黄叶华
广西梧州岑溪市第六中学 543200
摘 要：主谓一致原则在英语中处处可见, 也就是一个句子里主语和谓语应该在人称和数上保持一致, 本文将就初中英语中的主谓一致原则问题进行详细地探讨汇总。
关键词：主语 谓语 单数 复数
在英语表达中, 主语的人称和数要与谓语取得一致, 最基本的规则是：“单则单,复则复”, 即主语是单数时, 谓语动词要用单数形式；主语为复数时, 谓语动词也用相应的复数形式。谓语的单复数的差别其实只体现在这几个单词上,单数：is,am,was, has,does;复数：are,were,have,do(指一切实意动词) 。有些主语容易区分单复数, 有些的就较难区分, 要根据它的意义或语法概念来仔细判断。
1最基本的“主谓一致”
这种情况是最简单的, 也最容易区分, 主语是单数或不可数名词时, 谓语动词用单数形式；主语是复数时, 谓语动词也用相应的复数形式。例如：He is a teacher. We are teachers.
但要注意：表示时间, 金钱, 重量, 距离, 长度等词组作主语时, 常将其看作一个整体,谓语动词用单数形式；但在there be 句型中谓语却用复数。例如：Ten dollars is enough.There were two hours left for the discussion.另外,加减乘除算式中的数字作主语时, 谓语动词用单数形式, 如：Ten plus ten is twenty.
2集体名词作主语时, 谓语动词的使用
像family, class, team等集体名词作主语, 若指整体时, 谓语用单数；若指个体的具体成员时, 谓语用复数。例如：My fam- ily is big.His family are watching TV now. 此类集合名词常见的有 ：group, crowd,crew,audience,population, committee,staff,public,party等。
有些表示总称意义的名词, 虽然形式上是单数, 但概念上却表示复数, 这类集体名词作主语时谓语动词要用复数, 有cattle,folk,people,police,youth,Span- ish 等。例如：The people are very friendly.
3形式上是复数, 意义上是单数的名词作主语时, 谓语动词用单数形式
这类名词有：news, maths, politics,physics, the United States等。例如：The news is exciting.Maths is difficult for me.学科名词作单数看,又如：He is active in politics,which interests him.
4两个主语用a nd 连接时, 谓语动词的使用
and连接两个以上名词（或代词）作并列主语时, 谓语动词一般用复数形式。例如： Marry and Ann are good friends.但要注意：and 连接的两个主语只表示一个概念时, 谓语动词要用单数形式。注意区别以下两个例句：A singer and dancer is coming. (一个歌手兼舞蹈家就要来了。)A singer and a dancer are coming.(一个歌手和一个舞蹈家就要来了。)若and后面的名词前有冠词时则表示两个物体, 此时谓语应用复数。例如：The yellow and the white pen are his.
由and连接的单数名词并列作主语, 若and前后的单数名词前都有each,every,no 修饰时, 谓语动词常用单数, 如：Each boy and each girl goes to school everyday.
5不定代词作主语时, 谓语动词的使用
something,everything,anything, nothing,everybody,anybody,nobody, ev- eryone 等复合不定代词, 以及either, neither(neither of),each(each of),each one, no one,another等代词作主语时,谓语动词用单数形式。例如：Something is wrong with me. Each of students has homework.
Both,few,a few,many,others作主语或它们所修饰的名词作主语时, 谓语动词要用复数形式。
例如：Both of them are workers.
6with,as well as,like等修饰的单数名词作主语, 谓语动词的使用
单数名词作主语, 且后面有with,as well as,like,等词修饰时,谓语动词用单数形式,例如：The man with his son is play- ing football.The girl like me is my daughter.
7动名词、动词不定式或从句作主语时, 谓语一般用单数形式
例如：To talk with the children is a great pleasure.Climbing hills is good for your health.
8就近一致原则, 指谓语动词的数与离它最相近的主语的数保持一致
在句子中由either… or… ,neither… nor… ,not only… but also…,not… but…, 等连接两个主语时, 其谓语动词应与和谓语最靠近的主语保持人称和数的一致。例如：Neither he nor I know anything about it.Not only the students but also the teacher has visited the museum.
There be结构也属于此类,there be句型中, 主语不止一个时,be动词的数常和最邻近的主语的数保持一致。例如：There is a desk, some chairs and a bed in the room. 但要注意,both…and…表示“…… 和……都”时, 谓语动词用复数形式, 例如： Both his mother and father are workers.
9几种特殊结构的主谓一致
在倒装句中, 谓语动词应与其后的主语保持数的一致,例如：How is the word spelt主谓倒装的句子中, 谓语动词与主语一致。如：Here is my notebook, in which are written the results of the experiments. 关系代词who,that,which等在定语从句中作主语时, 定语从句谓语的数应和先行词的数保持一致,例如：The number of the people who own cars is increasing in China.
若主语是a kind of,a series of, a spe- cies of, a portion of,a pair of等+名词(单数或复数) 时, 谓语动词一般用单数, 即谓语的数需与这些结构中中心词的数一致。例如：The pair of pants is fifty dollar.
10.走出“主谓一致”的三大误区
句子的核心是谓语动词，谓语动词的确定取决于主语。根据句子含义和结构认准主语是掌握主谓一致的必要条件；弄清主谓一致的语言规则和习惯是掌握主谓一致的充分条件，要正确使用主谓一致，两个条件缺一不可，但同学们往往会走入以下三大误区。
误区一 误认主语
1. 倒装句
①Between the two buildings are a big tree. (×）
②Between the two buildings is a big tree. (√)
[解析] 第①句谓语动词使用are，错误地认为the two buildings是该句的主语，但实际上是介词between的宾语，一起构成介词短语，而介词短语不能充当主语。该句是一个倒装句，真正主语是a big tree.因此第②句正确。
特别提醒 倒装句的常见结构：副词/介词短语+谓语+主语
2. 主语之后带有介词短语
①The fruit like apples, oranges are good for our health. (×）
②The fruit like apples, oranges is good for our health. (√)
[解析] 第①句误认为apples, oranges是主语，因此谓语动词用are，而实际上the fruit才是该句的主语，like apples，oranges是介词短语作后置定语修饰the fruit.该句译为“像苹果、桔子之类的水果对我们的身体是有好处的”。因此第②句是正确的。
特别提醒 类似的结构有：主语+with / like / except / but / together with / as well as . . . ，谓语动词应与主语一致，而与介词短语之后的名词无关。
3. one of . . . + 名词复数或复数代词
①There are twenty boys in our class. One of the boys are from Canada. (×）
②There are twenty boys in our class. One of the boys is from Canada. (√)
[解析] one of the boys的中心词是one，因此谓语动词用单数，造成第①句错误的原因主要是把the boys当成了该句的主语。
4. 定语从句
①I like the photos which was taken in Beijing. (×）
②I like the photos which were taken in Beijing. (√)
[解析] which were taken in Beijing是一个定语从句，用于修饰先行词the photos，而which本身就代替先行词the photos.因此谓语动词要用复数，造成第①句错误的原因是没有弄清楚关系词which的实质，只是从形式上看它是单数。
特别提醒 定语从句中的谓语动词应该与先行词保持一致。
参考文献
[1]薄冰. 高级英语语法[M]. 世界知识出版社,2000.
[2]张道真. 实用英语语法( 最新版本)[M]. 外语教学与研究出版社,2002.