By English For Today (September 13, 2018) by Ganiu Abisoye Bamgbose (GAB)
let’s play with some rules:
Either you or I am to present the paper (not, is/are to present). The verbs in “either or” and “neither nor” sentences agree with the noun or pronoun before them and the appropriate verb for “I” is “am”.
It is you who are wrong (not, who is wrong). The pronoun “you” controls the verb; not “who” and you can’t say: you is wrong.
The grammarian and comedian is here again (not, are). When the second of two subjects joined by “and” doesn’t take an article, it means both subjects refer to a single person, hence the verb will be singular.
Ganiu Abisoye Bamgbose
Academic Advisor, Distance Learning Centre, University of Ibadan;,
&
Doctoral Student of English, University of Ibadan.
