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Windyjolt Posted 16 years ago
Grammar
Sv agreement
A group of prospectors.......sleeping in the tent but a dozen of them.........waiting for the dawn to break. a)was/was b)were/were c) were/was d)was/were
what do you guys it should be? i would appercaite it if you could explain me the answer.
what do you guys it should be? i would appercaite it if you could explain me the answer.
Top answer
In British English, words like "group", "team" etc. can take either singular or plural verbs, depending on whether the thing is viewed as a single entity or as a collection of individual entities. ".
- In British English, words like "group", "team" etc.
- can take either singular or plural verbs, depending on whether the thing is viewed as a single entity or as a collection of individual entities.
- ".
- As I understand it, American English typically prefers the singular verb in these cases, but an AmE speaker will have to confirm for this particular this sentence.
- , we always use the plural verb.
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8 Answers
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In British English, words like "group", "team" etc. can take either singular or plural verbs, depending on whether the thing is viewed as a single entity or as a collection of individual entities. In this instance, I would more naturally say "A group of prospectors were...". As I understand it, American English typically prefers the singular verb in these cases, but an AmE speaker will hav
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Hello windyjolt
A group of prospectors was/were sleeping in the tent, but a dozen of them were waiting for.....
Group is a collective noun here, so you can use a singular verb (was) OR a plural verb (were). Both are correct. The choice depends on whether you see 'group' as a single unit, or as individual persons.
A dozen
A group of prospectors was/were sleeping in the tent, but a dozen of them were waiting for.....
Group is a collective noun here, so you can use a singular verb (was) OR a plural verb (were). Both are correct. The choice depends on whether you see 'group' as a single unit, or as individual persons.
A dozen
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yeah that's right but for instance you can say "a pair of glasses"; in this example you use pair instead of two i thought it was sth like that that's why i thought it should be was. it's a little bit confusing.
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windyjolt
yeah that's right but for instance you can say "a pair of glasses"; in this example you use pair instead of two i thought it was sth like that that's why i thought it should be was. it's a little bit confusing.
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the thing that is confusing whether it should be was or were not your replyies.Im saying that a pair can be used instead of two why a dozen shouldnt be used instead of 12. A pair requires singular but you say a dozen needs to be plural.
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windyjoltA pair requires singular but you say a dozen needs to be plural.
In your original sentence I would say "... but a pair of them were waiting", so there's no difference.
When a pair is considered a single entity it may take a singular verb: "This pair of shoes is too expensive". Despite my original statement, the same is tru
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windyjoltPair can be used with a singular or plural verb. The singular is used if 'pair' denotes
the thing that is confusing whether it should be was or were not your replyies.Im saying that a pair can be used instead of two why a dozen shouldnt be used instead of 12. A pair requires singular but you say a dozen needs to be plural.
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