Parenthetical compound (as well as / along with)
SAT glossary · Reading & Writing
Definition
'As well as', 'along with', 'in addition to', 'together with' are not conjunctions — they form parenthetical phrases and do not make a singular subject plural: 'The curator, as well as the conservators, was available.' The book flags this as feeling wrong to almost everyone and being nonetheless correct.
Parenthetical compound (as well as / along with) in plain English
Phrases like 'as well as,' 'along with,' 'in addition to,' and 'together with' might FEEL like they're connecting two things into one plural subject — but grammatically, they are NOT true conjunctions, and they do NOT make the subject plural. In 'The curator, as well as the conservators, was available,' the verb stays SINGULAR ('was,' not 'were'), because the true subject is just 'the curator' alone — everything after 'as well as' is treated as extra, parenthetical information, not an actual addition to the subject. This is specifically flagged as a rule that feels wrong to almost everybody on first read, yet is correct anyway.
Also called: as well as / along with
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