Suppose I explain the following table in my academic paper. State Average St. Dev. Skewness Kurtosis Fis. Info. CA 1.23 4.56 1.35 2.46 1.47 NY 4.56 7.89 7.91 8.02 2.58 TX 7.89 1.23 3.57 4.68 3.69 The table displays the averages, standard deviations, skewness (?), kurtosis (?), and Fisher information (?) of the states. (1) … Read more
What is correct please – thousand wuth s or without s? … of the order of several thousands days. Answer You have two options: several thousands of days or you could alternatively say: several thousand days Which are both correct. AttributionSource : Link , Question Author : Arrara , Answer Author : 3kstc
I’ve heard mostly British English people say ‘He went to hospital’ or ‘She is matriculated at university’. I’ve never understood this but accepted it as a quirk of the language like so many others. Lately I’ve heard instances on the radio where this has been applied to seemingly random nouns. The example I heard this … Read more
After some research, I have become more confused than before. Which is correct? The students were writing at their desks. But upon closer examination, the writing on the paper turned out to be illustrations. The students were writing at their desks. But upon closer examination, the writings on the papers turned out to be illustrations. … Read more
Sometimes we need to refer to something without knowing will it be singular or plural. How to write such things in formal writing? Version 1 No valid input files found. Make sure the input field contains at least one “.adoc” file. Make sure this file (these files) does exist. Version 2 No valid input files … Read more
I have problems with this sentence. “Two weeks off work sounds great or sound great”. What form of the verb should I use in this case (and in similar sentences), if “weeks” is a plural noun? Answer The verb should be “sounds,” because the verb’s subject should contain the implied gerund “taking,” as in “Taking … Read more
Well, here is the situation. I have four students. They did a test. Suppose that the regulation is a student getting a score below 40 gets the remark “study hard” which is written at the bottom of the work instead of a numerical score. When I want to confirm this, may I say: They get … Read more
The sincerity of pronouncements by multinationals is/are anybody’s guess. My understanding is “sincerity” is an uncountable noun, and should be followed by “is”, but it does feel a little weird to use the singular form when it is modified by “multinationals” which is clearly plural. I feel like this is a very basic grammar question … Read more
With the article the preceding an adjective, the resulted phrase is usually treated as a plural noun. Examples are “the poor”, “the free”, “the brave”, “the wise”, etc.. It seems that the phrase “the left” or “the Left” (when it refers to political groups) is an exception. Sometimes it is followed by singular verbs, sometimes … Read more
Can anyone kindly explain why this sentence is correct? Complex musical numbers are a defining characteristic of most Italian films. Answer In a comment, John Lawler wrote: A defining characteristic of Italian films is not a subject; it is a noun phrase that is the predicate of the sentence, following the be form that is … Read more
