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S.P.I. Posted 15 years ago
Grammar
Either + singular/plural noun?
Hi there,
I have been trying to figure out the rules for using pronouns right after the word either but I can't get a clear picture. Here's an example:
1) You will find a cup at either ends of the table.
2) You will find a cup at either end of the table.
1 Sounds grammatically correct but I am not sure if 2 is wrong either.
When I am in doubt about a particular sentence, I google it with double quotes at either ends of the line. If I get sufficient hits (10 pages or so) I take that as confirmation of the sentences gramatical legitimacy. However googling "either ends of the" and "either end of the" seems to return the same number of hits, which has put my 'testing' method under a shadow of doubt
Anyway, I would really appreciate it if someone could shed some light on the issue. Thanks.
I have been trying to figure out the rules for using pronouns right after the word either but I can't get a clear picture. Here's an example:
1) You will find a cup at either ends of the table.
2) You will find a cup at either end of the table.
1 Sounds grammatically correct but I am not sure if 2 is wrong either.
When I am in doubt about a particular sentence, I google it with double quotes at either ends of the line. If I get sufficient hits (10 pages or so) I take that as confirmation of the sentences gramatical legitimacy. However googling "either ends of the" and "either end of the" seems to return the same number of hits, which has put my 'testing' method under a shadow of doubt
Anyway, I would really appreciate it if someone could shed some light on the issue. Thanks.
Top answer
'Either' is singular when speaking of a total of 2 entities, so this is correct: You will find a cup at either end of the table. When I am in doubt about a particular sentence, I google it with double quotes at either ends of the line. -- That is WAY too lenient!
- 'Either' is singular when speaking of a total of 2 entities, so this is correct: You will find a cup at either end of the table.
- When I am in doubt about a particular sentence, I google it with double quotes at either ends of the line.
- -- That is WAY too lenient!
- Google will never guarantee grammatical legitimacy, but any reliability at all should not be considered for fewer than 100,000 total hits or so.
- edu /]COCA[/url].
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1 Answers
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'Either' is singular when speaking of a total of 2 entities, so this is correct: You will find a cup at either end of the table.
When I am in doubt about a particular sentence, I google it with double quotes at either ends of the line. If I get sufficient hits (10 pages or so) I take that as confirmation of the sentences gramatical legitimacy.-- That is WAY too
When I am in doubt about a particular sentence, I google it with double quotes at either ends of the line. If I get sufficient hits (10 pages or so) I take that as confirmation of the sentences gramatical legitimacy.-- That is WAY too
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