Deciding agreement when more than one rule applies
I can resolve an agreement conflict correctly
Look at these examples. Can you spot the grammar pattern?
Ram and Sita came yesterday.
I called the children.
My mother is very kind.
Pay attention to the highlighted parts. What do they have in common?
Two subjects of different genders take masculine plural agreement: राम और सीता आए.
The verb agrees with the nearest bare object, or goes masculine plural if they are mixed: मैंने रोटी और सब्ज़ी खाई - agreeing with the nearer feminine noun.
If the object carries को, agreement stops there and the verb defaults to masculine singular, no matter what the object is: मैंने लड़कियों को देखा - देखा, not देखीं.
A respected singular takes plural agreement, and a following adjective goes plural too: मेरे पिताजी अच्छे हैं. The gender still follows the person: माँ जी अच्छी हैं.
Apply this grammar in B2 course exercises
Practice ExercisesLetting a ko-marked object control agreement, and mixing honorific number with real number.
ko-marked object allowed to control agreement
ko always sends the verb to masculine singular.
Honorific plural applied to gender as well
Number goes plural; gender still follows the person.
Ram and Sita came yesterday.
Mixed gender resolves to masculine plural, as in Russian.
I called the children.
ko blocks agreement; bulaya defaults.
My mother is very kind.
Honorific plural verb, but the adjective keeps her gender.
Practice in course
Apply this grammar in B2 course exercises
Yamuna Kachru's reference grammar; the descriptive account relied on for aspect, valency and clause structure.
Kamta Prasad Guru's grammar, the standard prescriptive reference for Hindi morphology and syntax.