In the sentence ‘Everyone can enjoy singing,’ the verb ‘enjoy’ does not change to ‘enjoys’ even though it appears that ‘everyone’ is a plural subject. This can be confusing at first, but the key lies in understanding the subject-verb agreement rules in English.
1. Understanding ‘Everyone’ as a Singular Subject
The word ‘everyone’ is a singular indefinite pronoun, which means that it refers to all people as a single group, not as individuals. Even though ‘everyone’ refers to multiple people, it is treated as a singular subject. Therefore, the verb that follows ‘everyone’ must be in its base form, which in this case is ‘enjoy,’ not ‘enjoys.’
2. The Role of ‘Can’ in the Sentence
Another important factor is the auxiliary verb ‘can.’ When ‘can’ is used, it acts as a modal verb that helps indicate ability or possibility. In English, modal verbs (such as ‘can,’ ‘will,’ ‘should,’ etc.) are followed by the base form of the main verb. This is why ‘enjoy’ remains in its base form in the sentence ‘Everyone can enjoy singing.’
3. Subject-Verb Agreement with Other Indefinite Pronouns
Similar to ‘everyone,’ other indefinite pronouns like ‘anyone,’ ‘someone,’ and ‘no one’ are also treated as singular subjects. For example, we say ‘Anyone can join the club,’ not ‘Anyone can joins the club.’ The same rule applies when ‘everyone’ is the subject of the sentence.
4. Conclusion
The reason ‘enjoy’ does not become ‘enjoys’ in the sentence ‘Everyone can enjoy singing’ is due to the fact that ‘everyone’ is treated as a singular subject, and the presence of the modal verb ‘can’ requires the use of the base form of the main verb. Understanding subject-verb agreement with indefinite pronouns and modal verbs helps clarify why this construction is correct.
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