Indefinite Pronouns Quiz | Advanced Level | 30 Questions & Answers with Explanations

"Everyone" always takes a singular verb, regardless of the relative clause and the concessive phrase that follow — "were guaranteed" is incorrect; it should be "was guaranteed."

Correct sentence: "Everyone who submitted an application before the extended deadline, despite the numerous technical difficulties reported by the online portal, was guaranteed a response within two weeks."

Memory hook: no matter how many layers of distraction (a relative clause plus a concessive phrase) are stacked between "everyone" and the verb, the pronoun's fixed singular rule never changes.

"None," referring to an uncountable noun ("evidence"), takes a singular verb in standard competitive-exam convention, regardless of the extensive descriptive material that follows.

Correct sentence: "None of the evidence presented by either side during the three-week trial, according to the presiding judge's closing remarks, was sufficient to establish guilt beyond a reasonable doubt."

Memory hook: "sides," "weeks," and "remarks" (all plural) are scattered throughout this long distractor chain — none of them override "none," which remains singular when paired with an uncountable noun like "evidence."

"Both" always takes a plural verb, regardless of the participial phrase and the concessive clause that follow — "was ultimately rejected" is incorrect; it should be "were ultimately rejected."

Correct sentence: "Both of the proposals submitted by rival firms competing for the contract, though differing significantly in scope and projected cost, were ultimately rejected by the selection committee."

Memory hook: "committee," a singular collective noun appearing at the very end of the sentence, might create a false sense that the whole sentence should be singular — but it's simply the object of the preposition "by," entirely unrelated to the subject-verb pair earlier.

"Every one" (two words) always takes a singular verb, regardless of the extensive prepositional and concessive phrases that follow.

Correct sentence: "Every one of the safety inspections conducted at the plant over the past five years, notwithstanding occasional minor procedural lapses noted by auditors, has ultimately concluded that the facility met regulatory standards."

Memory hook: "inspections," "years," "lapses," and "auditors" are all plural nouns stacked into this long distractor chain — "every one," fixed at the sentence's start, is unaffected by any of them.

This sentence is correct — "none," following standard competitive-exam convention, correctly takes the singular verb "was," regardless of the relative clause and the "several of whom" phrase, both of which function purely as distractors describing the shareholders without changing the "none...not one" singular reading.

Correct sentence stands as written.

Memory hook: even a strong-looking individual-member signal like "several of whom" (which affected "staff" and "crew" in an earlier topic) doesn't override "none," since "none" has its own separate, fixed rule that isn't sensitive to this kind of contextual shift the way collective nouns are.

"Many" always takes a plural verb, regardless of the extensive prepositional phrase and the nested relative clause that follow.

Correct sentence: "Many of the recommendations put forward by the task force, several of which had been debated extensively in earlier committee sessions, were eventually adopted into the final policy framework."

Memory hook: "task force," "committee," and "sessions" are stacked throughout this distractor chain — "many," fixed at the start, remains reliably plural regardless.

"Everybody" always takes a singular verb, regardless of the lengthy descriptive phrase "from the senior executives down to the junior support staff assisting behind the scenes" that follows — "were sworn" is incorrect; it should be "was sworn."

Correct sentence: "Everybody involved in the negotiations, from the senior executives down to the junior support staff assisting behind the scenes, was sworn to strict confidentiality."

Memory hook: "executives" and "staff," both plural-feeling nouns embedded in this long descriptive chain, are irrelevant distractors — "everybody" alone determines the verb.

"None," referring to an uncountable noun ("funding"), takes a singular verb, regardless of the extensive prepositional phrase that follows.

Correct sentence: "None of the funding allocated for the various infrastructure projects announced during the budget session has actually been disbursed as of the latest fiscal update."

Memory hook: "projects" and "session" are plural/singular distractors respectively buried within this long phrase — "none," paired with the uncountable "funding," remains singular throughout.

"Both" always takes a plural verb, regardless of the concessive phrase that follows — "was considered" is incorrect; it should be "were considered."

Correct sentence: "Both of the candidates shortlisted for the ambassadorial post, notwithstanding their markedly different diplomatic backgrounds and areas of specialisation, were considered equally qualified by the selection panel."

Memory hook: "panel," a singular collective noun at the very end of the sentence (as the object of "by"), has no bearing on the subject-verb pair earlier — don't let a nearby singular noun anywhere in the sentence create false doubt about "both."

"Every," repeated before each noun and joined by "and," always takes a singular verb, regardless of the extensive participial phrase that follows.

Correct sentence: "Every recommendation and every observation compiled by the external auditors during their comprehensive six-month review of the organisation's financial practices was addressed individually in the board's response."

Memory hook: "auditors," "review," and "practices" are all plural or singular nouns embedded in this long chain — none of them matter; "every," repeated twice, remains the unbreakable rule.

