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Guest Posted 21 years ago
Grammar
Singular or plural?
Which form of "be" wouid you use?
A: There is/are? a desk, a lamp, a chair and a sofa in the room.
B: There is/are? a desk, a lamp, three chairs and a sofa in the room.
C: There is/are? four chairs, a desk, a lamp and a sofa in the room.
Many thanks to you!
A: There is/are? a desk, a lamp, a chair and a sofa in the room.
B: There is/are? a desk, a lamp, three chairs and a sofa in the room.
C: There is/are? four chairs, a desk, a lamp and a sofa in the room.
Many thanks to you!
Top answer
There is a desk, a lamp, a chair, and a sofa in the room. (Each item is in the room) There are desks, lamps, chairs, and sofas in the room. (The items are in the room)
- There is a desk, a lamp, a chair, and a sofa in the room.
- (Each item is in the room) There are desks, lamps, chairs, and sofas in the room.
- (The items are in the room)
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8 Answers
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There is a desk, a lamp, a chair, and a sofa in the room. (Each item is in the room)
There are desks, lamps, chairs, and sofas in the room. (The items are in the room)
There are desks, lamps, chairs, and sofas in the room. (The items are in the room)
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?Thank you Casi for your examples. I have a few more questions about sentences B and C. In your sample sentences, nouns are uniformly singular or plural.
In B and C, some nouns are in plural and some are in singlar. The singluar nouns "lamp" and "desk" follow the verb "be" in B; while in C, the plural noun "chairs" follow the verb "be". I would like to know the form of "be" to be used in
In B and C, some nouns are in plural and some are in singlar. The singluar nouns "lamp" and "desk" follow the verb "be" in B; while in C, the plural noun "chairs" follow the verb "be". I would like to know the form of "be" to be used in
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You're welcome.
The verb agrees in number with the first noun, like this,
B: There is a desk, a lamp, three chairs and a sofa in the room.
C: There are four chairs, a desk, a lamp and a sofa in the room.
The verb agrees in number with the first noun, like this,
B: There is a desk, a lamp, three chairs and a sofa in the room.
C: There are four chairs, a desk, a lamp and a sofa in the room.
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CasiYou're welcome.Can this be right?
The verb agrees in number with the first noun, like this,
B: There is a desk, a lamp, three chairs and a sofa in the room.
C: There are four chairs, a desk, a lamp and a sofa in the room.
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AvangiCan this be right?It can. In the first case, many writers on style and grammar accept either the singular or the plural. The second case has to be plural, however.
CJ
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