LESSON
Compound Subjects and Verbs
6.4
Sentences may have compound subjects and compound verbs.
A compound subject contains two or more subjects
that share the same verb. Compound subjects are joined by
coordinating conjunctions, such as and, or, and nor. They may
also be joined by correlative conjunctions, such as both…and, Many test questions
either…or, and neither…nor. (See Lesson 9.7 for more about ask you to correct
conjunctions.) subject-verb
agreement errors.
Walt Disney and Winston Churchill had learning disabilities. When a compound
subject is joined by
Neither Disney nor others were ready to give up easily. or or nor, the verb
should agree with the
A compound verb contains two or more verbs that share
subject closest to it.
the same subject. Conjunctions like and, or, or but usually join
the verbs. Neither the book nor
the articles were
Churchill was born in 1874 and died in 1965. useful.
Neither the articles
Disney created cartoons and dreamed of a theme park. nor the book was
useful.
Use compound subjects and compound verbs to combine
sentences and make your writing less repetitive.
orig in a l Disneydirected cartoons. Disney wrote for the screen.
He followed his dreams.
directed cartoons, wrote for the screen, and
re v is e d Disney
followed his dreams. [compound verb]
Sentences may have more than one subject or verb without
containing a compound subject or a compound verb. (See Lesson
For practice
3.4 about four types of sentence structures.) using compound
S V S V subjects and
Copyright © by William H. Sadlier, Inc. All rights reserved.
I like to draw, but I have little talent.
compound verbs
[compound sentence]
to combine
S V S V
If she could, Toni would become an artist. sentences, see
[complex sentence] Lesson 3.6.
Chapter 6 • Parts of a Sentence 157
Parts of a Sentence www.grammarforwriting.com
Exe rc i s e 1 Identifying Compound Parts
Underline the subjects once and the verbs twice. Write CS for
a compound subject, CV for a compound verb, and N if the
sentence has no compound subjects or compound verbs.
EXAMPLE CS, CV Jay and I like adventure and enjoy sports.
��� 1. Bungee jumping and other extreme sports appeal to
many and are growing in popularity.
��� 2. Bungee jumping originated and became popular in New
Zealand.
��� 3. Bungee jumping is considered very dangerous.
��� 4. Secure cables and safety gear are essential in ensuring
the safety of a jumper.
��� 5. After the adventurer jumped, she dangled at the end of
the cable.
Exe rc i s e 2 Combining Sentences
Use a compound subject or compound verb to combine the
groups of short sentences. You may add or delete words.
Do not use a
EXAMPLE Snowboarding is an Olympic sport.
comma before a
Snowboarding draws crowds of spectators.
conjunction that
joins the parts of a Snowboarding is an Olympic sport and
compound subject draws crowds of spectators.
or compound verb.
Copyright © by William H. Sadlier, Inc. All rights reserved.
Haru enjoys 1. Haru snowboards. So does his sister.
skiing and likes 2. Today, skiing is popular in North America and Europe.
excitement. Snowboarding is popular in North America and Europe.
3. Snowboarders dress in padded pants. They wear helmets.
4. Snowboarding is a lot like skateboarding. Both have freestyle
competition. Skiing also has freestyle competition.
5. Top-rated snowboarders compete in a ten-month season.
They draw crowds of fans.
158 Chapter 6 • Parts of a Sentence
