Examkin

Question

Difficulty: MediumSubject-Verb Agreement (Concord)

Identify the form of the verb that properly satisfies subject-verb agreement in the sentence below.

Answer:Many a candidate 【has】 submitted the registration documents ahead of the official deadline.

Answer

has
According to the rules of grammatical concord in English, the expression 'many a' is followed by a singular countable noun and requires a singular verb. Therefore, the singular auxiliary verb 'has' correctly agrees with 'candidate' in the present perfect construction.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the subject structure of the sentence
The subject structure begins with the quantifier phrase 'Many a' followed by the singular noun 'candidate'.
Recognizing the 'many a' rule is essential because it dictates singular concord regardless of the plural meaning conveyed.
2
Apply the rule of grammatical concord for 'many a'
In formal English concord, 'many a' takes a singular countable noun and requires a singular verb.
Although 'many a' refers to many items/persons, syntactically it operates on a singular element-by-element basis.
3
Select the correct auxiliary verb in the present perfect tense
The singular present perfect auxiliary verb required for agreement with 'candidate' is 'has'.
The past participle 'submitted' requires the auxiliary 'has' (singular) rather than 'have' (plural).

Key Concept

Concord with 'Many a'
Estimated Time:1m 0s
Rate this question

Topics

Subject-Verb Agreement (Concord)

More questions from this topic