SAT Grammar: Agreement, verbs & pronouns

20 упражнений

Урок по грамматике для SAT (Standard English Conventions): согласование подлежащего и глагола, времена, местоимения, модификаторы, параллелизм, множественное число и принадлежность.

К упражнениям

Выделенным отмечены конструкции, которые чаще всего упускают: их стоит запомнить в первую очередь.Highlighted parts are the structures that are most often missed: learn these first.

1

Subject–verb agreement

Singular subject + verb-s · Plural subject + verb

Глагол согласуется с подлежащим, а не с ближайшим существительным. Фразы между ними (of…, with…, along with…) подлежащее не меняют.The verb agrees with the subject, not the nearest noun. Phrases in between (of…, with…, along with…) do not change the subject.

The box of old letters is on the shelf.

The teacher, along with her students, was late.

Each, every, either, neither, everyone, nobody, something — единственное число. Два подлежащих через and — множественное; через or / nor глагол согласуется с ближайшим.Each, every, either, neither, everyone, nobody, something are singular. Two subjects joined by and are plural; with or / nor the verb agrees with the nearer one.

Each of the answers is correct.

Neither the manager nor the workers were ready.

Если подлежащее стоит после глагола (There is/are, Here is/are, инверсия), согласуйте глагол с ним.When the subject comes after the verb (There is/are, Here is/are, inversion), agree the verb with it.

There are three reasons for the delay.

Beside the lake stands a small cabin.

2

Verb tense and form

Keep tenses consistent · has/have + past participle

Внутри одной части текста сохраняйте единое время, если нет маркера смены времени.Keep a consistent tense within a passage unless a time marker signals a change.

She opened the door and saw a letter.

Last year he moved to Leeds, and now he works there.

Present perfect (has/have + V3) — для действий, связанных с настоящим; с yesterday, in 2010, ago нужен Past Simple. Past perfect (had + V3) — действие до другого прошлого.Present perfect (has/have + V3) links the past to the present; with yesterday, in 2010, ago use the Past Simple. Past perfect (had + V3) is for an action before another past one.

They have lived here since 2015.

By the time we arrived, the film had started.

Не путайте Past Simple и Participle: *she has written, not *she has wrote*.Do not confuse the Past Simple and the Participle: *she has written, not *she has wrote*.

He has gone.

The window was broken by the storm.

3

Pronoun agreement

Pronoun = antecedent in number and person

Местоимение совпадает с существительным, на которое указывает (antecedent), в числе: одна компания — it / its, много людей — they / their.A pronoun matches its antecedent in number: one company — it / its, many people — they / their.

The company changed its policy.

The employees brought their laptops.

Следите за ясностью: если непонятно, к чему относится it / this / they, назовите существительное.Keep reference clear: if it is unclear what it / this / they points to, name the noun.

When Ana met Maria, Ana gave her the book.

Who — для людей в роли подлежащего, whom — после предлога или как дополнение, whose — принадлежность.Who is the subject for people, whom follows a preposition or acts as an object, whose shows possession.

The author who wrote it won.

The man to whom I spoke left.

4

Modifiers and parallelism

Modifier + the word it describes · A, B, and C (same form)

Dangling modifier: вводный оборот должен описывать подлежащее следующей клаузы. *Walking home, the rain started* — ошибка: дождь не ходил.Dangling modifier: an introductory phrase must describe the subject of the next clause. *Walking home, the rain started* is wrong: the rain did not walk.

Walking home, she got caught in the rain.

Tired after the trip, Sam slept early.

Parallelism: однородные элементы в списке или после both… and, not only… but also имеют одну форму.Parallelism: items in a list, or after both… and, not only… but also, take the same form.

She likes reading, hiking and cooking.

He wants to travel and to learn.

Сравнения сравнивают однородные вещи: *The climate of Oslo is colder than that of Rome*, не *than Rome*.Comparisons compare like with like: *The climate of Oslo is colder than that of Rome*, not *than Rome*.

The prices here are lower than those in Paris.

5

Plurals and possessives

Plural: -s · Possessive: ’s / s’

Обычное множественное число апострофа не имеет. Апостроф показывает принадлежность или сокращение.A regular plural has no apostrophe. An apostrophe shows possession or contraction.

Three cats slept.

The cat’s bowl (one cat)

The cats’ bowls (several cats)

Their / there / they’re и your / you’re: притяжательное, место, сокращение.Their / there / they’re and your / you’re: possessive, place, contraction.

Their car is there; they’re late.

You’re sure your key is here?

