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Ansvarlig redaktør: Informasjonsdirektør Kåre Kongsnes Teknisk ansvarlig: aina.berg@adm.ntnu.no Oppdatert: 27. Feb 1997
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Singular subject takes a singular verb/predicate
< Plural subject takes a plural verb/predicate Unfortunately, it is not that easy. This column considers when singular verbs should be used.
1. Use a singular verb when there is agreement with one of these pronouns:
anybody/anyone/anything, everybody/everyone/everything, somebody/someone/something, nobody/no one/nothing either/neither, each (of) It is correct, however illogical it may seem, to write: «Everyone in the following countries is having problems with English grammar». The singular verb is used because agreement is with «everyone», not «countries». The cause of mistakes is often a plural noun coming between one of the above pronouns and what should be a singular verb.
Some examples of this are: «Everything in his answers impresses me». «Each of the students is doing well». «Neither of the experiments was successful». All these are correct.
2. Use a singular verb when referring to a unit of measurement or quantity:
Examples of this include: «Ten kilos is», «Fifty kilometres is», «20 metres per second is», «Twenty dollars is», «Two hundred thousand pounds is», «Fifty degrees is». In a similar way, if we are considering a grouping as one unit, the singular verb will be correct in: «Two billion people is a huge increase», «Five years is too long to wait».
3. Use a singular verb when referring to an uncountable noun:
Uncountable nouns refer to:
Names of languages: French, Italian, Hindi...
Names of subjects: Physics, chemistry...
Names of interests: Photography, skiing...
Names of solids: Coal, steel, limestone...
Names of liquids: Water, nitric acid...
Names of gases: Oxygen, methane...
Names of powders: Salt, sand...
Uncountable nouns do not take «a/an» in front, and are classified as U or NU in large English dictionaries.
The following uncountables often cause problems, because they always take a singular verb in English: Advice, Clothing, Damage, Equipment, Furniture, Gravel, Health, Heat, Information, Knowledge, Luggage, Machinery, Money, News, Progress, Research, Safety, Shipping, Traffic, Training, Transport, Travel, Work
It does not matter what you may feel is logical with the equivalent words in Norwegian. As English uncountables these words do not have a plural form and always take a singular verb. Thus it is incorrect to write or say: *two advices/damages/informations are. The correct usage is: Some advice/damage/information/ knowledge/ progress is.
4. Use a singular verb when referring to titles of works, books and films:
Even if the title of a work, book or film is plural, it is referred to as a single unit. «The Proceedings from the XYZ Conference is», «Great Expectations is», «Guys and Dolls is», «The Complete Works of William Shakespeare is».
(Part 2 will consider when to use plural nouns and Part 3 when both
singular and plurals are possible.)
m. - this can mean a lot, including: male, masculine, mass, metre, million, minute. Confusion is likely if you use «m.» in English as an abbreviation for the loan word «milliard». Use «bn.» or «billion».
N.N. - Nomen nescio (Latin abbreviation), infrequent in English. A suggestion is to use: «To be decided», or «NA»- Not available. Sports teams sometimes list players who are not definite as «A. N. Other».
no. - number, plural: «nos.».
pr. - pair, present, price, pronoun. The English word «per» has no
abbreviation unless it is in a phrase like «per annum» - pa. Or
«per cent» - pc.
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NTNU
Info.avd.
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Ansvarlig redaktør: Informasjonsdirektør Kåre Kongsnes Teknisk ansvarlig: aina.berg@adm.ntnu.no Oppdatert: 27. Feb 1997
|
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