How to see it
The verb has to agree with its subject. One thing takes is, was or has. More than one takes are, were or have. The subject is who or what the sentence is about: the box. Of crayons only says what kind of box. So cover it, and read again. The box is on the table. One box, so is. Find the real subject, then match.
A worked example
Now the other way round. The keys to the old shed: is or are missing? What is missing? Not the shed. The keys. Cover to the old shed. The keys are missing.
The common mistake: agreeing with the nearest noun
The trap is the nearest noun. Shed sits right beside the gap, and it is one thing, so is sounds right. But the shed is not missing. The keys are.
Try one
Which part of the sentence contains a mistake? If there is none, choose None.
- AThe colour of the leaves
- Bchange every autumn
- Cin the park
- Dnear our school
- ENone
Show the answerHide the answer
Right: B, change every autumn
The subject is the colour, which is one thing. So, the colour changes. The leaves are not the subject.