| Front | correct for pluralisation? Twelve dollars are less than what I want to sell it for. |
|---|---|
| Back | no. A noun expressing an amount or measurement is normally singular. Twelve spoons of sugar is less than what I usually take. but contrast where the unit of measurement refers to a number of individual items, then it treated as a plural. Twelve cubes of sugar are less than what I usually take. reasoning: the sugar, despite being more than one mg, was added at the same time, as a single unit. It would not be helpful (semantically or grammatically) to think of each mg of sugar as being added separately. Instead, treat the mass noun as the group it is, and use the singular. |
Tags: grammar
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