Why is it "gives" not "give"?
Native speaker’s answer
Rebecca
The sentence in question is "gives me self-esteem to have a nice rear." "It" has been omitted from the beginning of the sentence, which can be read as "it gives me self-esteem to have a nice rear." The verb form of "to give" that is used in the sentence has to agree with "it," which is why "gives" is correct and not "give."