The following appears in today's online New York Times and I'm wondering about the subject-verb agreement: "One of telltale hallmarks of summer in New York City are the sidewalk volunteers." Isn't the subject "one," and thus the verb singular? The subject isn't "hallmarks," for you could also write: One of telltale hallmarks of summer in New York City is the sidewalk volunteer.

Question

anonymous · Answer

You are correct. The subject of the sentence is "one" and the correct verb would be "is".

a_clan · Answer

your contention seems right.