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Which is the correct form of the following structure?

A, together with B, provide an efficient means of...

or

A, together with B, provides an efficient means of...

Certainly, "A provides", and "A and B provide". My intuition tells me that the second form is correct because A is the subject and is singular.

Anthony
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  • I find a little ambiguity in the phrase "together with". Does it mean "like", or "when combined with" in your example? – Margana Jun 01 '15 at 13:51
  • @MARGANA A common problem with such structures (though they're widely used). Bacon and eggs and pineapple are my favourite foods. – Edwin Ashworth Jun 01 '15 at 14:13
  • @EdwinAshworth Oxford comma? – Anthony Jun 02 '15 at 05:43
  • @anthony-arnold I'd certainly disambiguate. In your example, for instance, I'd choose 'The combination of A and B provides...' or 'Both A and B provide ...'. We've covered the "serial and's" case before; 'Bacon & eggs and pineapple are my favourite foods.' is one work-around. – Edwin Ashworth Jun 02 '15 at 08:53

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