Quantity or Quantities

Question

Does the phrase "a quantity of"( quantities of ) or the noun behind it decide the singular or plural of the verb?

Cobra panda 120 · Accepted Answer

'A quantity of' or 'quantities of' both indicate any quantity of 1 to infinity. One is a quantity.

BillJ · Answer

Barbara Hallanger
Does the phrase "a quantity of"( quantities of ) or the noun behind it decide the singular or plural of the verb?

To use your words, it's the 'noun behind it'.

With non-count quantificational nouns like "lot", "number", "deal", "quantity", "dozens" etc., it's not the head of the noun phrase that determines the verb-form, but the noun (called the 'oblique') functioning as complement of the preposition "of".

Some of these nouns can take both singular and plural obliques, while others select only one kind or the other. Traditionally it was said that nouns like deal, bit, smidgen and quantity could only select singular obliques:

[1] A great deal of work was done. [OK]

[2] A great deal of faults were found. [ungrammatical]

[3] A large quantity of gold was found. [OK]

[4] A large quantity of cigarettes were stolen. [ungrammatical]

But quantity is anomalous in this group in that plural obliques like the one in [4] are common and acceptable to most people.

In addition, quantity differs from deal by virtue of being a count noun: Large quantities of drugs were discovered by the police.

AlpheccaStars · Answer

Barbara Hallanger"a quantity of"

The sheer quantity of negative comments on this appointment is an embarrassment.
A large quantity of pills was found in her possession.
A considerable quantity of unused meat and produce is thrown away.

Small quantities of gold are found in this type of rock.
Vast quantities of opium are produced in the center of the Helmand River Valley.

Quantity or Quantities

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