Все конструкции в одной таблицеAll the structures in one table

RuleExampleЗначениеMeaning
AgreementThe box of letters is on the shelf.Глагол — с boxVerb agrees with box
Each / everyEach of the answers is correct.Единственное числоSingular
There is/areThere are three reasons.Глагол — с подлежащим после негоVerb agrees with the later subject
TenseShe opened the door and saw a letter.Единое времяConsistent tense
Present perfectThey have lived here since 2015.Связь с настоящимLink to the present
PronounThe company changed its policy.Совпадает с antecedentMatches the antecedent
ModifierWalking home, she got caught in the rain.Оборот описывает подлежащееPhrase describes the subject
ParallelismShe likes reading, hiking and cooking.Одинаковая формаSame form

Частые ошибкиCommon mistakes

  • The box of old letters are on the shelf.

    The box of old letters is on the shelf.

    Подлежащее — box, оно единственного числа.The subject is box, which is singular.

  • Each of the answers are correct.

    Each of the answers is correct.

    Each — единственное число.Each is singular.

  • The company changed their policy.

    The company changed its policy.

    Company — один объект: its.Company is a single entity: its.

  • Walking home, the rain started.

    Walking home, she got caught in the rain.

    Dangling modifier: оборот должен описывать подлежащее.Dangling modifier: the phrase must describe the subject.

  • She likes reading, hiking and to cook.

    She likes reading, hiking and cooking.

    Нарушен параллелизм.Parallelism is broken.

  • The prices are lower than Paris.

    The prices are lower than those in Paris.

    Сравнивайте однородные вещи.Compare like with like.

УпражненияPractice

Выберите вариант или впишите слово. Ответ проверяется сразу.Choose an option or type the word. Each answer is checked straight away.

Верно: 0 из 20

  1. The list of ingredients ___ on the back of the box.

  2. Neither the manager nor the workers ___ ready.

  3. There ___ several reasons for the delay.

  4. Each of the students ___ a laptop.

  5. Last year she moved to Leeds, and now she ___ there.

  6. They ___ here since 2015.

  7. By the time we arrived, the film ___.

  8. The company changed ___ policy.

  9. The author ___ wrote the book won an award.

  10. The man to ___ I spoke left early.

  11. Walking home, ___

  12. She likes reading, hiking and ___.

  13. The prices here are lower than ___ in Paris.

  14. The ___ bowls were empty. (several cats)

  15. ___ car is over ___.

  16. The team of engineers ___ (is/are) working late.

  17. Every student ___ (has/have) a book.

  18. She has ___ (write) three letters. (correct form)

  19. The committee made ___ decision. (its/their)

  20. Both the speaker and the guests ___ (was/were) late.

Частые вопросы: SAT Grammar: Agreement, verbs & pronouns

Что входит в этот урок?

Вторая часть грамматики SAT: согласование подлежащего и глагола, времена и формы глаголов, местоимения, dangling modifiers, параллелизм, сравнения, множественное число и принадлежность.

Как быстро найти подлежащее в SAT?

Вычеркните фразы с of, with, along with и вставки в запятых. То, что осталось перед глаголом, и есть подлежащее.

Когда глагол стоит во множественном числе при or и nor?

Глагол согласуется с ближайшим подлежащим: Neither the manager nor the workers were ready.

Что такое dangling modifier?

Вводный оборот, который логически не относится к подлежащему следующей клаузы: Walking home, the rain started. Нужно, чтобы подлежащим был тот, кто идёт: Walking home, she got caught in the rain.

Что такое параллелизм?

Однородные элементы имеют одну грамматическую форму: reading, hiking and cooking.

Где потренироваться дальше?

Вернитесь к первому уроку про границы предложений и пунктуацию и пройдите словарные сеты SAT.

Продолжайте практику: SAT Grammar: Boundaries, SAT vocabulary, IELTS.

SAT Grammar: Agreement, verbs & pronouns FAQ

What does this lesson cover?

The second part of SAT grammar: subject–verb agreement, tense and verb forms, pronouns, dangling modifiers, parallelism, comparisons, plurals and possessives.

How do I find the subject quickly on the SAT?

Cross out phrases with of, with, along with and commas-inserted extras. What is left before the verb is the subject.

What about verbs with or and nor?

The verb agrees with the nearer subject: Neither the manager nor the workers were ready.

What is a dangling modifier?

An opening phrase that does not logically describe the next clause’s subject: Walking home, the rain started. Make the walker the subject: Walking home, she got caught in the rain.

What is parallelism?

Items in a series share one grammatical form: reading, hiking and cooking.

Where can I practise next?

Return to the first lesson on sentence boundaries and punctuation, then try the SAT vocabulary sets.

Keep practising: SAT Grammar: Boundaries, SAT vocabulary, IELTS.