Singular and Plural

Things with Two Parts

Some objects are made of two joined parts. English treats them as plural, so they always take a plural verb.

• Your trousers are too long for the dress code. (not trousers is)
• My scissors are on the desk if you need them.

You cannot say “a trousers” or “a scissors.” Use a pair of to talk about one item:

• I bought a pair of jeans for the company retreat. (not a jeans)
• She keeps a pair of glasses in her desk drawer.

Words Ending in -ics and -s

Several nouns end in -ics but are singular:

• Economics is a required course for all MBA students. (not Economics are)

News also looks plural but is always singular:

• The news is encouraging — we hit our quarterly target.

A few -s nouns can be either singular or plural with no change in form:

Group Nouns (Collective Nouns)

These singular nouns describe a group of people:

audience, committee, company, family, firm, government, staff, team

Because they refer to multiple people, they often take a plural verb:

• The committee have decided to postpone the product launch.
• The staff are unhappy with the new scheduling system.

The same applies to company names and sports teams:

• Samsung have released their new line of tablets.
• Japan are playing South Korea in the semi-final.

A singular verb is also correct here (The committee has decided…), but the plural form is more common in British English.

Police is always plural — there is no singular form:

• The police are investigating the data breach. (not The police is)

For one officer, say a police officer (not a police).

People vs. Person

Person is singular. The normal plural is people (not “persons”):

• He’s a reliable person.
• Several people from our department attended the conference. (not persons)
• Most people prefer to receive feedback in private. (not people prefers)

Sums, Periods of Time, and Distances

When you mention an amount of money, a period of time, or a distance, treat it as one thing and use a singular verb:

• Fifty thousand dollars was allocated to the training budget. (not were allocated)
• Three years is a long time to stay in the same role.
• Two miles isn’t far — I usually walk to the office.

The idea is that the whole amount is a single unit, not separate items.

Quick Self-Check