8 Subject-Verb Agreement (questions)
KEY CONCEPTS
In many questions, the subject-verb order is reversed.
Where is the mayor today?
The verb (is) comes before the subject (mayor).
To identify the subject and verb, it may help to envision the question as a statement.
The mayor is here today.
For clarity in journalistic writing, avoid the contractions who’s and what’s. Instead, spell out who is or who has and what is or what has.
This chapter will cover how the usual subject-verb order is reversed in certain sentence constructions.
In some questions, the subject comes before the verb. Here’s an example:
What (singular subject) is (verb) wrong with the bus?
However, in other questions, the verb comes before the subject. Here is your first example.
What will the legislature decide?
In your mind, you can reverse the sentence order to create a rough statement that helps you identify the subject and the verb. If it helps, form a statement by changing what to the generic something or the pronoun that. Here’s an example:
The legislature (subject) will decide (verb) something.
Now you are ready for your first interactive question in this chapter.
Here’s another question about questions.
Let’s try one more flip-card question.
For clarity, journalists should usually avoid who’s and what’s when writing questions.
1. Who’s – In questions that start with who’s, it can be hard to understand immediately whether who’s is a contraction for who is or who has. Spelling out who is or who has can also help avoid confusion between who’s and whose.
Here are examples that show proper usage.
Who is the attorney for the defendant?
Whose book is on the table?
(Questions with whose often ask who owns or possesses something.)
2. What’s – In questions that start with what’s, it can initially be hard to understand whether what’s is a contraction for what is or what has. Here are examples that show proper usage.
What is the policy today?
What has the governor decided about tax policies?
MORE PRACTICE FOR PROFICIENCY
Below are additional usage questions based on this chapter. These questions can help you study for course assignments or a proficiency exam.
(NOTE – The automated grading on the exercise above may seem different than a standard right/wrong format. It will still display your correct and incorrect responses, though. Don’t worry about your calculated score. Just focus on learning.)
WRITING EXERCISE
1. After reviewing the first flip card in this chapter, write your own question that begins with What followed by the verb is. Construct the question so that the verb comes before the subject, and then rewrite your question as a statement. (Write one question and one related statement.)
2. After reviewing the second flip card in this chapter, write your own question that begins with Where followed by the verb are. Construct the question so that the verb comes before the subject, and then rewrite your question as a statement. (Write one question and one related statement.)
3. In two tightly constructed sentences, explain your key takeaway from this chapter. Do not use any first-person pronouns (such as I, me, my or mine) in your writing.
