Search results for 'tag:Singular verbs tag:Adverbs' matching tags 'Singular verbs' and 'Adverbs'

Re: Plural or singular verb?

Anonymous — Mon, 09 Apr 2007 13:15:33 GMT

I think the answer to your original question, Magda, is that if you want to keep your original sentence, just change "is" to "are". The thing is, it's an unusual sentence, so Grammar Geek gave you a more common one. I don't think many native English speakers would know with 100% certainty which verb to use in your sentence, probably because it's an unusual construction. But I guess Grammar Geek is saying that it should be "He even doesn't know what an adjective and adverb are." I would have probably written "He doesn't even know what an adjective or an adverb is." I think that retains the same meaning, and it sounds more natural. But if you want to keep your original sentence, you should just use "are."

Na razie,

Matt, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

Re: Plural or singular verb?

Magda — Thu, 23 Nov 2006 19:23:20 GMT

Thanks, Marius.
I will keep this rule in mind. What I am puzzled by, however, is the fact that either of the examples you gave me doesn't refer exactly to the sentence I gave.
In your first example, we deal with proper names, no articles there, and in the second one, with one noun in plural and the other in singular.
If I kept this rule in my sentence, I should write "He doesn't even know what an adjective and adverb are," which sounds strange to me because of the indefinite article.
Of course, I will take GG advice and write "adjectives" and "adverbs", but that doesn't clarify my doubts I had in case of the original sentence .

Best regards
Magda

Re: Plural or singular verb?

Grammar Geek — Thu, 23 Nov 2006 00:54:57 GMT

Hi Magda,

Technically, you should use "are" because you have two things there. But it may sound a little off, because the noun that is right next to the verb is singular. To make it both sound correct as well as be correct, you could rewrite: "He doesn't even know what adjectives and adverbs are."

Plural or singular verb?

Magda — Wed, 22 Nov 2006 23:20:57 GMT

Hi,
I have got a problem with such a sentence: "... he even doesn't know what an adjective and adverb is." Should I use the singular or plural verb?

Thank you.