ข้อสอบ gmat SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT

_{SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT}

Within a sentence there are certain requirements for the relationship between the subject and the verb.

The subject and verb must agree both in number and person.

Example:

We have surpassed our sales goal of one million dollars.

Here, the first person plural verb have agrees with its first person plural subject we.

Note, ironically, third person singular verbs often end in s or es:

He seems to be fair.

Intervening phrases and clauses have no effect on subject-verb agreement.

Example:

Only one of the President's nominees was confirmed.

Here, the singular verb was agrees with its singular subject one. The intervening prepositional phrase of the President's nominees has no effect on the number or person of the verb.

When the subject and verb are reversed, they still must agree in both number and person.

Example:

Attached are copies of the contract.

Here, the plural verb are attached agrees with its plural subject copies. The sentence could be rewritten as

Copies of the contract are attached.

Example:

The rise in negative attitudes toward foreigners indicate that the country is becoming less tolerant, and therefore that the opportunities are ripe for extremist groups to exploit the illegal immigration problem.

(A) indicate that the country is becoming less tolerant, and therefore that
(B) indicates that the country is becoming less tolerant, and therefore
(C) indicates that the country is becoming less tolerant, and therefore that
(D) indicates that the country is being less tolerant, and therefore
(E) indicates that the country is becoming less tolerant of and therefore that

Choice (A) has two flaws. First, the subject of the sentence the rise is singular, and therefore the verb indicate should not be plural. Second, the comma indicates that the sentence is made up of two independent clauses, but the relative pronoun that immediately following therefore forms a subordinate clause.

Choice (C) corrects the number of the verb, but retains the subordinating relative pronoun that.

Choice (D) corrects the number of the verb and eliminates the subordinating relative pronoun that. However, the verb being is less descriptive than the verb becoming: As negative attitudes toward foreigners increase, the country becomes correspondingly less tolerant. Being does not capture this notion of change.

Choice (E) corrects the verb's number, and by dropping the comma makes the subordination allowable. However, it introduces the preposition of which does not have an object: less tolerant of what?

Choice (B) both corrects the verb's number and removes the subordinating relative pronoun that. The answer is (B).