Note that there are a few exceptions to this rule of thumb, such as the collective noun police, which always takes a plural verb. The pod of dolphins was approaching the ship. The club meets every Wednesday after school. In other words, unless there’s a compelling argument for making them plural-as in the examples in the preceding section, in which the emphasis is on the individual members of the group-it’s always appropriate to use a singular verb with them. 1Ī good rule of thumb for using collective nouns in American English is to err on the side of treating them as singular. Here are a few more tips to help you along. Once you’ve mastered that, collective nouns are simple to use in your writing. 3 tips on how to use collective nounsĪs we’ve seen, keeping collective nouns in agreement with the verbs they appear alongside can be tricky. It seemed like the staff were always taking their lunch break when we stopped by the shop. In British English, it’s far more common to treat collective nouns as plural: The choir were all warming up in different keys.Īmong the student body, the majority are Californians. My family mostly have their birthdays in the fall and winter. However, it’s also correct-and quite common-to treat a collective noun as plural when what is being communicated is that the members or components of a group are acting individually rather than as a unit: Residents of the town said a drove of pigs that had escaped from a local farm was destroying their yards and gardens. The film festival’s selection committee consists of filmmakers, film programmers, and critics. In American English, collective nouns more often than not appear with singular verbs: This can make choosing the right verb to use with a collective noun when it’s the subject of a sentence or clause (that is, maintaining subject-verb agreement) a bit tricky-it’s almost like they’re plural and singular at the same time! Are collective nouns singular or plural?Īlthough they refer to multiple things at once by definition, collective nouns are singular in form. Paleontologists found a set of fossils in Argentina from the bones of an Achillesaurus or a closely related species. Traffic on the road was temporarily stopped by a flock of wild turkeys that was making its way across. The audience at the midafternoon showing was especially appreciative of the comedic parts of the movie. Grammarly helps you communicate confidently Write with Grammarly What is a collective noun?Ī collective noun is a common noun that names a group of people, creatures, or objects:
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