|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Thu Jan 26, 2006 12:04 pm
Which would be the correct saying?
"What symptoms is he displaying?"
or
"What symptoms are he displaying?"
Thank you, one and all!
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Jan 26, 2006 12:26 pm
I think it would be "What symptoms is he displaying.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Feb 01, 2006 4:42 pm
I'm not quite sure, but I seem to be more comfortable with the "What symptoms is he displaying?" quote.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Feb 01, 2006 8:07 pm
'Is' is for a single subject. 'Are' is for multiple. Therefore "What symptoms are he displaying." should be correct. However, I agree, it does sound awkward. ('Awkward' also looks screwy, but I checked: It is spelled correctly.)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Feb 01, 2006 9:04 pm
If I think about it, "What symptoms is he showing?" would be correct because it's not the symptoms that are showing, it's he that's showing the symptoms. So you would say "What symptoms is he showing?" for subject-verb agreement.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Feb 01, 2006 9:40 pm
Well that is the question, isn't it? Are the symptoms the subject, or the person?
Perhaps it could be better stated: "What are the symptoms he's showing?" It sounds right that way, and I believe is grammatically correct.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Feb 02, 2006 8:41 am
That sounds nice! Thank you much DarkElf!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Feb 07, 2006 1:14 pm
It is definitely 'What symptoms is he displaying?' The subject is 'he' and 'he is diplaying what?' Not 'he are displaying what?'
*I consulted the English scholars in my house and they agree.
3nodding
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Feb 09, 2006 2:02 am
I'd have to agree with the "is" because the "are" sounds just wrong and my "ear" is attuned to those easily made mistakes... (Yes, I do make them sometime but I try not to; it is more easy when I reread myself...)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Feb 12, 2006 8:59 am
I agree. The correct one would be, "What symptoms is he displaying?" If you turn it around into a declarative sentence it would be, "He is displaying what symptoms," which is correct. Thus, one should use "is."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Feb 14, 2006 5:24 am
Despite my previous post, I yield to DarkElf and his literature analysis. 3nodding
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Feb 19, 2006 4:37 pm
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Feb 28, 2006 9:08 am
Ask yourself what the subject of the sentence is. It's not the symptoms. Re-organize it.
He ___ displaying what symptoms?
Is would be the correct word. smile
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Mar 22, 2006 12:22 pm
The second one, since there are the noun 'symptoms' is plural.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Mar 25, 2006 10:05 am
Myriane I'd have to agree with the "is" because the "are" sounds just wrong and my "ear" is attuned to those easily made mistakes... (Yes, I do make them sometime but I try not to; it is more easy when I reread myself...) I'm sorry, but your post wasn't quite up to grammatical par. It should be "sometimes" instead of "sometime" and although it's gramatically correct to say "more easy" I would suggest you say "easier". Yes, my english teacher is a slave driver. She-literally-hits me for those mistakes. That's the only reason I know.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Reply
