The
Grammar
Logs
# 286

QUESTION
Subject-Verb Agreement - Money, Time and Quantity
  • Twenty dollars is a lot of money.
  • Four years is a long time to wait for a reply.
I understand that in both of the aforementioned examples, twenty dollars and four years are considered to be units therefore the verb should be singular.
  • Six gallons of milk remain in the fridge. Why is six gallons not considered a unit?
    and
  • Nineteen days production downtime was required to fix the machine.
In this example is the nineteen days considered a unit or should the verb be "was"? Thank you
SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE
Montreal, Quebec, Canada Wed, Jan 27, 1999
GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE
The six gallons of milk can be counted (I hope, or you have a real mess on your hands). Six gallons of gas is in the tank (a singular, now uncountable quantity), but six gallons of milk are on the back seat. The nineteen days are considered one "lump" of time and requires a singular verb ("was").

QUESTION
I'm having trouble knowing when to use commas. For example, is this sentence punctuated correctly?
There sitting amongst the blueberry bushes, happily eating away, was a black bear.
SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE
Cedar Park, Texas Wed, Jan 27, 1999
GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE
I think we need a comma after "there" -- to set off the participial modifier "sitting amongst the blueberry bushes." Personally, I would use the much more common "among" (rather than "amongst"), but you've got enough problems with a bear in your garden. See, also, our section on Comma Usage and take all the quizzes.

QUESTION
Would you take a look at the following?
I should wish to die while still at work, knowing that others will carry on what I can no longer do, and content in the thought that what was possible has been done.
Can I rewrite "knowing" and "content" as follows?
..., "if I knew" ..., and "if I were content" ...
If not, would you let me know the correct paraphrase? I'd appreciate your assistance.
SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE
Sapporo, Japan Thu, Jan 28, 1999
GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE
No, that would make the statement considerably more tentative than it is. This person "knows" these things and "is content," and that somehow makes him happy to die while still at work (not retired, apparently).

QUESTION
Is the wording of this sentence correct?
I went to the play after school because it was too late to go after basketball practice.
SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE
Jonston, Pennsylvania Thu, Jan 28, 1999
GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE
I don't think the chronological relationship between school and basketball practice is immediately clear. (Although it probably is to most people who have anything to do with this situation -- team members, family members, coach, etc.) It's one of those situations where you're probably better off if you spell things out a bit more. Something like the following would be clearer:
I went to the play immediately after school because if I had gone after basketball practice, I would have been late for supper.
QUESTION
Would you please explain the sentence structure in the following sentence?
Correct the sentences you think are wrong.
It seems to me that the relative pronoun is missing in the sentence above. Am I correct? It that's the case, what is the rule for omitting the relative pronoun? I am not familiar with sentences that have "he says" or "you think"inserted in the middle of them. Please explain in depth for a person to whom English is not mother tongue. A world of thanks.
SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE
Seoul, Korea Thu, Jan 28, 1999
GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE
We frequently leave out the "that" in such clauses. It's not only permissible, it's encouraged: the sentence is more efficient and just as easy to understand (for most people, anyway). Such clauses are called "elliptical clauses" because something is left out.

QUESTION
If the subject goes somewhat like "our array of books or our series of novels," does this have to go with a singular, plural, or possible with singular and plural verbs?

Many thanks.

SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE
Taipei, Taiwan Thu, Jan 28, 1999
GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE
"Array" will be singular, but the word "series" can be either singular or plural, depending on context. For instance, if I offer a series of concerts next summer, I could say that "My series is sold out." If that happens every year, of course, I could say eventually that "My series are very popular."

QUESTION
Hello, dear Grammar,
My native language is Russian, but I have to write papers to the journals in English. English is not the native language for my boss either, so we have a hard time trying to figure out the right way for the sentence. I looked through your site and found that "allow" may take an object and then the infinitive. However, can it be
  1. allow quick outlining of strata (1)
    allow quick outline strata (2)
or allow quickly outlining strata (3) I like (2) best. Word 97 checks any variant as correct. Concerning (3) --- Can a gerund ever have an adverb as a modifier?

Thank you.

SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE
Laramie, Wyoming Thu, Jan 28, 1999
GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE
The word "allow" takes an object and then an infinitive will follow: "We allowed the students to leave early." Otherwise, we use a gerund after "allow": "We don't allow shouting in the halls."

I'm not sure about the examples you give us, because I'm not sure what outlining strate mean. I think the first one is your correct alternative. Do you allow the "quick outlining of strata"? I don't think you can have "quickly" modifying the gerund that way. Since a gerund is a noun, it cannot be modified by an adverb -- which can only modify verbs, adjectives, and other adverbs.


QUESTION
I am searching for the meaning of the p and the q in the expression "Mind your p"s and Q's"

Thanks for any help you can give.

SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE
Belchertown, Massachusetts Thu, Jan 28, 1999
GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE
Etymology: from the phrase mind one's p's and q's, alluding to the difficulty a child learning to write has in distinguishing between p and q
Date: 1779

Authority for this note: WWWebster Dictionary, the World Wide Web edition of Merriam-Webster's Collegiate® Dictionary, Tenth Edition. Used with permission.


QUESTION
I read in a book:
"In Puccini's opera Tosca, the heroine is faced with a terrible dilemma. Her lover Cavaradossi has been condemned to death by Scarpia, the police chief, but Scarpia has offered her a deal. If Tosca will sleep with him, he will save her lover's life by telling the firing squad to use blanks. ..."
Is a sentence like: 'If + will ... will' correct? If so, what is the value added of the first 'will'? Thanks.
SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE
Bonn, Germany Thu, Jan 28, 1999
GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE
I think most writers would use the subjunctive mood there: "If Tosca were to sleep with him, he would save her lover's life. . . . "

QUESTION
Should we write "A quantity of books [is or are] on the floor?
SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE
Changchun Cuty, China Sun, Feb 7, 1999
GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE
Because the word "quantity" refers to a measured amount or number, I think we want the singular verb "is." If you had written "a number of books," however, we would use the plural verb, and "a number" is probably the word most people would use in this context. But I don't think the words are interchangeable.

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