Grammar Rules

Collective nouns

Treat as singular when the group acts as one unit.

The committee finalized its decision.

Using plural pronouns like “their” for a single committee/team.

Compound noun plurals

Pluralize the main noun, not the modifier.

sisters-in-law, attorneys general

sister-in-laws, sister's-in-law

Subject-verb agreement with phrases like “a group of…”

Verb agrees with the main subject, not the object of the phrase.

A group of senators is voting.

are voting (matches “senators” instead of “group”)

Indefinite pronouns (everyone, each, someone, nobody)

Always singular → use singular verbs/pronouns.

Everyone should bring his or her lunch.

Using “their” or “ones” in formal grammar.

Plural possessives (family names)

Plural name + apostrophe after s → plural possessive.

The Joneses’ house

The Jones’ (wrong if more than one Jones)

Either/or & neither/nor agreement

Verb agrees with the noun closest to it.

Either the director or the producers is going

are going (if verb doesn’t match nearest subject)

Numbers with dozen/hundred/thousand

After a specific number, dozen/hundred/thousand stays singular, no “of.”

two dozen cookies

two dozens eggs, two dozen of eggs

Time/measurement possessives

Plural time → apostrophe after s; singular → apostrophe before s

four weeks’ notice

four week's notice, four-weeks notice

Data / media / criteria agreement

Singular sense: treat as singular; plural sense: treat as plural.

The data suggests a pattern

The data suggest (in singular modern usage)

“Each of” constructions

“Each” is singular → singular verbs/pronouns, even if the object is plural

Each applicant should submit his or her résumé

Each applicant should submit their résumé