By Plurals, Genitives

Re: corpus/corpora - ethymology

Hi,The short answer would be: such question are dangerous, try and learn them by heart! The long answer is: in Latin, they have different inflected forms because they belong to two different "classes": 2nd declension and 3rd declension:Fungus (same inflected forms in...

Re: investors fund/investors' funds/investors funds/investor funds

.The nature of the organism does not apply here; that is a question for the use of the 's genitive vs the of-genitive (the girl's feet vs the feet of the table)205,000 for "investor funds"209,000 for "investors funds"209,000 for "investors' funds"....

Re: Britney Spears

Grammar Geek wrote:And what about their mother? The Spearses' mother? These plural-possessive-ending-in-S nouns seem to have half a dozen "correct" ways of writing them. Hi GGThis intrigues me. Could you please tell me what other suggestions style guides have offered as correct plurals and...

Re: genitive question

Believer wrote:I think there is such a thing as the "genitive of purpose" and a typical example of it is "a girl's school," in which the phrase "girl's school" identifies or tells us that it is a school only girls attend. Hi BelieverIf more than one girl attend the school, the plural genitive...

Re: a question on double possessives and one on the other

Mister Micawber wrote:One parent, one friend, one house: One of my parents' friend's house.If anyone would care to double-check these, I'd be obliged. Now I have to go and lie down for just a little while...Hi Mr MicawberJust one correction: One of my parent's friend's house. However, since...

Re: Prepositions

Hi KiitixayThe preposition is in or at in the basic expressions only:He came in the morning / in the afternoon / in the evening.You can see the stars at night.Nothing exceptional happened at noon.A plural is possible as well: It often rains in the mornings.When you deviate from the basic...

Re: Is it Mr Jones's briefcase or Mr Jones' briefcase?

Mr Jones's briefcase or Mr Jones' briefcase?During my high school, I was taught to use the second one. Later, I learnt that both are acceptable. Source 1:Some writers will say that the -s after Charles' is not necessary and that adding only the apostrophe (Charles' car) will suffice to show...

Re: McDonald's

Marius Hancu wrote:The meaning is: I think I'll go to one of the McDonald's. Hi MariusThis is an interesting point of grammar. The s in McDonald's is a genitive s, not a plural s. I'm not a native speaker and I would like to know if Canadians/Americans really say one of the McDonald's? Being...

two questions

Hi, Please answer these. 1. Does this require a singular or plural noun? I think Philip from this forum wrote this: With the introductory "there," you will find both singular and plural verb. 2. Sometimes I get very confused as to whether a possessive is acting in a classifying capacity or a...

Re: genitive as a noun -- long question

Believer wrote:Can a gerund function as a countable noun? If so, can you show me how it is done in simple terms?Hi BelieverOf course a gerund can form a plural: his comings and goings.As you see, the plural is formed by adding an s to the word. Some grammarians distinguish between a gerund and a...