There was/ or there were/ one set of...
Hello,
Please tell me which sentence is correct:
1/ there was one set of footprints in the sand
2/ there were one set of footprints in the sand
(When I read the poem "Footprints in the Sand" - by Mary Stevenson, I wonder why this author wrote: "there were one set of footprints" in her poem - line 5)
Thank you!
http://www.footprints-inthe-sand.com/index.php?page=Poem/Poem.php
http://www.footprints-inthe-sand.com/index.php?page=Main.php
Top answer
There was / were one set of footprints in the sand . ". Thus the verb should also be the singular "was".
- There was / were one set of footprints in the sand .
- ".
- Thus the verb should also be the singular "was".
- I can't be certain, but I suspect that for reasons best known to herself, Mary Stevenson employed 'poetic license' in using the plural "were".
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There was / were one set of footprints in the sand.
Grammatically, in constructions with existential "there", the verb agrees with the displaced subject, which in this case is the singular "One set ...". Thus the verb should also be the singular "was".
I can't be certain, but I suspect that for reasons best known to herself, Mary Stevenson employed 'poetic lic
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