Neither she nor her parents understands the challenging math

[idesilva]

Sentence Correction - Strategy Guide Chapter 2 Problem Set , number 14.

14.) Neither she nor her parents understands the challenging math problem.

Question: I understand that the "neither" with the "nor" construction in this sentence is disjunctive and therefore, the subject closest to the verb dictates whether the verb should be plural or singular, correct? So, I "hear", according to my ear, why understand sounds better. I know that parents is plural and therefore, understand should be plural, correct. Okay, on that understanding, my question is is Understand without the "s" the plural form....please explain.

Thank you, Indrani

[RA]

"Understands" is third person singular and therefore can not be used in a sentence requiring a plural verb.

I believe "understand" can be used in both singular and plural form but would like the experts to confirm that.

[rfernandez]

I find it helpful to conjugate the verb with singular and plural subjects to see which verb is correct.

singular: he/she/it understands
plural: they understand

So, if you want the verb to agree with the plural "parents," you need to go with the plural "understand."

In the third person, most singular verbs have an -s at (he walks) the end and most plural verbs do not (they walk). It's weird because the rule for most nouns is the opposite. Well, English can be weird, I suppose.