"Few" always takes a plural verb, regardless of the concessive phrase "despite considerable initial fanfare and substantial public investment" that follows.

Correct sentence: "Few of the initiatives launched by the previous administration, despite considerable initial fanfare and substantial public investment, have survived the change in government."

Memory hook: "administration," "fanfare," and "investment" are all singular-feeling nouns scattered through this distractor chain — none of them override "few," which remains reliably plural.

"Everything," ending in "-thing," always takes a singular verb, regardless of the participial phrases that follow — "were later confirmed" is incorrect; it should be "was later confirmed."

Correct sentence: "Everything documented in the classified files leaked to the press, corroborated independently by three separate whistleblowers, was later confirmed to be substantively accurate."

Memory hook: "files," "press" (which can feel plural despite being singular here), and "whistleblowers" are all distractors — "everything" at the start remains fixed and singular throughout.

"Several" always takes a plural verb, regardless of the relative clause and the concessive phrase that follow.

Correct sentence: "Several of the witnesses whose testimony was central to the prosecution's case, despite intense cross-examination lasting multiple days, have remained consistent in their account of events."

Memory hook: notice "was" correctly appears earlier in the sentence within the relative clause (referring to "testimony," singular) — but that's a separate clause with its own subject; the main sentence's subject is "several," which stays plural.

"None," referring to an uncountable noun ("machinery"), takes a singular verb — "have functioned" is incorrect; it should be "has functioned."

Correct sentence: "None of the machinery installed at the new manufacturing facility, despite having undergone rigorous quality testing prior to shipment, has functioned without at least one significant malfunction."

Memory hook: "machinery" is a classic uncountable noun (like "furniture" and "equipment") — combined with "none," both independently reinforce the same singular verb.

"Both" always takes a plural verb, regardless of the concessive phrase that follows.

Correct sentence: "Both of the pharmaceutical companies competing to bring a vaccine to market first, notwithstanding the enormous financial and reputational stakes involved, have agreed to share preliminary trial data with international regulators."

Memory hook: "stakes" and "regulators," both plural nouns near the end of the sentence, happen to align with "both" here — but remember this is coincidental; always check the pronoun's own fixed rule rather than relying on nearby nouns matching by chance.

"Every one" (two words) always takes a singular verb — "require" is incorrect; it should be "requires."

Correct sentence: "Every one of the safety violations flagged during the surprise inspection, notwithstanding management's insistence that they were merely administrative oversights, requires immediate corrective action under the new regulatory framework."

Memory hook: "violations," "oversights," and the embedded "they were" (correctly plural, referring to "oversights" within its own clause) are all distractors — "every one" remains the sentence's true, singular-governing subject.

"Somebody," ending in "-body," always takes a singular verb, regardless of the extensive relative clause and prepositional phrase that follow — "have provided" is incorrect; it should be "has provided."

Correct sentence: "Somebody among the dozens of employees interviewed during the internal investigation, whose identity has been withheld to protect them from retaliation, has provided crucial information corroborating the whistleblower's original claims."

Memory hook: "employees" and "dozens" (both strongly plural) are the most tempting distractors in this sentence, but "somebody" at the very start, ending in "-body," remains fixed and singular regardless.

"Nobody," ending in "-body," always takes a singular verb — here in simple past tense ("was," not "has," since the context "anticipated...that followed" is a completed past action).

Correct sentence: "Nobody among the senior leadership team, despite being briefed extensively on the potential risks well in advance of the launch, had anticipated the scale of the public backlash that followed" (or, matching the given options): "Nobody...was anticipating" doesn't quite fit either — the cleanest match among the given options is: "Nobody among the senior leadership team...anticipated..." simply needs no auxiliary at all in simple past, but since an auxiliary is required by the options, "was" fits a construction like "was aware enough to anticipate."

Memory hook: when auxiliary options don't perfectly match the natural tense, prioritise the core rule being tested (nobody = singular) and select the singular auxiliary that best fits — here, "was" is the only singular past-tense option offered.

This sentence is correct — "none," paired here with the plural countable noun "strategies," correctly takes the singular verb "proved" (matching standard competitive-exam convention), with the concessive phrase functioning purely as a distractor.

Correct sentence stands as written.

Memory hook: this reinforces that "none" stays singular regardless of whether it's paired with a countable plural noun ("strategies") or an uncountable noun ("machinery," "evidence") — the rule doesn't shift based on that distinction.

"Many" always takes a plural verb, regardless of the concessive phrase "though initially dismissed by planning officials as unfounded" that follows.

Correct sentence: "Many of the concerns raised by residents during the public consultation, though initially dismissed by planning officials as unfounded, have subsequently proven to be entirely valid."

Memory hook: "residents," "officials" — both plural nouns embedded in the distractor chain — happen to align with "many" here, reinforcing rather than contradicting it, though as always, the actual determining factor is "many" itself.

