Mixed singular and plural

Cases of Usage

Example

1. Singular nouns for groups of people often have plural verbs and pronouns in British English, especially when speakers are talking about personal kinds of action.

My family are very angry with me: they think I should go to university.

The average family has 3.5 members: it is much smaller than in 1900.

The team are going to lose again.

They're useless. A cricket team is made up of eleven players, including its captain.

2. The following singular expressions also have plural verbs: a number of... the majority of... a couple of... a group of... a lot of + plural noun/pronoun, the rest of + plural noun/ pronoun

A number of us are worried about it.

The majority disagree.

There are a couple of questions on this matter. A lot of them were late.

The rest of the students are present.

3. Some plural expressions have singular verbs: names of quantities, plural names of countries, compound nouns joined by and, more than one +singular noun

Ten thousand dollars is too much to pay. Three weeks wasn 't enough holiday.

The United States is smaller than Europe.

Fish and chips doesn 't cost much.

More than one person disagrees.

4. A singular verb is used after one of+ plural noun

One of my friends has won a prize.

Formation

Examples

• singular personal nouns:

child + 's = child's

• singular personal nouns ending in - s:

actress + 's = actress's

• the plural of irregular person nouns:

children + 's = children's

• the plural of personal nouns ending in -s:

girls + ' = girls'

• some names ending in -s:

James + 's = James's

• with some (esp famous) names ending in -s there can be used: ' or ' s

Keats' / Keats's poetry, Dickens V Dickens's realism, Achilles'/'Achilles's heel

NOTE: The of- construction (not 's/s') is preferred for: 1. Things (possession): 2. Objective genitive (people and things):

3. Subjective genitive when the noun phrase is the + adj :

4. With words like top, bottom, front, back, side, edge, inside, outside, beginning, middle, end, part:

Exceptions: the water's edge, the seaside, the roadside, a mountain top. 5. Double possessives using both of and the 's form are common with proper nouns when the reference is definite and personal:

the excitement of Christmas; the defeat of Napoleon, the sale of the house; the needs of the sick, the conditions of the poor;

the top of the page, the back of the bus, the end of the film.

a novel of Conrad's, a friend of my father's, a symphony of Beethoven's, a painting of Picasso's

Compound nouns : noun + noun

1. A compound noun is a fixed expression, made up of two or more words that function as a noun. Compound nouns are usually combinations of two nouns: Compound nouns are often written as

• two words:

• one word

• occasionally they may be with a hyphen:

address book, science fiction, flower garden, garden flower

can opener, burglar alarm

trademark

baby-sitter

2. Usually the main stress is on the first part of a compound noun, but sometimes it is on the second:

alarm clock, answering machine, bank account, credit card bus stop, heart attack, tea bag, reference book

3. Compound nouns may be countable, uncountable, or used only in the singular or the plural. Here some examples of common

• uncountable compound nouns:

• compound nouns used only in the singular:

• compound nouns used only in the plural:

birth control, blood pressure, data processing family planning, food poisoning, income tax, junk food, pocket money

death penalty, generation gap, global warming, mother tongue,

sound barrier, brain drain, grass roots, kitchen scissors, luxury goods, public works, sunglasses

4. The noun + noun structure is used for well-known everyday combinations.

To talk about things that do not go together so often, we usually prefer a structure with a preposition:

a war film, a history book a postman, road signs

a film about a dog (NOT a dog film) a book about violins ( NOT a violin book)

a man from the bank (NOT a bank man) signs of anger (NOT anger signs)

Compound nouns : verb + preposition

Some compound nouns are based on phrasal verbs. They often have an informal feel to them and are common in newspaper reporting:

walkout (strike)

crackdown (action against)

takeover (purchase by another company)

shakeup (change)

outlets (places to sell)

layoff (ending employment)

cutbacks (reductions)

downturn (decline)

backup ( a duplicate version or substitute)

turnover (change)

setup (plan)

setback (circumstances that delay rogress)

outset (start)

NOTE: We use the noun+ noun structure to name common kind of things. The first noun is often like an object (of a verb or preposition) We use the possessive's structure most often to talk about something that belongs to a particular person, group, country or animal. The first noun is often like a subject (usually of the verb have):

a shoe shop = a shop that sells shoes

a war film = a film about war

that cat's tail =that cat has a tail

China's history = China has history