1. The beach or the forest preserve (is, are) a good place for a picnic.

2. The sounds from the swimming pool and the scent of the honeysuckle (is, are) signs of summer.
3. Oats and barley (grow, grows) well in sandy soil.
4. Many a careless driver and pedestrian (has, have) been responsible for a serious accident.
5. Neither the actors nor the director (has, have) been hired.
6. The fire blazing in the fireplace and the cat sleeping in front of it (make, makes) / a charming scene.
7. Chicken and dumplings (taste, tastes) good on a cold evening.
8. Once bitter enemies, the Serbians and the Croatians (was, were) forced to become fellow citizens when Yugoslavia was created.

1. The beach or the forest preserve is a good place for a picnic.

2. The sounds from the swimming pool and the scent of the honeysuckle are signs of summer.
3. Oats and barley grow well in sandy soil.
4. Many a careless driver and pedestrian has been responsible for a serious accident.
5. Neither the actors nor the director have been hired.
6. The fire blazing in the fireplace and the cat sleeping in front of it make a charming scene.
7. Chicken and dumplings taste good on a cold evening.
8. Once bitter enemies, the Serbians and the Croatians were forced to become fellow citizens when Yugoslavia was created.

1. The beach or the forest preserve is a good place for a picnic.

2. The sounds from the swimming pool and the scent of the honeysuckle are signs of summer.
3. Oats and barley grow well in sandy soil.
4. Many a careless driver and pedestrian has been responsible for a serious accident.
5. Neither the actors nor the director has been hired.
6. The fire blazing in the fireplace and the cat sleeping in front of it make a charming scene.
7. Chicken and dumplings taste good on a cold evening.
8. Once bitter enemies, the Serbians and the Croatians were forced to become fellow citizens when Yugoslavia was created.

1. In this sentence, "the beach or the forest preserve" is a compound subject, indicating that there are two options for a picnic. Since there are multiple subjects, we use the plural verb form "are." Therefore, the correct answer is "are."

2. Similar to the previous sentence, "the sounds from the swimming pool and the scent of the honeysuckle" is a compound subject. Again, we have multiple subjects, so we use the plural verb form "are." Therefore, the correct answer is "are."
3. In this sentence, "oats and barley" are two separate items that are plural. We use the plural verb form "grow" to match the subjects. Therefore, the correct answer is "grow."
4. The sentence states "many a careless driver and pedestrian," which implies multiple drivers and pedestrians being responsible for accidents. However, "many a" is an idiomatic expression that treats the subject as singular. Therefore, we use the singular verb form "has." Therefore, the correct answer is "has."
5. The sentence includes the phrase "neither the actors nor the director," which forms a compound subject. In this case, "neither...nor" creates a negative construction indicating that both subjects are singular. Therefore, we use the singular verb form "has." Therefore, the correct answer is "has."
6. This sentence includes two different things - "the fire blazing in the fireplace" and "the cat sleeping in front of it." Since we have two singular subjects, we use the plural verb form "make" to match them. Therefore, the correct answer is "make."
7. The phrase "chicken and dumplings" is a compound subject, with both items referring to a plural form. Therefore, we use the plural verb form "taste." Therefore, the correct answer is "taste."
8. The sentence discusses "the Serbians and the Croatians." Since we have plural subjects, we use the plural verb form "were." Therefore, the correct answer is "were."