What this lesson covers
This one shows the whole method on a real-shaped item: find the subject, cross out everything between it and the gap, then read the subject and the verb back on their own. Then it walks every wrong answer and shows what each one is actually agreeing with, which turns out to be a noun you already deleted.
Also covered: the phrases that look like they add a second subject and do not (along with, as well as, including, together with), and the singular heads that catch people out (each, every, either, neither).
00:00 Four verbs, one subject
00:17 The setup
00:49 The method: cross out the middle
01:27 The look-alikes
01:55 Your turn
02:29 Three ways this goes wrong
02:59 Recap
Worked examples
The questions the video works, written out: the setup, each step, the answer and the trap.
0:17Example 1
The row of tall wooden lockers along the back wall of the gymnasium ___ repainted every summer. Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English? A) is B) are C) were D) have been
- Start at the front of the sentence and name the subject before you look at the blank. The subject is row. Row of what does not matter yet.
- Everything from of tall wooden lockers through the gymnasium is one long interrupter. Cross it out. A noun inside a crossed-out phrase cannot own the verb.
- Read what is left back on its own: The row ___ repainted every summer. One row, so the verb is singular: is.
- Now check what each wrong verb is agreeing with. Are, were and have been are all plural, and the only plural noun in reach is lockers, the noun parked right next to the gap.
Answer: A) is
Row is singular, so the verb is is. B, C and D all agree with lockers, which sits inside the interrupter you just deleted, and B is the trap because lockers are is the last thing your ear heard before the blank. The noun next to the blank is bait; the verb answers to the subject, however many words away that is.
1:27Example 2
The director, along with the two assistant coaches, ___ traveling to the tournament. Which verb fills the gap, is or are?
- Along with looks like it adds a second subject, the way and would. It does not. Along with, as well as, including and together with are interrupters, not conjunctions.
- The phrase sits between commas, so cross it out like any other interrupter: The director ___ traveling to the tournament.
- One director, so the verb stays singular.
Answer: is
Only and builds a compound subject. Along with the two assistant coaches is extra information about the director, so the director is still one person and the verb is is. The trap is are, which comes from counting the coaches as part of the subject.
1:55Example 3
Each of the five research stations on the ridge ___ its own weather log. Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English? A) keep B) keeps C) have kept D) are keeping
- Find the subject first. It is Each, the very first word.
- Of the five research stations on the ridge is the interrupter. Cross it out, and stations and ridge go with it; neither can reach the verb.
- Each is always singular, no matter what follows it. Read it back: Each ___ its own weather log. The singular verb is keeps.
- Confirm with the pronoun later in the sentence: its own weather log. Its is singular, which agrees with a singular subject and a singular verb.
Answer: B) keeps
Each is singular, so keeps is correct. A, C and D are all plural verbs that agree with stations, the plural noun sitting inside the interrupter, and A is the trap because five research stations keep sounds right on its own. Each, every, either and neither are singular heads even when a plural noun follows them.
Lesson transcript
The narration of the video, word for word, under its chapter headings.
One sentence, one gap, four verbs. Before you pick, find the word the verb actually belongs to. It is almost never the word sitting closest to the blank. Start at the front. The subject here is row. Row of what does not matter yet. Everything from of tall wooden lockers through the gymnasium is one long interrupter, so cross it out and read what is left. Row is repainted. One row, one verb, singular. Now look at what the wrong answers are pulling on. Are and were both agree with lockers, the plural noun parked right next to the gap. Have been agrees with lockers too. Every wrong choice matches a noun inside the phrase you just crossed out. That is the whole trap. Watch the phrases that look like they add a second subject. Along with. As well as. Including. Together with. None of them make the subject plural. The director is still one director, and the verb stays singular. Your turn. Find the subject, then pick the verb. Each is the subject, and each is always singular. The five research stations sit inside the interrupter, where they cannot reach the verb. So the answer is B. Keeps. Three ways this goes wrong. Matching the nearest noun instead of the subject. Treating along with like and. And forgetting that each, every, either and neither are singular, no matter what follows them. Cross out the middle. Read the subject and the verb alone.
Read the written version: the Form, Structure, and Sense strategy guide, then try 25 hard Form, Structure, and Sense questions with full explanations. Both are free, no account needed.