Difference between revisions of "Collective noun"
From Hull AWE
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| − | '''Collective''' [[noun]]s are the names of collections of things, or, more usually, people. A '''committee''' contains several people, but is thought of as a unit. The '''Cabinet''' is made up of some 20 Ministers, but is a single body. Ideally you should use a [[singular]] [[verb]] with a '''collective''' noun –- "the Government think<big>s</big> that" -- but many writers do not follow this rule. They have some justification when they are talking about the behaviour of individuals – e.g. "The Committee <big>have</big> expressed many opinions (rather than <big | + | '''Collective''' [[noun]]s are the names of collections of things, or, more usually, people. A '''committee''' contains several people, but is thought of as a unit. The '''Cabinet''' is made up of some 20 Ministers, but is a single body. Ideally you should use a [[singular]] [[verb]] with a '''collective''' noun –- "the Government think<big>s</big> that" -- but many writers do not follow this rule. They have some justification when they are talking about the behaviour of individuals – [[e.g.]] "The Committee <big>have</big> expressed many opinions" (rather than <big>has</big>). |
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[[Category:Word classes]] | [[Category:Word classes]] | ||
[[Category:Noun attributes]] | [[Category:Noun attributes]] | ||
[[Category:Usage]] | [[Category:Usage]] | ||
Revision as of 13:46, 31 July 2007
Collective nouns are the names of collections of things, or, more usually, people. A committee contains several people, but is thought of as a unit. The Cabinet is made up of some 20 Ministers, but is a single body. Ideally you should use a singular verb with a collective noun –- "the Government thinks that" -- but many writers do not follow this rule. They have some justification when they are talking about the behaviour of individuals – e.g. "The Committee have expressed many opinions" (rather than has).
