Present Tense
In the present tense, the third person singular affects the verb. All verbs following the pronouns ‘he’, ‘she’, or ‘it’ (or anything that could be replaced by these pronouns) need an extra -s.
I walk | We walk |
You walk | You walk |
He/She/It walks | They walk |
- Sharon walks
This being said, modal verbs (ex. can, may, could, would) are never conjugated.
- He can
- * He cans
Remember not to add the extra -s with modal verbs!
Verb and Number
When there is a singular subject, the verb must carry an extra -s at the end.
- The book contains a lot of information.
When there is a plural subject, the verb remains as the bare infinitive (the verb doesn’t change).
- These books contain a lot of information.
It’s a little confusing as the -s seems to either be part of the plural form or part of the verb, but never both.
Note that the auxiliary verbs also carry the number:
- The book was interesting.
- The books were interesting.
- He has a cat.
- They have cats.