What is agreement in grammar?

The word "agreement" when referring to a grammatical rule means that the words a writer uses need to align in number and in gender (when applicable). View more details on the two main types of agreement below: Subject–verb agreement and noun–pronoun agreement.

Subject–verb agreement: Number alignment

When you use a singular subject of the sentence, the verb that you use must also be singular. These should always agree with one another.

Example: The conclusion shows that variables X and Y are related.

Here the subject is "conclusion," and the verb is "shows." Because "conclusion" is singular (there is only one), the verb should also be singular.

If the verb were plural, it would refer to more than one subject. Here is an example of where that plural verb would work:

Example: The results show that variables X and Y are related.

Notice here that the subject is "results," and the verb is "show." Because "results" is plural (more than one result), the verb should also be plural. Here, the verb "shows " (singular) loses its "s" to become "show" (plural).

Hint to remember: Singular verbs usually end in "s."

Noun–pronoun agreement: Number and gender alignment

When you use a singular word and you want to replace it with a pronoun, be sure that the two words agree both in number and in gender.

Example: The man walked to his car.

In this example, "man" is a singular, male noun, so "his" is the appropriate pronoun to replace the noun.

When referring to groups or general nouns, you will want to pay close attention to the number and gender agreement.

Example: Students need to bring their own lunch.

In this example, "students" is a plural noun, and "their" is the appropriate plural pronoun to replace the noun. In the English language, the plural third-person pronoun has no gender (unlike the singular "his" or "her"). Note that in APA 7, use of the singular "they" is also encouraged, meaning that using "they" as a singular pronoun without gender allows for statements that do not assume or ascribe gender to individuals.

Example: Upper management refers to its >policies frequently in the handbook.

Because "management" is a group word, you will want to use a word to replace the group as a whole. It is a singular entity, one group, and it does not have a gender, so you would use the singular, nongendered word "it."

Additional Resources:

• Refresh your knowledge on basic sentence elements and the definitions of different parts of the sentence.
• Review other web resources on subject-verb agreement.
• See more web resources on noun-pronoun agreement.
• Test your grammar knowledge with various online grammar quizzes or explore a self-paced grammar module.

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