I read the sentence in title in an English grammar book by P.C. Wren although the actual sentence given in exercise was :
One of his many good traits that (come or comes) to my mind was his modesty.
This exercise is of subject verb agreement for which I think the answer should be come as the antecedent of the relative pronoun that is plural(traits) but Is the was used here correct ? Shouldn't it be is ?
Best Answer
The sentence is correct with the verb "comes" because the relative pronoun "that" refers to the "One of his many good traits", so the subject of the embedded clause (( One of his many good traits that comes to my mind )) is the pre-numerative "One" not "many good traits". And "was" , which is the main verb of the sentence, is also correct. The speaker means that the trait comes to his mind while speaking and the verb "was", which refers to "his modesty", conveys something has been changed now. Btw it's important to know to that the main verb of the sentence doesn't necessarily agree with the verb of the embedded one, for instance: I am still reading the book that I bought last year. The supervisor, instead of the agents who had been assigned the case, is scheduled to visit the office.