Singular nouns refer to just one of the person, animal or thing, while plural nouns refer to more than one. Singular nouns use singular verbs, while plural nouns use plural verbs. This is known as the grammar law of subject-verb agreement.
For example, if a singular noun is the subject of a sentence, the verb must use the singular form. If the subject is plural, the verb must be plural. Singular verbs generally have an ‘s’ at their ends and are used with a singular subject (noun). In contrast, plural verbs are used when more than one object/person is doing an action.
There are some rules for making singular verbs plural:
- Singular verbs – add -s or -es (he bakes, she walks)
- Plural verbs – don’t add -s or -es (they bake, we walk)
- Use singular verbs for third-person nouns and pronouns (he, she, it), as well as collective nouns such as “team” or “family.”
- When you use the pronouns I and you, use the base form of the verb (I bake, you bake), just like you do for plural verbs.
