|
The Grammar Logs # 322 |
|
| QUESTION |
Given the two words, severe and mild, and asked what is the relationship between these words,
an answer choice on a multiple choice test was given as:
greater and lesser degrees of intensityWhich is correct: greater and lesser degrees of intensity, or greater and lesser degree of intensity ? |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
New York, New York  Fri, May 28, 1999
|
| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| The "greater and lesser" refers to the nature of the two words; "degrees" refers to the fact that you're talking about more than one measurement: here's one degree of intensity, mild, and here's another degree of intensity, severe. Put them together and you have the plural of degree, different degrees. I'm no logician (which is probably pretty obvious), but I don't see anything wrong with "degrees" in this context. |
| QUESTION |
What is the correct verb in the following question and why? Would you please diagram the sentence for me. HOW MUCH DO/DOES A MILLION SAFETY PINS WEIGH?I believe that this question should have a singular verb because we're talking about a million things. Is "million safety pins" a compound noun? I hope you can help as this is creating a great deal of discussion and arguing where I work. Thank you very much! |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Spartanburg, South Carolina Sun, May 30, 1999
|
| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| You don't need to to go the extreme of a million pins to make a point. You would ask "How much does a safety pin weigh?" and you would also ask "How much does two safety pins weigh?" because you're talking about a singular, weighable quantity (or pile) of safety pins. So whether it's two or a million, it's still a singular pile of safety pins that you're asking about—thus the singular verb, "does." It's sort of a collective noun, but it's not a compound noun (like "brother-in-law," say). I can't diagram it for you because that gets into all kinds of graphic problems that I can't deal with here. You can check out our section on diagramming sentences HERE. |
| QUESTION |
| For some reason I find myself unable to recollect the correct punctuation for the following plural possessive: Is it, "I disagree with your and T.S. Eliot's view" or "I disagree with your and T.S. Eliots' view"? Thank you! |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Stanford, California Sun, May 30, 1999
|
| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| There's no way that "Eliots'" can be correct because that would pluralize T.S. himself—and one was enough. "Your and T.S. Eliot's view" is correct, but it has rather a clumsy sound to it. I think you're much better off adding the "your" parenthetically: "T.S. Eliot's view, and your own/yours . . . ." (Most important, though, is that you've used what's called the "absolute possessive," "your," and not used "yours.") |
| QUESTION |
| Would words that denote an aggregate (e.g., slew, host, raft, passel, lot, legion, etc.) take a plural verb, by analogy to A (indefinite) NUMBER? Might we say, "a legion of lobbyists have descended on the Capitol"? Or would "a legion
of lobbyists HAS descended..." be the correct or preferred articulation? The construction with the plural verb would appear to be logical: A large number (indefinite) have entered the contest; a host (indefinite) have entered, a multitude (indefinite) have entered, and, more colloquially, a lot (of people) have entered... Does this analysis hold grammatical water? |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Stanford, California Sun, May 30, 1999
|
| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| I'm not sure why this is, but "a number" is always a plural (in contrast to "the number," which is always singular). Usually, a collective noun that follows the pattern of a + collective noun + of + plural noun (a host of angels) will take a plural verb: a host of angels sing. . . . But that isn't always so, and especially in American English, you will commonly find structures such as "a fleet of ships is arriving at the port tonight." A lot will depend on whether the nouns in the "of phrase" can behave as independent individuals or if the collective noun behaves as a singular entity: The jury renders its verdict but the jury take their seats. Authority: The New Fowler's Modern English Usage edited by R.W. Burchfield. Clarendon Press: Oxford, England. 1996.
|
| QUESTION |
In the sentence below, is "shown" or "shined" more
correct and what rule applies:
After two days of thunderstorms the sun ______ brightly.Thank you, You've helped me before and I appreciate it. |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Marble, North Carolina Wed, Jun 2, 1999
|
| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| When we're talking about heavenly bodies, we use "shone." In fact, most writers use "shined" only when their talking about a metallic glow: "Charlie cleaned and waxed his car until it shined." Authority: The New Fowler's Modern English Usage edited by R.W. Burchfield. Clarendon Press: Oxford, England. 1996.
|
| QUESTION |
| Typically, I am asked by my supervisors to design an office "flier" for retirement or birthday purposes. The other day, I was asked to design a flier for my boss who is leaving for another job. On the top of the flier, I wrote "Congratulation's Party." However, my supervisor said it should be "Congratulations Party." I read your FAQs but couldn't see an identical issue. Which one is right and why? |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Washington, D.C. Wed, Jun 2, 1999
|
| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| There's no reason to insert an apostrophe in the word, which would turn "congratulations" into a possessive. This is a party at which one offers plural congratulations (no apostrophe). Personally, I'd avoid the problem and write "Congratulations, Joe!" across the top and then invite people to a party. |
| QUESTION |
What would the finite verb and its tense be in this sentence?
Like millions of other teenagers, Japanese student Aiko Kudo hated his school.Your help would be appreciated... thanks |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Townsville, Queensland, Australia Wed, Jun 2, 1999
|
| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| A finite verb is simply the main verb of your sentence, in this case, "hated," which happens to be in the simple past tense. We use the term "finite verb" to distinguish this kind of verb form from others—participles, infinitives, and gerunds
—which have no tense or mood. Authority: Understanding English Grammar by Martha Kolln. 4rth Edition. MacMillan Publishing Company: New York. 1994.
|
| QUESTION |
| Is there anything grammatically wrong with the following sentence: "For the victim who knows he is a victim, this advice gets him nowhere." (This is an excerpt from an unpublished article.) My sense is that the sentence is at best unidiomatic and at worst grammatically flawed. Still, the precise reason eludes me. Thank you for your help! |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Stanford, California Wed, Jun 2, 1999
|
| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| Although most readers will be able to figure out what that sentence means without a great deal of difficulty, the relationship between the initial clause and the main clause is unclear. If we wrote, "For the victim who knows he is a victim, this advice is futile." and then rewrote it as "This advice is futile for the victim who knows he is a victim," this sentence will still make sense. I don't think that's true of your sentence, however: "This advice gets him nowhere for the victim who knows he is a victim." It's the relationship of the verbs in "gets him" to the "victim who knows he is" that is cloudy at best. There's probably a better way to describe the problem here, but in any case, you're wise to rewrite. |
| QUESTION |
Can I use "used to" with "often"? For example,
Tom used to often call on me on Sundays.Thank you |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Hyogo, Japan Wed, Jun 2, 1999
|
| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| Yes. You've unnecessarily split the infinitive in that sentence, and it would read better as "Tom used to call me often on Sundays." People don't get too excited about split infinitives anymore, but that sentence is a good example of how a sentence can be improved with a more careful placement of the adverb. |
| QUESTION |
Please help me properly punctuate the following sentence:
The Company generates an unreasonably high level of sales from two clients, Ford and Honda.Should it be punctuated in the following manner? The Company generates an unreasonably high level of sales from two clients: Ford and Honda.Is that proper if the listing is three items or more? How about just two list items? |
| SOURCE OF QUESTION & DATE OF RESPONSE |
| Irving, Texas Wed, Jun 2, 1999
|
| GRAMMAR'S RESPONSE |
| Even with just the two items in a list, the colon is not incorrect. But because the list is so brief—two little names—it seems like overkill. I think the comma will suffice here. If the list (even of two) were a bit more weighty or complex or if it extended to more than two items, you'd definitely want the colon. |
Previous Grammar Log