When many equals one

Let's be honest, very often English isn't logical. It's littered with expressions that are easy to understand if English is your first language, but make no sense when taken literally. A storm in a teacup has nothing to do with the weather or crockery, but it's a commonly used expression.

And the same goes for grammar. Here's a very simple thing that trips people up because, well, it just isn't logical.

Look at these examples:

• There is somebody/someone at the door. NOT are
• Nobody/no one loves me. NOT love
• Does anybody/anyone want to buy a cat? NOT do
• Everybody/Everyone has time now. NOT have

So, in grammar, the following words are all treated as singular:

everybody, somebody, anybody, nobody
everyone, someone, anyone, no one

'Everyone' suggests a large group - but grammatically it is 'it'. It may not make sense, but a rule's a rule.