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Peter Shor
Peter Shor
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In general, you use the singular with "many a":

many a man came to try his luck, but none could untangle the knot.

The problem is that when you use "many a" you need to treat it as a collection of individual items, not as a group. For example, neither of the two following sentences work:

*Many a man can carry only a small stone, but working together, he could move a mountain.
*Many a man can carry only a small stone, but working together, they could move a mountain.

You(although the second is not as bad). You have to drop the "many a ..." construction to get this sentence to work:

Many men can carry only a small stone, but working together, they could move a mountain.

You're treating "many a language" as a group in thisyour sentence.

In general, you use the singular with "many a":

many a man came to try his luck.

The problem is that when you use "many a" you need to treat it as a collection of individual items, not as a group. For example, neither of the two following sentences work:

*Many a man can carry only a small stone, but working together, he could move a mountain.
*Many a man can carry only a small stone, but working together, they could move a mountain.

You have to drop the "many a ..." construction to get this sentence to work:

Many men can carry only a small stone, but working together, they could move a mountain.

You're treating "many a language" as a group in this sentence.

In general, you use the singular with "many a":

many a man came to try his luck, but none could untangle the knot.

The problem is that when you use "many a" you need to treat it as a collection of individual items, not as a group. For example, neither of the two following sentences work:

*Many a man can carry only a small stone, but working together, he could move a mountain.
*Many a man can carry only a small stone, but working together, they could move a mountain.

(although the second is not as bad). You have to drop the "many a ..." construction to get this sentence to work:

Many men can carry only a small stone, but working together, they could move a mountain.

You're treating "many a language" as a group in your sentence.

added 301 characters in body
Source Link
Peter Shor
Peter Shor
  • 90.3k
  • 8
  • 186
  • 316

In general, you use the singular with "many a":

many a man came to try his luck.

The problem is that when you use "many a" you need to treat it as a collection of individual items, not as a group. You're treating "many a language" as a group inFor example, neither of the two following sentences work:

*Many a man can carry only a small stone, but working together, he could move a mountain.
*Many a man can carry only a small stone, but working together, they could move a mountain.

You have to drop the "many a ..." construction to get this sentence. You need to reword it something likework:

It's not worth learning manyMany men can carry only a language that you will never have the opportunity to usesmall stone, but working together, they could move a mountain.

You're treating "many a language" as a group in this sentence.

In general, you use the singular with "many a":

many a man came to try his luck.

The problem is that when you use "many a" you need to treat it as a collection of individual items, not as a group. You're treating "many a language" as a group in this sentence. You need to reword it something like:

It's not worth learning many a language that you will never have the opportunity to use.

In general, you use the singular with "many a":

many a man came to try his luck.

The problem is that when you use "many a" you need to treat it as a collection of individual items, not as a group. For example, neither of the two following sentences work:

*Many a man can carry only a small stone, but working together, he could move a mountain.
*Many a man can carry only a small stone, but working together, they could move a mountain.

You have to drop the "many a ..." construction to get this sentence to work:

Many men can carry only a small stone, but working together, they could move a mountain.

You're treating "many a language" as a group in this sentence.

Source Link
Peter Shor
Peter Shor
  • 90.3k
  • 8
  • 186
  • 316

In general, you use the singular with "many a":

many a man came to try his luck.

The problem is that when you use "many a" you need to treat it as a collection of individual items, not as a group. You're treating "many a language" as a group in this sentence. You need to reword it something like:

It's not worth learning many a language that you will never have the opportunity to use.