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Discussion Groups / English Usage / January 2008is/are usage question
Hi everyone, I'd like to ask another question about the correct usage of is/are in a sentence I came across. I was wondering if the following is sentence is grammatically correct by using "is" after the very discuss, or if it would be preferable to use "are"? While it seems that "is" seems to roll off the tongue better, so to speak, I do wonder if using "are" would actually be the correct usage considering that "two things" is a plural subject. ----------- The two things I want to discuss is how you are feeling today and the pills you've been taking. ....... Which is actually correct here, is or are...or it doesn't matter? It sounds better with "is" but I wonder if using "are" is actually correct? thanks > Hi everyone, > [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > sounds better with "is" but I wonder if using "are" is actually > correct? Only "are" is correct. The subject ("the two things") is obviously plural, and the predicate ("how you are feeling and the pills you've been taking") is compound, which means that it is also grammatically plural. There's no justification for "is" in grammar, usage, or idiom. Also, to this native speaker of American English "is' sounds completely wrong. If a child of mine were to utter it, I'd correct them instantly. If you think "is" sounds better, you need to retrain your ear.  SignatureBob Lieblich, AmEclectic And that are that > janetje...@gmail.com wrote: > [quoted text clipped - 25 lines] > completely wrong. If a child of mine were to utter it, I'd correct > them instantly. Here is a perfect for using "it" nstead of the hidiocity ("hideous" + "idiocy") "them". > If you think "is" sounds better, you need to retrain your ear. And if you think that "them" sounds anything like decent English in this context, you've been spending too much time in AUE and need to retrain your ear, Your Honor. -- Franke: EFL teacher, medical editor, & your humble servant. Cynical by nature, by habit, and by choice. Native speaker of American English; posting from Taiwan. "It has come to my attention that my opinions are not universally shared; ergo, they are not in the public domain." Anymouse. >> janetje...@gmail.com wrote: >> [quoted text clipped - 21 lines] >> plural. There's no justification for "is" in grammar, usage, or >> idiom. I agree. >> Also, to this native speaker of American English "is' sounds >> completely wrong. If a child of mine were to utter it, I'd correct >> them instantly. > > Here is a perfect for using "it" nstead of the hidiocity ("hideous" + > "idiocy") "them". Ah, but... "If a child of mine were to utter it, I'd correct it instantly." See the problem? Otherwise, I agree with you: child = it. Adrian > >> janetje...@gmail.com wrote: > >> [quoted text clipped - 38 lines] > > Otherwise, I agree with you: child = it. That may have been Franke's point -- by correcting the utterance instead of the child, you avoid the need for "them." Had I thought of "it," I'd definitely have gone with it. Otherwise, I'm not sure there's any solution short of a full rewrite, and I was too lazy for that. One "gotcha" for Franke. SignatureBob Lieblich, AmEclectic Suitably chastened (if not chaste) > > >> janetje...@gmail.com wrote: > [quoted text clipped - 44 lines] > there's any solution short of a full rewrite, and I was too lazy for > that. I saw the ambiguity of "it" = "child" or "the utterance" and decided that the ambiguity was also perfect for this context. I have argued many times that "it" is *for me* an unobjectionable pronoun when the person referred to is totally unknown. I think it would be easy enough to rewrite: "If a child of mine were to utter it, I'd correct the child instantly." OR "If any of my children were to utter it, I'd correct {them / it [No longer ambiguous]} instantly." > One "gotcha" for Franke. -- Franke: EFL teacher & medical editor. Cynical by nature, by habit, and by choice. Native speaker of American English; posting from Taiwan. "It has come to my attention that my opinions are not universally shared; ergo, they are not in the public domain." Anymouse. > . . . wonder if using "are" would actually be the correct usage considering > that "two things" is a plural subject. > ----------- > The two things I want to discuss is how you are feeling today and > the pills you've been taking. Your comment is correct. 1. The rule is that verbs must agree in number (singular or plural) with their subject (singular or plural.) 2. In your example, the subject is plural therefore the verb form must be plural. 2b. The supposed claims of euphony may not override rule 1. SignatureDon Phillipson Carlsbad Springs (Ottawa, Canada) |
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