Fill in the blank by choosing the correct option to complete a newspaper clipping : The verdict is yet to come since the members of the jury (is/are) divided in their opinion.
Fill in the blank by choosing the correct option to complete a newspaper clipping : The verdict is yet to come since the members of the jury (is/are) divided in their opinion.
are
Marking Scheme
- 11 mark: correct answer 'are' with the complete sentence 'the members of the jury are divided in their opinion'.
- 20 marks for 'is', which incorrectly agrees the verb with 'jury' inside the prepositional phrase instead of the true subject 'members'.
Hint
Look past the prepositional phrase 'of the jury' — the real subject is the plural noun 'members', so the verb must be plural: 'are'.
Quick Oral Answer
The correct word is 'are' because the true subject is the plural noun 'members', not the collective noun 'jury' which merely sits inside a prepositional phrase.
Analysis & Explanation
Tests subject-verb agreement when a prepositional phrase intervenes between the head noun and the verb.
Concept
- The verb must agree with the head noun of the subject phrase ("the members"), not with a noun inside an intervening prepositional phrase ("of the jury").
Key points
- "Members" is plural → verb must be plural → "are".
- "Divided in their opinion" semantically reinforces plurality (multiple differing views).
Common mistakes
- Proximity/attraction error: agreeing the verb with the nearer singular noun "jury" instead of the true subject "members".
Common Mistakes
- 1Selecting 'is' by wrongly agreeing the verb with 'jury' (the noun nearest the verb) rather than with 'members' (the actual subject).
- 2Assuming all collective nouns like 'jury' always take a singular verb regardless of sentence structure.
- 3Overlooking the semantic clue 'divided in their opinion', which signals a plural, individualised reading.
Interesting Facts
Collective nouns like 'jury', 'team', and 'family' can take either singular or plural verbs in British/Indian English depending on whether the group is seen as a unit or as individuals — but here the subject is 'members', not the collective noun itself.
Attraction/proximity errors (agreeing the verb with the nearest noun instead of the true subject) are among the top-tested subject-verb agreement traps in CBSE grammar papers.
Legal and courtroom-themed sentences are a recurring context for CBSE grammar items, testing vocabulary alongside grammar.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Isn't 'jury' always singular?
'Jury' as a collective noun can take a singular verb when treated as one unit (e.g., 'The jury has reached a verdict'), but here the grammatical subject is 'the members', which is plural, so the verb must be 'are'.
How do I find the real subject when a sentence has phrases like 'of the...'?
Strip out prepositional phrases starting with 'of', 'with', 'along with', etc., and check what noun remains as the head of the subject — that noun decides singular or plural agreement.