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Playbook

Spotting Errors — Subject-verb agreement

17 q. Cross-chapter with Grammar's S-V subtopic (10 q) — same rule, different format. Proximity-error trap is the dominant distractor.

questions in the bank
17
tagged HARD
6%
subtopic(s) covered
1
worked examples
1

When you’ll see it

A subject and a verb separated by a phrase or clause; check whether the verb agrees with the actual subject (not the nearest noun).

How this question type works

17 q under Spotting Errors + 10 q under Grammar = 27 q total across both chapters. The single biggest cross-chapter lever in NDA English, and the only one where 'drill across chapters' meaningfully pays off.

The signature trap is the 'proximity error': a long prepositional phrase between subject and verb makes the verb agree with the *last noun* rather than the actual subject. 'The project staff are working on the weekend' — 'staff' is the subject (collective singular in BrE, often plural in IndE/AmE), the prepositional 'on the weekend' is decorative.

Build the habit: when you see a subject + verb, mentally bracket out the entire prepositional phrase in between, then check agreement. 'The pile of books [on the table] is/are' — bracket out '[on the table]', then 'The pile is' confirms the singular.

The sub-skills

The rules and habits that decide whether you get this question right.

  • Bracket-out the modifier

    Cross out any 'of X', 'in Y', 'with Z' between subject and verb. Then check S-V on the bare subject.

  • Collective nouns + 'each/every/either/neither/none'

    team, staff, committee, government — singular by convention (BrE allows plural for collective acting individually). 'Each/every/either/neither/none of the X' — singular verb.

  • Compound subjects: 'and' vs 'or'

    X and Y → plural. X or Y / Neither X nor Y → verb agrees with the noun closest to the verb (proximity rule, the one place it's correct).

1 worked example from the bank

Real past-year questions tagged to this playbook. Click to reveal options + solution.

Example 1Spotting ErrorsMODERATE
Directions (Q. Nos. 41 to 45): Each item in this section has a sentence with four underlined parts labeled (a), (b), (c) and (d). Read each sentence to find out whether there is any error in any underlined part. Indicate your response in the Answer Sheet accordingly.
The project staff are‾\underline{\text{The project staff are}} working on the weekend‾\underline{\text{working on the weekend}} so as not to delay‾\underline{\text{so as not to delay}} the project any further‾\underline{\text{the project any further}}.

[Q41 · Apr · 2026]

Traps to expect

Distractor shapes specific to this playbook. The page-wide Traps section covers the bank-level patterns.

  • Proximity-noun verb

    The verb agrees with the noun nearest it, which is NOT the actual subject. 'The leader of the soldiers were brave' — 'soldiers' is the proximity noun, but the subject is 'leader' (singular).

  • Inverted-order subject hiding behind verb

    'There is a book and three pencils on the table' — sounds fine, but 'is' should agree with the compound 'a book and three pencils' (plural).

Drill every spotting errors — subject-verb agreement question

17 questions from the bank, scoped to the named subtopic.

Drill the 17 questions

Related playbooks

Often paired with this one — drill these next if you found the worked examples above tractable.