> I believe the rule of using "are" when following a noun that ends with "s" still applies though
Rules are dialect-dependent, though (or a better way to frame it: "rules" are observations about clusters which are used to define a dialect).
> I can't think of a collective noun that ends in S that I would follow with "is".
Sure, in the forms of American and British English that most HN readers are used to, there may not be any. That isn't universal, though.
There's a related phenomenon which may be more familiar to you: some English speakers will use a possessive form even when no possessive is being conveyed semantically, eg: "I'm going to Burger King's", or "Wal-Mart's is a good store". This particular one is fairly well-documented.
> some English speakers will use a possessive form even when no possessive is being conveyed semantically, eg: "I'm going to Burger King's", or "Wal-Mart's is a good store".
I might type "walmart's a good store" in an informal setting (not as a possessive, but as a contraction for "walmart is"), but no American / British newspaper editor would let that through. Its against the rules of english grammar.
I'm curious whether kids in Indian primary school are taught that "the layoffs is" is correct grammar, or whether its just a common mistake (like walmart's).
pretty sure this is also incorrect and something to be avoided in print, no?
"data" vs "datum" is pretty obscure. While an outfit like the New York Times may know the difference, I doubt that most people even know that "data" is always plural, since its forms are not even coming from English.
chimeracoder|3 years ago
Rules are dialect-dependent, though (or a better way to frame it: "rules" are observations about clusters which are used to define a dialect).
> I can't think of a collective noun that ends in S that I would follow with "is".
Sure, in the forms of American and British English that most HN readers are used to, there may not be any. That isn't universal, though.
There's a related phenomenon which may be more familiar to you: some English speakers will use a possessive form even when no possessive is being conveyed semantically, eg: "I'm going to Burger King's", or "Wal-Mart's is a good store". This particular one is fairly well-documented.
dahfizz|3 years ago
I might type "walmart's a good store" in an informal setting (not as a possessive, but as a contraction for "walmart is"), but no American / British newspaper editor would let that through. Its against the rules of english grammar.
I'm curious whether kids in Indian primary school are taught that "the layoffs is" is correct grammar, or whether its just a common mistake (like walmart's).
twelve40|3 years ago
pretty sure this is also incorrect and something to be avoided in print, no?
"data" vs "datum" is pretty obscure. While an outfit like the New York Times may know the difference, I doubt that most people even know that "data" is always plural, since its forms are not even coming from English.