Possessive its for plural subject

Question

Hi everyone,I'm not a native speaker, but I've studied English for many years. At any rate, I'm struggling to decide whether I should treat "variables" and "functions" as inanimate objects or living entities. FYI, in programming, a variable is a "container" of data ,e.g., a number, and a function is a piece of code that carries out a task, e.g., multiplying numbers.I have the following paragraph:Variables can be used to store data. ... They can be called from within a function. ... Their values can be later updated.Questions:1. Should I use it and its instead of they and their?2. If instead of variables (plural) I wrote variable (singular), would I use it and its?3. In my original sentence I wrote "variables can store data" instead of "variables can be used to store data" and then changed it. I want to confirm if I can use both or just the second one.4. Can I use the possessive form on the word variable? (e.g., a variable's name)5. Can functions be treated as living entities? (e.g., my function fetched data)

Clive · Accepted Answer

Variables can be used to store data. ... They can be called from within a function. ... Their values can be later updated.

Questions:

1. Should I use it and its instead of they and their? No

2. If instead of variables (plural) I wrote a variable (singular), would I use it and its? Yes

3. In my original sentence I wrote "variables can store data" instead of "variables can be used to store data" and then changed it. I want to confirm if I can use both or just the second one. Both are acceptable

4. Can I use the possessive form on the word variable? (e.g., a variable's name) Yes

5. Can functions be treated as living entities? (e.g., my function fetched data) OK. But don't say good-night to them when you go home!

Clive

CalifJim · Answer

apple cobraI'm struggling to decide whether I should treat "variables" and "functions" as inanimate objects or living entities.

For the purposes of your questions later on in your post it makes no difference.

More than one inanimate object is "they" or "them" or "their", etc.
More than one living entity is also "they" or "them" or "their", etc.

These differ only in the singular: "he" or "she" for people and the higher animals; "it" for lower animals and inanimate objects. These pronouns ("he", "she", "it") are never used as plurals.

As for variable's name, it's correct grammatically, but in the literature of computing it is almost always expressed as a compound noun, i.e., variable name.

CJ

Possessive its for plural subject

Top answer

Get the Weekly English Kit 📬

Related Questions