Crossed Agreement: Understanding the Basics
Crossed agreement occurs when two subjects in a sentence do not agree in number, leading to grammatical errors. It is a common mistake that many writers make, especially when they are in a hurry or do not pay enough attention to their writing. In today`s world of search engine optimization (SEO), where accuracy and relevance are key to success, it is essential to understand and avoid crossed agreement.
To understand crossed agreement, we need to have a basic understanding of subject-verb agreement. In English grammar, the subject and verb in a sentence must always agree in number. If the subject is singular, the verb must also be singular, and if the subject is plural, the verb must also be plural. For example, “I am” is correct, while “I is” is incorrect.
Now, let’s look at some examples of crossed agreement:
1. The cat and the dogs is playing in the park. (Incorrect)
2. The cat and the dogs are playing in the park. (Correct)
In the first example, the subject “cat and dogs” is plural, but the verb “is playing” is singular. This is incorrect. The second example is correct because the verb “are playing” agrees with the plural subject “cat and dogs.”
Here is another example:
1. My favorite color are blue and green. (Incorrect)
2. My favorite colors are blue and green. (Correct)
In the first example, the subject “color” is singular, but the verb “are” is plural. This is incorrect. The second example is correct because the verb “are” agrees with the plural subject “colors.”
Crossed agreement can also occur when there are two subjects in a sentence, and each subject requires a different verb tense. For example:
1. She loves to sing and danced in the choir. (Incorrect)
2. She loves to sing and dances in the choir. (Correct)
In the first example, “loves” agrees with the singular subject “she” but “danced” is in the past tense, which does not agree with “loves.” The second example is correct because “dances” is in the present tense, which agrees with “loves.”
Avoiding crossed agreement is essential for writers, especially those who want to optimize their content for search engines. When search engines crawl through web pages, they look for relevant and accurate content. If there are grammatical errors like crossed agreement, the search engine may not rank the content highly, which can affect its visibility and traffic.
In conclusion, crossed agreement is a common grammatical error that can affect the accuracy and relevance of your content. It is important to understand subject-verb agreement and pay attention to the number of subjects in your sentences. Avoiding crossed agreement will not only improve the quality of your writing but can also enhance the visibility and traffic of your content on search engines.