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Use of ‘Is’ and ‘Are’ –

1 . General Rule –  Both of these are ‘be verbs.’

If the subject noun is ‘singular’ then we use ‘is’ after that .
Examples – The boy is playing cricket.

If the subject noun is ‘plural’ then we use ‘are’ –
Example – The boys are playing cricket.


2. After ‘number of’ – It takes the verb ‘are’ because the term  ‘number of’  always means plural number .

Example – A number of people are coming to meet with our manager .



3. In case of ‘group of’ / ‘bunch of’ / ‘handful of’ / ‘series of’ –

These terms are generally used to express a whole group as a single entity . So we use ‘is’ after these –

Examples – The group of footballers is practicing regularly.

The series of episodes is very important.

A bunch of research papers is necessary.



But if we want to emphasize the ‘individuals’  then we can use ‘are’ . Here we don’t take the whole group as a single entity but we indicate a specific portion of a group .

Examples –
A group of my friends are not attending the class.

A bunch of my colleagues are not attending the meeting.

A series of episodes are missing .

A handful of skilled players are missing .



4. In case of ‘pare of’ – We use ‘is’ in this case because a pair means ‘two items together as a single entity.’

Examples – A good pair of hands is needed for a goalkeeper.

A good pair of partners is essential for a mixed doubles tennis match.



5. Collective noun – a group of people or things which is considered as a single entity.
So we use ‘is’ after these.

Examples –
The managing committee is looking into the matter .

The troop is trying to handle the situation.


The audience is very much happy .

The team is playing well .



Exception – But we can use ‘are’ after the collective noun if we want to emphasize the individual members of a group.

Example – The couple are keeping distance from each other .



6. Uncountable nouns – These are the nouns which can’t be counted. Like – sugar, water, sand, air, knowledge, etc. These nouns take ‘is’ .

Examples – The water is life .

The sugar is very sweet.




7. After ‘there’ – It depends on the subject of the sentence. If the subject is singular then we use ‘is’ after ‘there’ and if the subject is plural then we use ‘are’ after ‘there’ .

Examples –

There is a school near my house.

There are two schools near my house.


8. In case of every / No / Some / Any –

Everything/ Nothing / Something / Anything – we use ‘is’

Everyone/ Noone / Someone / Anyone – we use ‘is’

Everybody/ Nobody / Somebody/ Anybody – we use ‘is’

Examples – Everything is alright here.

Nobody is present here.

Someone is waiting for us.

Anything is possible in a tough match.

9. In case of All of the / Most of the / Some of the / None of the –

It depends on the subject. If the subject is countable then we use ‘are’ and if the subject is uncountable then we use ‘is’ .

Examples –

All of the books are essential .

None of the information is right.

Some of the answers are correct.

Most of the water is saline .

In these sentences ‘is’ is used after the countable nouns, books and answers . And ‘are’ is used after the uncountable nouns Information and water.

Uses of Was and Were – We use ‘was’ instead of ‘is’ and ‘were’ instead of ‘are’ in the case of past tense.