Grammar pedants - help please.
95 watchers
Aug 2020
9:41pm, 27 Aug 2020
52,511 posts
|
Diogenes
Amuse bouch
|
Aug 2020
10:36pm, 27 Aug 2020
8,291 posts
|
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. |
Aug 2020
8:40am, 28 Aug 2020
12,103 posts
|
SarahWoo
I like ream too.
|
Aug 2020
5:33pm, 30 Aug 2020
14,187 posts
|
RichHL
An indulgence. A satisfaction (good for alliteration).
|
Oct 2020
4:05pm, 15 Oct 2020
8,362 posts
|
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? |
Oct 2020
4:11pm, 15 Oct 2020
19,889 posts
|
DeeGee
I think convention treats "staff" as plural. That what "reads" correctly. It might well be grammatically wrong, though.
|
Oct 2020
4:14pm, 15 Oct 2020
3,519 posts
|
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. |
Oct 2020
4:34pm, 15 Oct 2020
12,318 posts
|
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".
|
Oct 2020
11:41pm, 15 Oct 2020
21,028 posts
|
Dvorak
(Would not you have the staff fetch your staff?)
|
Oct 2020
10:40am, 22 Oct 2020
54,077 posts
|
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 |
Related Threads
- Malapropism! Feb 2024
- Words of wisdom Jun 2023
- Discovering you've been pronouncing a word wrong all your life Jan 2023
- Proverbs that are obviously Bollocks Nov 2022
- Hidden Adventure Jun 2022
- RUNNERS WORLD RUN LESS RUN FASTER Jun 2022
- Alternative Dictionary Jul 2021
- Six Word Stories Feb 2021
- Does a Donkey like Strawberries Jan 2021
- Collective Nouns Jun 2020