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Lcchang Posted 13 years ago
Grammar

Tag Questions

I found the following sentences in a grammar book.

Everybody is coming, aren't they?
No one called me, did they?
Nothing smells sweeter than a rose, does it?

In the third sentence, a singular subject is used for the tag question.
Can anyone know how to determine the singular or plural subject in this case?
  

Top answer

Nothing = No (not) one thing. It is always singular. Nothing will convince me that Martha was lying.

— AlpheccaStars

  • Nothing = No (not) one thing.
  • It is always singular.
  • Nothing will convince me that Martha was lying.
  • I have nothing in my pockets.
  • Nothing smells sweeter than a rose, does it?
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5 Answers
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Nothing = No (not) one thing. It is always singular.

Nothing will convince me that Martha was lying.
I have nothing in my pockets.

Nothing smells sweeter than a rose, does it?
A honeysuckle smells sweeter than a rose, doesn't it?

(Speaking of art)
Nothing costs more than a Picasso, does it?
A Rembrandt costs more than a van Gogh, doesn't it?
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Thank you, but could you tell me how the other two are plural?
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Everybody is coming, aren't they?

What does everybody mean?

Suppose I am in school, and there are 30 students in my English class. Everybody (in the class) is coming to see Hamlet, a play by Shakespeare. How many are coming? Just one, or more than one?

So here, the pronoun is grammatically singular (Everybody is...) but refers to many different individuals.
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I see. Thanks a lot.Emotion: big smile
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great thread, I'm saving it! Emotion: smile
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