All together now.
Collective nouns are words that describe groups of things.
You can have a bunch of grapes, a team of players, a troupe of actors, a gaggle of geese. The collective nouns would be "bunch," "team," "troupe" and "gaggle."
Most of the time, these collective nouns represent one unit and take singular verbs.
The family is packing into the car and heading to Washington.
The team is struggling in the second half.
The jury has found the vigilante copy editor guilty.
Now, if the group members are doing things as individuals and not as a unit, you need to switch gears.
The couple work 20 miles apart.
The faculty are split on the decision.
Team and band names use plural verbs some of the time.
The Yankees often aren't popular outside of New York.
The Rolling Stones are still going strong.
But other times, such as when the names aren't plural, they take singular verbs.
New York is in town for a three-day series.
The Clash was an early punk rock band.
In Britain, they are more likely to use a singular team name with a plural verb. I found this line in the Telegraph, a British newspaper:
Chelsea are a far better team than Spurs ...
It gets confusing. Most of the time, you can go with what sounds right to the ear. Just get your ears checked regularly.
And you always have the option of writing the sentence in a different way.
ANNIVERSARY CONTROVERSY
Traditionally, "anniversary" is used to mark a yearly event.
They just celebrated their 10th anniversary. (Note: You don't need to say "10-year anniversary.")
The roots of the word are Latin for "year" and "turning."
Some people use the word to describe other time periods, but that's not the best way to go.
Iffy: This is my four-month anniversary as a pet-owner.
Better: I've owned a pet for four months.
A VERSUS AN
How do you know whether to use an "an" or an "a" before a noun? It's not based on the first letter of the next word. It's based on the first sound of the next word. If the sound is a vowel sound, you use an "an." If the sounds is a consonant sound, you use an "a."
a bicycle
a stapler
an anorak
an eclectic fellow
So which do you use before an acronym such as FBI or SVU or PB&J?
Because it's the "ef bee eye," it's an FBI inquiry. Spelled out, it would be a Federal Bureau of Investigation inquiry. Because it's a "pee bee and jay" sandwich, it's a "PB&J sandwich" and a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
Many people think it's "an historic occasion," but it's "a historic occasion." The "h" is a consonant sound.
Sources: LinguaLinks Library, The New York Times, m-w.com, Grammar Girl
Reach Bernadette at
bkwordmonger@gmail.com
ActiveStyle on 04/24/2017