ne_, _everybody_, _anybody_, _either_,
_neither_, _no one_, _nobody_, and similar words are singular.=

Wrong: Everybody did their best.

Right: Everybody did his best.

Wrong: Each of my three friends were there.

Right: Each of my three friends was there.

Wrong: Either of the candidates are capable of making a good
officer.

Right: Either of the candidates is capable of making a good
officer.

=b. Do not let _this_ or _that_ when modifying _kind_ or _sort_ be
attracted into the plural by a following noun.=

Wrong: He knew nothing of those kind of activities.

Right: He knew nothing of that kind of activities.

Wrong: I never did like these sort of post cards.

Right: I never did like this sort of post cards.

=c. Collective nouns may be regarded as singular or plural, according to
the meaning intended.=

Right: The crowd is waiting.

Right: The crowd are not agreed.

Right: Webster maintained that the United States is an
inseparable union; Hayne that the United States are a separable
union.

English usage: The government were considering a new bill
regarding labor.

American usage: The government was glad to place our troops at
the disposal of General Foch.

=d. Do not use _don't_ in the third person singular. Use _doesn't_.
_Don't_ is contraction of _do not_.=

Wrong: He don't get up early on Sunday morning.

Right: He doesn't get up early on Sunday morning.

Exercise:

1. She said not to buy those sort of carpet tacks. These kind
of apples won't keep. I don't care for these boasting kind of
travelers.

2. Neither of us were in condition to run the race. Every one
assured Mrs. Merton they had spent a pleasant evening.

3. He don't suffer much now. I don't care if she don't come
today.

4. Each of us in that dismal waiting room were angry with the
agent for telling us the train was not late.

5. No one of the girls will tell their age. It don't matter.

=Agreement=

=52a. A verb agrees in number with the subject, not with a noun which
intervenes between it and the subject.=

Wrong: The size of the plantations vary.

Right: The size of the plantations varies.

Wrong: The increasing use of luxuries are a menace to the
country.

Right: The increasing use of luxuries is a menace to th