Learn English – Do I use “is” or “are” when writing “(an energy) source is/are the ocean waves”

singular-vs-pluralsubject-verb-agreement

I'm writing about renewable energy sources and I'm having a bit of trouble with this sentence:

A relatively immature, yet promising source are the ocean waves, which are a ceaseless discharge of energy directly on the shoreline.

Some grammar check services say that I should write:

A relatively immature, yet promising source is the ocean waves, which are a ceaseless discharge of energy directly on the shoreline.

I think can understand why this is correct, since "the source" is singular, i should use "is". But it seems a bit weird to use "is" when writing about "the waves". What is the correct form?

Best Answer

The verb must coordinate with the (singular) subject:

A ... source is the ... waves...

You could rewrite it with a (plural) subject:

The ... waves are a ... source...

Possibly a duplicate of Subject-Verb Agreement

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