Difference between revisions of "Collective noun"
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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><strike>has</strike>)</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><strike>has</strike>)</big>. | ||
| − | [[category:grammar]] [[category:Grammar Course]] [[category:Word Classes]] | + | [[category:grammar]] [[category:Grammar Course]] [[category:Word Classes]] Category:Noun attribute]] [[category:usage]] |
Revision as of 08:18, 2 February 2007
(This page is a detail about nouns, a word class. The course in Word Classes forms part of the Grammar course in AWE. You may choose to follow it in a structured way by following the links. Each item can also be accessed separately.)
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). Category:Noun attribute]]
