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Maple Posted 20 years ago
Grammar

of in "surpluses of food", "pieces of bread"

Those surpluses of food were disposed of by them.

Should "surpluses of food" be treated as a plural noun?

Since a preposition is used to indicate the relation of other words, Could you please tell me what relationship is indicated by “of” in “surpluses of food” and “two pieces ofbread”?Emotion: rolleyes

E.g.

(1) in “the rungs of a ladder” , of means “Belonging or connected to”

(2) in “a person of honor”, of means “Possessing; having”

(3) in “a basket of groceries”, of means “Containing or carrying”
  

Top answer

" Yes. Bread that is in surplus. Pieces made of bread.

— Inchoateknowledge

  • " Yes.
  • Bread that is in surplus.
  • Pieces made of bread.
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17 Answers
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"Should "surpluses of food" be treated as a plural noun?" Yes.
Bread that is in surplus.
Pieces made of bread.
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I'm not sure that surplus should be in the plural. If you had multiple sites, and each had too much food, then you would have a case where the plural was appropriate. But if you have only one place and you had too much food, then you have A surplus. While the plural is possible, the singular is more common - but without context, I can't say which on is correct.
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Grammar Geek worte

<<I'm not sure that surplus should be in the plural. If you had multiple sites, and each had too much food, then you would have a case where the plural was appropriate. But if you have only one place and you had too much food, then you have A surplus. While the plural is possible, the singular is more common - but without context, I can't say which on is correct.
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Hi! Thank you for your responses, here’re some examples:

(1) Surpluses of food can be sold for cash. (Example sentence in an Oxford’s dictionary)

I googled, and found in http://www.cbpp.org/7-18-00bud.htm , the following sentences:

(2) T
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Grammarian-boti don't understand why should someone use plural for surples if its placed at different locations. I think we can use a singular by the virtue of notional agreement even when we have multiple locations.

GB

I agree. I would suggest "each surplus of food" (probably omitting "of food"). Don't like the plural at all.
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Thanks lot to you four great respondents!

After reading Barbara, Grammarian-bot and milky’s comments, I formed an impression that the main stream of native speakers tend to use the singular form of surplus though some dictionaries and some official documents do suggest the plural form of it is also acceptable.

That’s the best answer I can get since I have observed arguments on t
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Hello Maple

Let's see what Wikipedia says:

Depending on the language, specific varieties of genitive-noun–main-noun relationships may include:
  • possession (see ):
    • inalienable possession
    • alienable possession
    • relationship indicated by the noun being modified
  • composition (se
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MapleThose surpluses of food were disposed of by them.

Should "surpluses of food" be treated as a plural noun?

Since a preposition is used to indicate the relation of other words, Could you please tell me what relationship is indicated by “of” in “surpluses of food” and “two pieces ofbread”?
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<# 1 - Not sure what that means>

The part of the ladder called "the rungs" (the things you step on when you climb.)
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Hi! Feathers!

I’m very interested in the links you given.

But sadly I couldn’t open / , “can’t find the server”

Still, they’re heuristic comments made by you.

Thank you very much!
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