7. Number and Person

Chapter focus: agreement, quantity expressions, collective nouns, and consistent viewpoint.

How to study this lesson

Read the explanation first, then say the examples aloud. Change one detail in each example, such as the subject, time, or place. Complete the practice without looking back and use the answer key to understand the reason for each answer. Finish by writing two sentences about your own life or city.

Number tells us whether a noun or pronoun is singular or plural. Person tells us who is speaking: first person (I/we), second person (you), or third person (he/she/it/they). Number and person affect pronouns and verb agreement.

Singular and plural control

Most nouns form the plural with -s or -es: book/books, box/boxes. Important irregular forms include child/children, person/people, man/men, woman/women, and criterion/criteria. Some nouns are uncountable in academic English: advice, evidence, furniture, knowledge, luggage, machinery, research, and traffic.

Compound subjects joined by and normally take a plural verb: The teacher and the student are discussing the plan. With either…or and neither…nor, the verb usually agrees with the nearer subject in careful English: Neither the students nor the teacher is available; Neither the teacher nor the students are available.

Expressions of quantity require attention: A number of people are concerned, but The number of people is rising. Each of the options has a different cost. Collective nouns such as government, team, and family may take a singular verb when the group is considered one unit: The government has announced a policy.

Person and academic tone

First person is not automatically wrong in IELTS. I believe can be natural in an opinion essay, but repeated personal claims can make the writing less analytical. Use a general subject when appropriate: This essay argues that… In Speaking, first person is essential because you are answering about your own experience.

Avoid shifting person without reason: If a person wants to improve, you should practise mixes third and second person. Write If people want to improve, they should practise or If you want to improve, you should practise.

Practice

Choose the correct form: (a) A number of factors (is/are) responsible. (b) The number of applicants (has/have) increased. (c) Each student (need/needs) feedback. (d) If someone studies consistently, (they/he) usually improves.

Answers: (a) are, (b) has, (c) needs, (d) they is a natural gender-neutral singular pronoun; he or she is also possible.

IELTS transfer task

Write a short four-sentence response about an IELTS topic such as education, health, transport, technology, or the environment. Use at least two examples of the target grammar from this chapter. Underline those examples, then check that every sentence has a clear subject, a correct verb, and a meaning that is easy to understand.

Deep lesson: control singular, plural, and viewpoint

Number means singular or plural. Person means first person (I/we), second person (you), or third person (he/she/it/they). These choices affect the pronoun, the verb, and the tone of your IELTS answer.

Agreement rules

A singular subject takes a singular present verb: The result shows. A plural subject takes a plural verb: The results show. In the number of students, the head word is number, so write is. In a number of students, the expression means many students, so write are.

Twelve examples

1. The student works hard.
2. The students work hard.
3. The number of applicants is rising.
4. A number of applicants are waiting.
5. Each option has a cost.
6. Every participant needs an ID.
7. Both methods are useful.
8. Neither method is perfect.
9. Neither the teacher nor the students are available.
10. Neither the students nor the teacher is available.
11. The government has announced a policy.
12. If people want progress, they must practise.

Person and consistency

Use first person naturally in Speaking: I prefer public transport because… In Writing, I believe is possible, but a formal argument may use This essay argues that… Do not shift without reason: If a person wants to improve, they should practise is consistent; a person…you should is not.

Bengali-speaker errors

Wrong: The people is concerned. Right: The people are concerned. Wrong: One of the reasons are cost. Right: One of the reasons is cost. Wrong: Every students need books. Right: Every student needs books.

Practice

A. Correct: The quality of schools have improved. Answer: has improved, because quality is singular.

B. Choose the consistent version: If students want to improve, they should practise or If students want to improve, you should practise. Answer: the first.

C. IELTS task: Write a paragraph using a number of, the number of, each, and both. Underline the subject of each verb.

Professor's explanation: how to think about this grammar

Do not begin by memorising a definition. Begin by asking three questions: What job does this form do? What meaning does it add? Where does it go in the sentence? Bengali and English often arrange information differently, so direct translation can create mistakes. Build the English pattern first, then attach your idea to it.

Bengali learner warning

Many Bengali speakers understand the meaning of an English sentence but omit a small grammar word because Bengali does not always need the same word. English normally needs a clear subject and a finite verb. For example, say The number of students is increasing, not Number of students increasing. Treat articles, auxiliary verbs, plural endings, and prepositions as part of the pattern, not as optional decoration.

Three-step study method

Step 1 — Notice: underline the target form in every example. Step 2 — Control: replace only one part of the example, such as the subject or time. Step 3 — Communicate: use the form in a short answer about education, health, transport, technology, or the environment. If you cannot explain why you chose the form, return to Step 1.

Practice ladder

Level 1: Recognition. Find the target form and name its job. Level 2: Controlled production. Complete or correct a sentence using the pattern. Level 3: IELTS production. Write a short paragraph or speak for one minute. At Level 3, clarity is more important than using many different forms.

Revision checklist

Before moving on, ask: Can I explain the form in one simple sentence? Can I make a positive, negative, and question form where relevant? Can I use it with a past and a present example? Can I recognise the most common Bengali-speaker error? Can I use it naturally in one IELTS answer?