Singular or Plural

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Am I right that one would say "Its high running costs are a disadvantage", but "A disadvantage is its high running costs"? I sometimes get confused because in German you would say "Ein Nachteil sind (plural!) die hohen Betriebskosten", even though the subject is singular. I would appreciate your expert comments, native speakers of English. Greetings,
Ho

Usenet · Accepted Answer

[nq:1]Am I right that one would say "Its high running costs are a disadvantage", but "A disadvantage is its high running costs"?[/nq]
Yes. Did you notice you could change it to "cost" and remove the problem?
[nq:1]I sometimes get confused because in German you would say "Ein Nachteil sind (plural!) die hohen Betriebskosten", even though the subject is singular. I would appreciate your expert comments, native speakers of English. Greetings,[/nq]
Someone from Sweden asked about this, about a month ago. I gave these examples:
[nq:2]the verb agrees with the subject. Here are some more ... words were a question. Holidays are a time for sharing.[/nq]
I didn't need examples then of going from singular to plural, but I can supply them, too, if need be.

Best Donna Richoux

Usenet · Answer

[nq:1]Am I right that one would say "Its high running costs are a disadvantage", but "A disadvantage is its high running costs"? I sometimes get confused because in German you would say "Ein Nachteil sind (plural!) die hohen Betriebskosten", even though the subject is singular.[/nq]
I think what would be said here is that in the German sentence, the subject isn't singular; rather, the subject is plural but comes after the verb. In English we don't have the option of putting the subject after the verb in this sentence, so whichever noun phrase precedes the verb is the subject and is the one the verb must agree with.

-Aaron J. Dinkin
Dr. Whom

Usenet · Answer

"Donna Richoux" schrieb::
[nq:2]Am I right that one would say "Its high running costs are adisadvantage", but "A disadvantage is its high running costs"?[/nq]
[nq:1]Yes. Did you notice you could change it to "cost" and remove the problem?[/nq]
I thought "running costs" were always plural.
Ho

Usenet · Answer

"Aaron J. Dinkin" schrieb:
[nq:2]in German you would say "Ein Nachteil sind (plural!) die hohen Betriebskosten", even though the subject is singular.[/nq]
[nq:1]I think what would be said here is that in the German sentence, the subject isn't singular; rather, the subject ... sentence, so whichever noun phrase precedes the verb is the subject and is the one the verb must agree with.[/nq]
Yes, I think you are right. Strangely enough, I didn't see it that way.

Thank you,
Ho

Usenet · Answer

"Holger Freese" (Email Removed) wrote on 11 Jan 2004:
[nq:1]"Donna Richoux" schrieb:: disadvantage",[/nq]
[nq:2]Yes. Did you notice you could change it to "cost" and remove the problem?[/nq]
[nq:1]I thought "running costs" were always plural.[/nq]
Yes, they are, but you can make the noun singular by dropping the /-s/ and then think of "running cost" as "overhead", a singular that includes all operating costs.
For some things, eg a refirgerator, the "running cost" is simply the cost of the electricity required to run it 24 hours per day. The difference in running cost between a frost-free fridge and an old-style one that needs defrosting every few months can be substantial. In the former case (frost-free fridge) case, "running cost" would be better than "running costs".
But if you are talking about something that has more than type of cost associated with it, eg an automobile, then "running costs" is probably better. There is nothing wrong with saying something like "The cost to run an older second-hand car is generally much higher than to run a new economy car", so unless someone feels it's not idiomatic to say "A disadvantage is its high running cost" about something that has many different types of costs attached, I don't see a problem with it.

Franke: EFL teacher & medical editor.

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