Sacrilege

Posted by TheFallen on March 05, 2002

In Reply to: Bread and Trousers posted by Word Camel on March 05, 2002

: : : : : : : : : : "Another Round of Layoffs Are Planned at
: : : : : : : : : : First Boston"

: : : : : : : : : : "Round" is singular, no?
: : : : : : : : : : So it should read:
: : : : : : : : : : "Another Round of Layoffs IS Planned at
: : : : : : : : : : First Boston."

: : : : : : : : : : The original is below.

: : : : : : : : :
: : : : : : : : : I would agree, but there does seem to be a collective form where a singular noun takes a plural verb, as in "a lot of people are present". I don't believe it is right to say "... is present" in this case, but I am clear on what the difference is.

: : : : : : : :
: : : : : : : : ----- er... not clear, I meant! psi

: : : : : : : :
: : : : : : : : : Does anyone have any ideas?

: : : : : : : : : psi

: : : : : : : Hmmm. I am not sure if this is a hard and fast grammatical rule, but it does seem to be true that when a singular but non-specific collective noun is the subject of the sentence, then a plural verb form simply sounds better. Examples...

: : : : : : : A lot of people have arrived...
: : : : : : : A number of sources have stated...
: : : : : : : A couple of people have stayed...
: : : : : : : A half of those surveyed have said...
: : : : : : : None of the children have left... (I am uneasy with this one, and feel it *must* strictly speaking be "has", though colloquially, it's a different gether altomatter)

: : : : : : This is a reliable guideline, at least for U.S. usage: "'A' plus 'number'" takes a plural verb; "the' plus 'number'" takes a singular verb. So "A number of sources have stated . . . ," and "The number of sources the reporter quoted was four."

: : : : : : Sometimes the number of the verb depends on whether the subject-noun means something unitary or something multiple. "The couple is buying a house." "The couple are not getting along."

: : : : : : American Heritage Dict.: "'None' (pronoun) may take a singular verb or a plural one, according to 68 per cent of the Usage Panel. They specify a singular verb when 'none' can logically be construed as singular (when 'not one' or 'no one' can be substituted for 'none'): 'None of us is wholly blameless.' . . . A plural verb should be used when 'none' applies to more than one (when 'no persons, not any of a group of persons or things' can be substituted for 'none'): 'None are more wretched than victims of natural disasters.' When 'none' can be logically construed as either singular or plural, either a singular or plural verb is possible: 'None of these books is' (or 'are') 'really helpful.' In every case the verb and related personal pronouns and pronominal adjectives must agree in number: 'none has his' (or 'none have theirs'). According to 28 per cent of the Panel, 'none' must always take a singular verb."

: : : : Out of interest, the term 'bloopers' is not often used in Britain. If someone makes this sort of mistake it's called a 'bloomer'.

: : : It is? Now there's me thinking that a bloomer was a soft white loaf of bread. I'd have gone with either a "clanger" or a "boob"... and no, ESC, I am not trying to turn this thread back into the gutter with that last suggestion...

: : : (much)

: : Wow. I've never heard "bloomer" for a mistake OR for a loaf of bread. For "bloomer," Amer. Heritage Dict. includes "a blunder" (slang) among the definitions. For "blooper," it says:
: : "1. Baseball. A short, weakly hit fly ball that carries just beyond the infield. 2. Informal. A faux pas. [From 'bloop,' sound of such a hit (imitative).]"
: : So that's where "blooper" came from.

: I wonder if there is any relation between bloomer as in bread - I think this means when the bread has risen enough to form a bouffant crown of dough above the loaf pan - and the puffy trousers favoured by Susan B Anthony?

: The origin of "blooper" is interesting and I fully intend to record MP3's of badly hit balls, (badly hit by the other team, obviously), while attending Yankees games this year so that Phrase-finders can decide for themselves whether they think the explanation is plausible. Personally, it makes me suspect the bats and balls involved were made of jello*.

: *jelly

WHAT???? Susan B. Anthony purchased all of MC Hammer's trousers from the IRS for her own personal use? Is nothing sacred?