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Rami1511 Posted 12 years ago
Grammar
Collective nouns
Hello
I have a question about collective nouns ( e.g A couple, An army, A family, a group, a team )
Should they be used as singular nouns or plural nouns ?
for example: should I say 'A french couple live downstairs' or ' A french couple lives downstairs' ?
should I say 'My family lives with me' or 'My family live with me' ?
should I say ' US army is powerful or are powerful'
about the words ( ?armed forces ) it is actually meaning is army ( one team ) should I use "is" or "are" with it ?
I have a question about collective nouns ( e.g A couple, An army, A family, a group, a team )
Should they be used as singular nouns or plural nouns ?
for example: should I say 'A french couple live downstairs' or ' A french couple lives downstairs' ?
should I say 'My family lives with me' or 'My family live with me' ?
should I say ' US army is powerful or are powerful'
about the words ( ?armed forces ) it is actually meaning is army ( one team ) should I use "is" or "are" with it ?
Top answer
Hi I think that you'll see either plural or singular used, but Americans usually prefer the singular. I'd say - the Government are wrong about that. The couple downstairs are having an argument.
- Hi I think that you'll see either plural or singular used, but Americans usually prefer the singular.
- I'd say - the Government are wrong about that.
- The couple downstairs are having an argument.
- Why are the army in Afghanistan?
- But I believe that, in the US, they'd tend to go for the singular You can choose either - depending on where you are!
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2 Answers
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Hi
I think that you'll see either plural or singular used, but Americans usually prefer the singular. I'd say - the Government are wrong about that. The couple downstairs are having an argument. Why are the army in Afghanistan?
But I believe that, in the US, they'd tend to go for the singular
You can choose either - depending on where you are!
Dave
I think that you'll see either plural or singular used, but Americans usually prefer the singular. I'd say - the Government are wrong about that. The couple downstairs are having an argument. Why are the army in Afghanistan?
But I believe that, in the US, they'd tend to go for the singular
You can choose either - depending on where you are!
Dave
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A French couple lives downstairs.
My family lives with me.
The U.S. Army is powerful.
All three would be fine in American English.
My family lives with me.
The U.S. Army is powerful.
All three would be fine in American English.
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