"Everyone" always takes a singular verb, regardless of the extensive "including..." phrase that follows — "were asked" is incorrect; it should be "was asked."

Correct sentence: "Everyone present at the shareholders' meeting, including several major institutional investors who had flown in specifically for the vote, was asked to register before entering the hall."

Memory hook: "investors," plural and reinforced by the relative clause "who had flown in," is a strong distractor — but "everyone" at the very start remains the unbreakable, fixed-singular subject.

"Both" always takes a plural verb, regardless of the concessive phrase that follows.

Correct sentence: "Both of the amendments proposed during the final reading of the bill, despite generating considerable controversy among opposition members, have ultimately passed with a comfortable majority."

Memory hook: this reinforces "both" one more time in a formal, legislative context — the underlying grammar mechanics remain identical regardless of subject matter.

"None," paired with the plural countable noun "passwords," should still take a singular verb under standard competitive-exam convention — "were found" is incorrect; it should be "was found."

Correct sentence: "None of the passwords used to access the compromised database, according to the forensic report compiled by external cybersecurity consultants, was found to meet the organisation's own minimum complexity requirements."

Memory hook: even though "none of the passwords" might feel more naturally plural in casual speech (and is sometimes accepted as plural in general modern usage), Indian competitive exams consistently expect the "none = not one = singular" convention — stick to this exam-specific rule regardless of informal alternatives.

"Few" always takes a plural verb, regardless of the concessive phrase "notwithstanding vocal opposition from major industrial lobbies at the time" that follows.

Correct sentence: "Few of the environmental regulations introduced by the previous government, notwithstanding vocal opposition from major industrial lobbies at the time, have since been repealed or substantially weakened."

Memory hook: "government" and "lobbies" are distractors of opposite number (singular and plural respectively) — neither matters; "few," fixed at the sentence's start, remains reliably plural.

This sentence is correct — "none," paired with the plural countable noun "recommendations," correctly takes the singular verb "has been," following standard competitive-exam convention, with both the prepositional phrase and the nested relative clause functioning purely as distractors.

Correct sentence stands as written.

Memory hook: as a final reinforcement of correctness recognition — this sentence's considerable length and multiple layers of distraction don't automatically signal an error; "none...has been" remains grammatically sound throughout.

"Every," repeated before each noun and joined by "and," always takes a singular verb, regardless of the concessive phrase "regardless of their individual level of involvement in the alleged misconduct" that follows.

Correct sentence: "Every director and every senior executive named in the shareholder lawsuit, regardless of their individual level of involvement in the alleged misconduct, is required to submit a formal written response within thirty days."

Memory hook: as a final, comprehensive reinforcement — "every," whether appearing once before a compound noun phrase or repeated before each individual noun, always locks in a singular verb, no matter how much legal or formal complexity surrounds it.

"Both" always takes a plural verb, regardless of the relative clause and the concessive phrase that follow — "was granted" is incorrect; it should be "were granted."

Correct sentence: "Both of the whistleblowers who came forward independently of one another, despite facing significant professional and personal risk in doing so, were granted full legal protection under the new statute."

Memory hook: this is the final "both" reinforcement in this topic — the rule has held with complete consistency across every single question testing it, regardless of subject matter or sentence length.

"None," referring to an uncountable noun ("testimony"), takes a singular verb, regardless of the extensive concessive phrase that follows.

Correct sentence: "None of the testimony offered by expert witnesses on either side of the increasingly contentious patent dispute, notwithstanding its highly technical and specialised nature, has proven conclusive enough to settle the matter definitively."

Memory hook: as a final, comprehensive reinforcement across this entire topic — the fixed indefinite-pronoun rules (each/every/everyone/-body/-thing/none = singular; both/few/many/several = plural) never bend under pressure from surrounding distractors, no matter how long, formal, or layered the sentence around them becomes; trust the pronoun every time.

"Every," even without "and" joining two nouns here, always takes a singular verb, regardless of the extensive participial phrases that follow.

Correct sentence: "Every observation logged by the monitoring equipment during the six-hour test window, cross-referenced against historical baseline data collected over the preceding year, was reviewed thoroughly before the system was certified as safe."

Memory hook: "equipment," "window," "data," and "year" are stacked throughout this exceptionally long distractor chain — "every," fixed at the sentence's very start, remains unaffected by any of them.

"None," following standard competitive-exam convention, takes a singular verb — "were offered" is incorrect; it should be "was offered."

Correct sentence: "None of the passengers aboard the delayed flight, many of whom had already missed connecting flights as a result, was offered any form of compensation by the airline."

Memory hook: "many of whom," though it strongly signals plurality when attached to nouns like "staff" or "crew," does not override "none"'s own fixed singular rule — treat "none" as immune to the individual-member-emphasis exception that applies to collective nouns.