Sometimes we use a plural noun for one thing that has two parts. For example:
trousers (two legs)
also jeans/tights/shorts/pants |
pyjamas
(top and bottom) |
glasses |
binoculars |
scissors |
These words are plural, so they take a plural verb:
- My trousers are too long. (not my trousers is)
You can also use
a pair of + these words:
- Those are nice jeans. or That's a nice pair of jeans. (not a nice jeans)
- I need some new glasses. or I need a new pair of glasses.
Some nouns end in -ics, but are not usually plural. For example:
- athletics
- economics
- electronics
- gymnastics
- maths (=mathematics)
- physics
- politics
- Gymnastics is my favourite sport. (not Gymnastics are)
News is not plural (see Unit 70B):
- What time is the news on TV? (not are the news)
Some words ending in -s can be singular or plural. For example:
| means | a means of transport, many means of transport |
| series | a television series, two television series |
| species | a species of bird, 200 species of bird |
Some singular nouns are often used with a plural verb. For example:
- audience
- committee
- company
- family
- firm
- government
- staff
- team
These nouns are all groups of people. We often think of them as a number of people (= they), not as one thing (= it). So we often use a plural verb:
- The government (= they) have decided to increase taxes.
- The staff at the company (= they) are not happy with their working conditions.
In the same way, we often use a plural verb after the name of a sports team or a company:
- Italy are playing Brazil next Sunday (in a football match).
- Shell have increased the price of petrol.
A singular verb (The government wants ... / Shell has .. . etc.) is also possible.
We use a plural verb with
police:
- The police are investigating the crime, but haven't arrested anyone yet. (not The police is ... hasn't)
Note that we say a police officer / a policeman / a policewoman (not a police).
We do not often use the plural of
person ('persons'). We normally use
people (a
plural word):
- He's a nice person. but They are nice people. (not nice persons)
- Many people don't have enough to eat. (not Many people doesn't)
We think of a sum of money, a period of time, a distance etc. as
one thing. So we use a singular verb:
- Fifty thousand pounds (= it) was stolen in the robbery. (not were stolen)
- Three years (= it) is a long time to be without a job. (not Three years are)
- Two miles isn't very far to walk.
