Grammar pedants - help please.

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Diogenes Aug 2020 9:41pm, 27 Aug 2020 52,511 posts	0 Diogenes Amuse bouch
GordonG Aug 2020 10:36pm, 27 Aug 2020 8,291 posts	0 GordonG Mezzanine, excellent I'm thinking of going with a "condom of short stories'. People pack big novels to read on their two week holiday. This collection of short stories will be quite compact. It won't last you two weeks, it's just something for the weekend.
SarahWoo Aug 2020 8:40am, 28 Aug 2020 12,103 posts	0 SarahWoo I like ream too.
RichHL Aug 2020 5:33pm, 30 Aug 2020 14,187 posts	0 RichHL An indulgence. A satisfaction (good for alliteration).
GordonG Oct 2020 4:05pm, 15 Oct 2020 8,362 posts	0 GordonG Looking up some info on patient surveys I came across a website (American, I think) giving these examples of questions to ask in a survey: The staff is courteous The staff is knowledgeable Now I know they mean 'staff' as in a single group of people, which is why they've used 'is'. But it's horrible to read and, anyway, 'staff' is made up of a group of individuals who all separately contribute to being courteous and knowledgeable. what are your thoughts on this?
DeeGee Oct 2020 4:11pm, 15 Oct 2020 19,889 posts	0 DeeGee I think convention treats "staff" as plural. That what "reads" correctly. It might well be grammatically wrong, though.
um Oct 2020 4:14pm, 15 Oct 2020 3,519 posts	0 um I think this is a difference in American vs English. I think US will use a verb more aligned to the noun plurality, regardless of whether the noun refers to a plural entity.
larkim Oct 2020 4:34pm, 15 Oct 2020 12,318 posts	0 larkim I was thinking "the staff" sounded a bit "English stately home". "I asked the staff to fetch my shooting stick so I could beat the help for her surly behaviour".
Dvorak Oct 2020 11:41pm, 15 Oct 2020 21,028 posts	0 Dvorak (Would not you have the staff fetch your staff?)
Diogenes Oct 2020 10:40am, 22 Oct 2020 54,077 posts	0 Diogenes Just confirm what I already know, please: An office inhabited by more than one manager is? a) the managers office b) the manager's office c) the managers' office