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Pter Posted 17 years ago
Grammar
I have no comment / comments
I've heard that either the singular or plural can be used after "no" depending on the context. For example, "he has no wife" but not "he has no wives". However, I am still confused about which is correct?
A1. I have no comment.
A2. I have no comments.
B1. I have no comment on the paper.
B2. I have no comments on the paper.
What about the following?
C1. He has no children.
C2. He has no child.
D1. I have no problem.
D2. I have no problems.
E1. I have no problem with the suggested arrangement.
E2. I have no problems with the suggested arrangement.
Is it true that plural is more common if the context is not very clear?
A1. I have no comment.
A2. I have no comments.
B1. I have no comment on the paper.
B2. I have no comments on the paper.
What about the following?
C1. He has no children.
C2. He has no child.
D1. I have no problem.
D2. I have no problems.
E1. I have no problem with the suggested arrangement.
E2. I have no problems with the suggested arrangement.
Is it true that plural is more common if the context is not very clear?
Top answer
I think the plural is usually the better choice if the context is not clear. It also depends on the question: If it is assumed that you have just one, then use the singular. g.
- I think the plural is usually the better choice if the context is not clear.
- It also depends on the question: If it is assumed that you have just one, then use the singular.
- g.
- Is your house near here?
- I have no house, I live on the street.
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8 Answers
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I think the plural is usually the better choice if the context is not clear.
It also depends on the question: If it is assumed that you have just one, then use the singular. e.g. Is your house near here? I have no house, I live on the street.
If it is assumed that you have more than one, then use plural. e.g. Did you have good comments on your post? I have no comments. (Ther
It also depends on the question: If it is assumed that you have just one, then use the singular. e.g. Is your house near here? I have no house, I live on the street.
If it is assumed that you have more than one, then use plural. e.g. Did you have good comments on your post? I have no comments. (Ther
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Thanks, Gordon. You examples are very good. We would normally ask "Do you have any comments?" instead of "Do you have any comment?" So, logically, "I have no comments" should be more appropriate. However, the number of hits for "I have no comment" is more than double that of "I have no comments" in Google. We all know that the hit counts in Google doesn't mean correctness, but I am still con
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Pter-
Usually, we ask "Do you have any comment?", so I believe the Googlificence (magnificence of Google) has been demonstrated once again. Here, comment is a synonym for response.
Usually, we ask "Do you have any comment?", so I believe the Googlificence (magnificence of Google) has been demonstrated once again. Here, comment is a synonym for response.
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Hi Gordon,
I see. You mean "comment" is used here as an uncountable noun.
The question is "Googlificence" also shows that "Do you have any comments" is six times more common than "Do you have any comment" (557,000 hits vs 82,500 hits). Also, don't we expect to receive "comments" when we ask people to comment?
I see. You mean "comment" is used here as an uncountable noun.
The question is "Googlificence" also shows that "Do you have any comments" is six times more common than "Do you have any comment" (557,000 hits vs 82,500 hits). Also, don't we expect to receive "comments" when we ask people to comment?
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In the internet world, yes, we expect multiple comments. In the newspapers, I think they expect, or hope for at least one. Actually reporters don't directly say "Do you have a comment?", they usually ask "What do you think about...?"
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Well, then, "I have no comment" is not actually an answer to the question. It is just another way of saying "I decline to answer your question." Is my understanding correct?
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Hi all,
How about "When comments or work has been identified as unsatisfactory,.."? Should we use 'have' instead?
How about "When comments or work has been identified as unsatisfactory,.."? Should we use 'have' instead?
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