Margaret Thatcher Quotes

[Paul Frank]

On Sat, Jun 12, 2010 at 3:44 PM, Bill Palmer <w_a_palmer at bellsouth.net> wrote:

> Now  I would have said "family *was*". But I hear all kinds of collective
> nouns now, with plural verb forms. Â Fearing the "prescriptivist" label, I am
> reluctant to ask which is correct. Â What say the professors about this whole
> thing?
>
> Bill Palmer

In British English, collective nouns take plural verbs much more often
than in American English, even in the snootier registers of the
language.

Paul

Paul Frank
Translator
German, French, Italian > English
Rue du Midi 1, Aigle, Switzerland
paulfrank at post.harvard.edu

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