Subject-verb agreement: Is or are?

Question

Hi,I just read the following sentence in a report and have a doubt about the verb "is" after the word "which." Shouldn't it be "are" as two nouns are involved -- designers and design cluster?The first strategy is to develop excellent and globally competitive designers and a design cluster which is not only capable of servicing worldwide clients but are instrumental in enabling our enterprises to gain a competitive edge through design.Thanks!

Cool Breeze · Accepted Answer

Are is used later in the sentence: ... but are instrumental... Replacing is with are won't solve everything, though, as there is a grammatical problem with the relative clause: which cannot refer to people, and designers are obviously people. We cannot say: designers which are capable of... It should be: designers who/that are capable of... In other words, use that instead of which. That can refer to both things and people.

CB

Sam1947 · Answer

I would rewrite it as follows:

The first strategy is to develop excellent and globally competitive designers for a design cluster that is not only capable of servicing worldwide clients but that would be instrumental in enbling ...."

They've mixed something that they are going to do (develop the designers and the design cluster) with a tense (are instrumental) that indicates it is already happening.

That should be used in place of which, which would need a comma before it. Is is the verb to go with design cluster, so having it singular is ok, and which is also ok as opposed to who, because the subject of that clause is design cluster, not designers.

I thinking changing and to for in the "designers FOR a design cluster" makes that more apparent.

Namrata Arora · Answer

Before I start commenting on the Grammar, I want to be sure of the context in which the sentence is framed. What is to be developed?

Caliveexcellent and globally competitive designers and a design cluster

excellent and globally competitive designers
a design cluster
Both of the above

DESIGN CLUSTER could also imply a group of people working on the same thing or at the same place

I'll pick up the third option:
The first strategy is to develop a design cluster consisting of excellent and globally competitive designers, who are not only capable of servicing worldwide clients but are also instrumental in enabling our enterprises to gain a competitive edge through design.

The sentence can be framed in a number of ways. Here's another:
The first strategy is to develop excellent and globally competitive designers as well as a design cluster which is not only capable of servicing worldwide clients but ~~are~~ is also instrumental in enabling our enterprises to gain a competitive edge through design.

I hope this helps.

Anonymous · Answer

Thanks CB, Sam and Namrata for your insights. Yes, there are many more problems with this sentence than just the issue of is vs are.

Subject-verb agreement: Is or are?

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