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ESL forum >
Ask for help > Short answers - family
Short answers - family
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bibikos
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Short answers - family
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good morning to all of you...
what is the short answer to the question
Was the family at home yesterday?
Yes, it was. OR
Yes, they were.
Thanks in advance
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2 Apr 2013
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cunliffe
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I think it �s either/or. In cases like this, I always go for the plural, so I would say, �Yes, they were. � |
2 Apr 2013
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almaz
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Yes, in British English, we tend to go for the notional concord especially if the family is being considered as a collection of individuals (compare with �the family is a man-made institution �). You �ll find, though, that this is less common in American English where the singular is usually preferred. |
2 Apr 2013
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bibikos
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thanks a lot. Have a nice day to both of you!
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2 Apr 2013
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dmharg
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family can both be singular or plural. Singular when you refer to it as a whole and plural when you refer to each member of the family individually. The same goes with class, team, government e.t.c. |
2 Apr 2013
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MoodyMoody
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You actually answered your question in the question: your question was "WAS the family at home yesterday?" not "WERE the family home yesterday?" The answer should match the question. About the only example of a third person question that changes in number is when "who" is the subject of the question. "Who" always takes the third person singular form of the verb, but the answer can be in the plural, or even in first or second person.
I agree with almaz�s point in general, though; in the USA we rarely use the plural for family, class, etc., even when we clearly mean more than one member. |
2 Apr 2013
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cunliffe
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Fair point, MoodyMoody, but we don �t have to obey this rule in English. Was the family at home? - Yes, they were... That �s perfectly clear and OK. Yes, it was simply sounds weird. Does it really sound OK in American? |
2 Apr 2013
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