Re: Are or is?

Buddhaheart — Sat, 27 Jan 2007 06:46:08 GMT

According to Answers.com, although "none" is etymologically derived from OE "one", it has been used as both a singular and a plural word from that time on as evident in the Bible, works of J. Dryden & E. Burke and many present day well known authors. Today "None" is considered to be shortened form of "not one; no one & not any" as any lexicons will tell you.

Depending on the context, it can take a singular or plural verb. This seems to be the view of most people. I wonât go too far to say thereâs only one correct form, i.e. the singular!

Examine the example "There is none left." If the context is I need another red pencil but not one is available, the singular verb makes sense. In "None of us are grammarians", the plural verb makes sense as "none of us" here means "not any of us". The plural sense (all of us) is implied. In Anonymous question, the plural form "are" is acceptable (IMO).

The indefinite pronoun is actually used as a plural subject more often than not. To the purist & strict theorist, this sounds odd and unsettling. Well, the English language, like any other isnâât really an exact science.

To add confusion, hereâre some more lexicon & grammar text examples:

"None have (has) arrived yet.ââ
"There is none of it left."
"None of the apples are rotten."

"None of my children has/have blonde hair."

"None of his poems are well known."

""None but fools have ever believed it."

Apostrophe

Matress — Thu, 19 Jan 2006 23:28:11 GMT

Apostrophe ( ' )

The apostrophe is used when leaving out a letter or number in a contraction, e.g. can't, wouldn't.
The apostrophe is used for omitted letters, e.g. rock 'n' roll, and for omitted numbers, e.g. the class of '72, the '20s.
The apostrophe is used for plurals of letter abbreviations with periods and single letters, e.g. p's and q's, two A's and four B's. Plurals of multi-letter combinations and plurals of numerals end in s with no apostrophe, e.g. VIPs, 1000s.
The possessive of singular nouns ending in s, including nouns ending in s, x, z, ch, or sh, is formed by adding 's, e.g. witness's affidavit. However, if the next word begins with s, then add only an apostrophe, e.g. witness' story.
The possessive of singular nouns not ending in s is formed by adding 's, e.g. VIP's seat, baby's food.
The apostrophe follows the s of a word with two sibilant sounds, e.g. Kansas', Moses'.
The apostrophe is added for the possessive of a noun that is plural in form but singular in meaning, e.g. mathematics' formulas.
The apostrophe follows the s for the possessive of plural nouns that end in s, e.g. girls' movies. For the possessive of a plural noun that does not end in s, add 's, e.g. women's rights.
For singular proper nouns, add only an apostrophe for the possessive, e.g. Achilles' heel.
No apostrophe is used for personal pronouns like hers, his, its, mine, ours, theirs, whose, your, yours. Indefinite pronouns require an apostrophe, e.g. one's lover. For other pronouns like another and others, follow the rule for singular and plural, e.g. another's and others'.
For joint possession, the 's is added to the word nearest the object of possession, e.g. Francis and Kucera's book.
The apostrophe is not used in names of organizations unless actually part of the legal name. The apostrophe is not used in plurals of numerals or multiple-letter combinations

Possessives

The possessive case of most nouns is formed by adding an apostrophe or an apostrophe and 's'.

Possessive for singular and plurals nouns not ending in an S or Z sound are formed by adding 's. Examples: horse's, alumni's
Possessive of singular nouns ending in an S or Z sound are usually formed by adding 's, e.g. hostess's, unless the next word begins with an S or Z sound.
Possessive of plural nouns ending in an S or Z sound are formed by adding only an apostrophe, e.g. churches'.
Possessive of plural nouns that are singular in meaning are formed by adding only an apostrophe, e.g. mathematics' rules. This is also true for a plural word in the formal name of a singular entity, e.g. General Motors' profits.
Possessive for noun that is the same in singular and plural - is formed as if it is plural, e.g. two deer's tracks, one corps' mess hall.
Possessive for singular proper noun ending in s - use only an apostrophe, e.g. Achilles' heel.
Possessive for pronouns -- only for a few, such as: another's, others', someone's. There are no separate forms for the possessive for: mine, ours, your, yours, his, hers, its, theirs, whose.
In a phrase: individual possession is shown with an 's added to each noun, e.g. 'Barbara's and Kyle's bicycles'; joint possession is shown by adding an apostrophe or 's to the last noun in the series, e.g. 'Barbara and Kyle's house'.
Be careful of descriptive phrases. Do not add an apostrophe to a word ending in 's' when it is used primarily in a descriptive sense, e.g. citizens band radio, writers guide.
An inanimate object can have a possessive use. It is treated in a personified sense, e.g. Time's cover.

Forum: New: Common English Questions and Answers - Archived Posts
Posted: Jun 27, 8:14 PM [GMT 1]
Post Subject: Re: Proper use of the apostrophe (Guest:clreilly)
Post author: Jason13_32

The apostrophe is used for two things only:

To signify two words joined: What is = What's

To signify possesion, here's the confussion:

Your bar would be "Harper's Bar" because there's only one "Harper".

If you were all nuns it would be "Nuns' Bar" - Many nuns - the apostrophe is used after the "s"

or

"At the zoo, the children were most interested in seeing the lions' den." - Many lions

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Re: Are or is?

Apostrophe