Agreement (linguistics)

Let's imagine you and your friend want to play a game together. But, before you start playing, you want to make sure that you both agree on the rules of the game. In linguistics, agreement is like agreeing on the rules of the game, but instead of playing a game, it's about how the words in a sentence agree or match up with each other.

When we speak or write, we use different words to refer to different things. We use nouns to name people, animals, places or things, and we use verbs to tell about actions. By using agreement, we make sure that the words we choose match up correctly in terms of gender, number, tense, and other important features.

For instance, if you are talking about one person, you would say "He is playing tennis" with the word "he" matching up with the singular noun "person" we are talking about. But if you are talking about two or more people, you would say "They are playing tennis," where the plural subject "they" matches up with the plural verb "are".

This is important because without agreement, our sentences might not make sense, or they might be confusing. If we say "She play tennis", then we are wrong because we are mixing up the agreement between the singular noun "she" and the plural verb "play".

In conclusion, agreement is like making sure your words in a sentence match up like rules for a game, so that what you are saying makes sense and is clear and easily understood by others.