The President, along with the Council of Ministers, __________ to visit India next week.
Select the most appropriate option to complete the above sentence.
Grammar: Subject-Verb Agreement Practice
This question tests the understanding of subject-verb agreement in English grammar. The key is to correctly identify the subject of the sentence.
Sentence Analysis
The sentence is: "The President, along with the Council of Ministers, __________ to visit India next week."
- The main subject of the sentence is "The President".
- The phrase "along with the Council of Ministers" is a prepositional phrase. Such phrases do not affect the number of the verb.
- Since "The President" is a singular subject, the verb must also be in its singular form.
Verb Selection
We need a singular verb form to agree with "The President".
- Option 1: $wish$ (Plural form) - Incorrect.
- Option 2: $wishes$ (Singular form) - Correct.
- Option 3: $will wish$ (Future tense, grammatically correct but the simple present tense singular form is often preferred for such constructions indicating intention or plan).
- Option 4: $is wishing$ (Present continuous tense) - Incorrect for this context.
Answer
The most appropriate option is the singular verb form that agrees with the singular subject "The President".
Correct Option: 2. wishes
The completed sentence reads: "The President, along with the Council of Ministers, wishes to visit India next week."
Important Questions from Verb noun Agreement
Consider the following sentences:
(i) The number of candidates who appear for the GATE examination is staggering.
(ii) A number of candidates from my class are appearing for the GATE examination.
(iii) The number of candidates who appear for the GATE examination are staggering.
(iv) A number of candidates from my class is appearing for the GATE examination.
Which of the above sentences are grammatically CORRECT?
The Headmaster _______________ to speak to you.
Which of the following options is incorrect to complete the above sentence?- He was one of my best ________ and I felt his loss ________
- The ways in which this game can be played __________ potentially infinite.
