There are some sentences (actually, 6 - too many?) in my book and I don’t know the answers. Singular or plural? Please, help me.
Liver and onions (be) a meal detested by many children.
Blue and yellow (make) green.
Almost every professor and student at the university (approve) of the choice of Dr. Brown as the new president.
Each penny, nickel, dime and quarter (count) carefully by the bank teller.
Every day there (be) more than a dozen traffic accidents in the city.
The imagery, diction, and syntax of each writer (was/were) examined.
Thank you anyway 
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Here is my take :lol:
Liver and onions is a meal detested by many children.
Blue and yellow makes green.
Almost every professor and student at the university approve of the choice of Dr. Brown as the new president.
Each penny, nickel, dime and quarter are counted carefully by the bank teller.
Every day there are more than a dozen traffic accidents in the city.
The imagery, diction, and syntax of each writer were examined.
Thank you. I’m happy to know that I am not the only person who is interested in grammar.
This is my idea:
Liver and onions (be) a meal detested by many children.
IS
Blue and yellow (make) green.
ARE
Almost every professor and student at the university (approve) of the choice of Dr. Brown as the new president.
APPROVES
Each penny, nickel, dime and quarter (count) carefully by the bank teller.
COUNTS
Every day there (be) more than a dozen traffic accidents in the city.
ARE
The imagery, diction, and syntax of each writer (was/were) examined.
WAS
=> I think we should wait for some native speakers’ ideas for more information
May we have idea of some native speakers, please?
Thanks a lot
I’m not a native speaker, but i’m want to share my idea in this case.
Liver and onions (be) a meal detested by many children. -> is
Blue and yellow (make) green. -> makes
Almost every professor and student at the university (approve) of the choice of Dr. Brown as the new president. ->approves
Each penny, nickel, dime and quarter (count) carefully by the bank teller. -> are counted
Every day there (be) more than a dozen traffic accidents in the city. -> are
The imagery, diction, and syntax of each writer (was/were) examined. -> were
Thank you for your replies. Actually, I have many books on grammar. My favourite is Swan Practical English Usage. But none of them gives the answer to these particular sentences. I promised my students to find correct answers.
Liver and onions (be) a meal detested by many children. [color=blue](It IS)
Blue and yellow (make) green. [color=blue](They/These colours make.)
Almost every professor and student at the university (approve) of the choice of Dr. Brown as the new president.[color=blue] (each APPROVES)
Each penny, nickel, dime and quarter (count) carefully by the bank teller. [color=blue](each APPROVES)
Every day there (be) more than a dozen traffic accidents in the city. [color=blue](are ACCIDENTS)
The imagery, diction, and syntax of each writer (was/were) examined. [color=blue](They WERE/Each WAS)
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I think Pamela’s answers were excellent. Molly’s points are well-taken, too.
I also think that if a hundred average native-speakers of English were to utter those sentences on their own, it would be hard to find a clear-cut preference for the singular or plural form of the verb in most of them. :lol:
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Problem is, notional concord can often play a part in such.
What am I to do?
born in a family - the child is already considered as IN the family
born into a family - the child is seen as ENTERING the family
Hi Inga
The only sentence that seems clear-cut to me is the first one. I’ve taken Molly’s observations and added a different way that the sentences might be viewed (in all but the first and last sentences):
If you took those sentences from a book of exercises that states that there is only one “correct” answer, I would suggest that you might be able to find a better book. 
I’d love to know ideas from a British person. May I have yours, Alan?
Could be “when combined…”.
True.
Thanks a lot again. At last so much attention! Alan doesn’t read my posts . I have to write him directly.
Hi Inga,
In answer to your question I would suggest:
Liver and onions (be) a meal detested by many children. IS (a meal)
Blue and yellow (make) green. MAKES (a mixture)
Almost every professor and student at the university (approve) of the choice of Dr. Brown as the new president APPROVES (each and every one)
Each penny, nickel, dime and quarter (count) carefully by the bank teller. IS COUNTED (each and every one)
Every day there (be) more than a dozen traffic accidents in the city. THERE IS (a dozen)
The imagery, diction, and syntax of each writer (was/were) examined. WAS (each and every bit)
In other words, singular in each case is acceptable to me. It’s only when the verb comes, as it were, face to face with a plural concept that the plural seems called for. Thus: There ARE 20 accidents every week …
Alan
Oh, thank you!
Hi Alan,
How lovely to see you here!
Blue and yellow (make) green. MAKES (a mixture)
=> Why shouldn’t it be “are”, sir? I think the two colour blue and yellow make the colour green…
Every day there (be) more than a dozen traffic accidents in the city. THERE IS (a dozen)
=> When I looked up on the BNC, I found only 4 results for “is a dozen” and 12 results for “are a dozen”…
Hi Nessie,
The point I wanted to make was that the singular use was acceptable as far as I was concerned because that seemed to be the sticking point but I wasn’t ruling out the use of the plural in those sentences.
Let me illustrate:
My team are going to win - the use of ‘are’ suggests you know your team as a number of individuals, by name and so on.
Their team is going to lose - the use of ‘is’ here suggests you don’t know their team but simply regard them as one unit.
Alan