who are ill at home.
8.Rock art/arts, found on the walls of caves and on moveable rocks, was once
thought to depict simple images of the daily lives of the Khoisan.
9.He/they began to compile a book about his experiences, based on letters
and notes he had written when in the Cape.
10.The midwife arrive/arrives to help the pregnant lady give birth to her child.
© e-classroom 2015 www.e-classroom.co.za
Grade 5 Term 1: English, Home Language; Language Structure and Conventions, Sentence level work
Answer sheet