Aug 10, 2006 03:28
18 yrs ago
English term
DELVING into DETAIL
Native in: Russian 
Works in: English to Russian, Russian, Russian to English, and 2 more.
were OR was?
English
Art/Literary
Poetry & Literature
grammar
But neither the witch nor her companion WERE to be seen. Where could they be?
Dear native English speakers!
Please advise which variant is more grammatically correct:
'neither X nor Y WERE to be seen'
OR
'neither X nor Y WAS to be seen'.
I believe it's 'were', but admit I may be wrong. I have noticed that the latter is as common on the Web as the former.
Dear native English speakers!
Please advise which variant is more grammatically correct:
'neither X nor Y WERE to be seen'
OR
'neither X nor Y WAS to be seen'.
I believe it's 'were', but admit I may be wrong. I have noticed that the latter is as common on the Web as the former.
Responses
| 5 +2 | depends on second conjunct |
transparx
|
| 4 +6 | was |
RHELLER
|
Responses
+2
4 mins
Selected
depends on second conjunct
if the second conjunct is singulare, use "was"
if it's plural, use "were"
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Note added at 7 mins (2006-08-10 03:36:26 GMT)
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for ex:,
Netiher Mary nor John was to be seen
Neither Mary nor her sisters were to be seen.
However, it is also true that nowadays many native speakers use "were" all the time; in fact, it has become acceptacle in usage -i.e., informally.
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Note added at 9 mins (2006-08-10 03:38:21 GMT)
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of course, I meant "singular," nit "singulare"!
also: acceptable, not acceptacle!
Sorry! My keyboard has been a bit strange lately.
if it's plural, use "were"
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 7 mins (2006-08-10 03:36:26 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
for ex:,
Netiher Mary nor John was to be seen
Neither Mary nor her sisters were to be seen.
However, it is also true that nowadays many native speakers use "were" all the time; in fact, it has become acceptacle in usage -i.e., informally.
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 9 mins (2006-08-10 03:38:21 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------
of course, I meant "singular," nit "singulare"!
also: acceptable, not acceptacle!
Sorry! My keyboard has been a bit strange lately.
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "Thank you very much for your help! Thanks everybody!"
+6
10 mins
was
Rule 2. Two singular subjects connected by either/or or neither/nor require a singular verb as in
Examples Neither Juan nor Carmen is available.
Either Kiana or Casey helps today with stage decorations.
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example of an error
Neither Ron Howard's The Da Vinci Code nor Sofia Coppola's Marie-Antoinette were well-received at the Cannes Film Festival, as film critics booed during the screening of each film.
This sentence contains an error in subject/verb agreement. When subjects in a sentence are linked by the correlative conjunctions "neither/nor," the subject that is closer to the verb determines the number of the verb. The "neither/nor" pairing of two singular subjects does not use a plural verb.
Examples Neither Juan nor Carmen is available.
Either Kiana or Casey helps today with stage decorations.
------------------------------
example of an error
Neither Ron Howard's The Da Vinci Code nor Sofia Coppola's Marie-Antoinette were well-received at the Cannes Film Festival, as film critics booed during the screening of each film.
This sentence contains an error in subject/verb agreement. When subjects in a sentence are linked by the correlative conjunctions "neither/nor," the subject that is closer to the verb determines the number of the verb. The "neither/nor" pairing of two singular subjects does not use a plural verb.
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
Will Matter
: This was my first thought when I looked at this earlier. // Plus ca change.... wink, wink.
7 mins
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yes it will and does matter :-)
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| agree |
Uma Hariharan
9 mins
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thanks, Uma :-)
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| agree |
ErichEko ⟹⭐
: Agree. Although it's a bit "inconsistent" IMO because when we use AND, we have to go with WERE. In logic / mathematics, OR can mean either one *or* both. ;)
26 mins
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this is not math, thanks Erich
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| agree |
Veronica Prpic Uhing
27 mins
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thanks VPUHING :-)
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| agree |
zaphod
: As clumsy as it sounds, and as many times as I err, it's correct
4 hrs
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thanks, Peter :-)
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| agree |
Alexander Demyanov
9 hrs
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thanks, Alex :-)
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