Questions tagged [disjunction]
The disjunction tag has no usage guidance.
62
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Which is correct - was or were? [closed]
Consider the following sentence:
However, if we were great friends with someone who committed murder or robbed a store, we wouldn’t question whether murder or stealing were bad.
Is this correct as ...
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0
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36
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Commas Around a Disjunct After a Coordinating Conjunction? [duplicate]
Which punctuation is correct for this sentence? :
"I took the dog to the park this morning and, of course, he needed a bath afterwards because he rolled in the mud."
"I took the dog to the park this ...
0
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0
answers
101
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"Neither my mother nor I was" vs "Neither my mother nor I were" [duplicate]
Can anyone clarify which of the following is correct?
"Neither my mother nor I was conscious of rudeness"
"Neither my mother nor I were conscious of rudeness"
I thought it was ...
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0
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0
answers
35
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Singular "is" or plural "are" after a conditional plural expression? [duplicate]
From https://datatracker.ietf.org/doc/html/rfc5280#section-4.2.1.3:
If the keyUsage extension is present, then the subject public key MUST
NOT be used to verify signatures on certificates or CRLs ...
- 101
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0
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34
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Subject–verb agreement with neither and nor [duplicate]
When using neither and nor in a sentence, how do you deal with subject–verb agreement?
For example, which one of this pair is the more acceptable of the two?
Neither German nor English show ...
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2
answers
145
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"I don't know whether/*if or not I passed"
Wiktionary says
The sentences “I don't know whether or not I passed” or “I don't know whether/if I passed or not” are both correct.
The sentence […] but “I don't know if or not I passed” is ...
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-1
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1
answer
70
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Wording a sentence for "A, B, C, D, or E" with inclusive and exclusive "or"
In my papers, I often need to formulate disjunctions textually (for example, when providing conditions for the fulfillment of a statement).
Let's see two examples:
When you eat (a) apple, (b) pear, (...
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1
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174
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Singular or Plural in conjunction with OR condition that could include one or more objects [duplicate]
Which one is accurate?
...when one or two individuals do not have [an ID] or [IDs]
another example:
...this is the case when one or two students [are] or [is] missing
Theoretically, if one ...
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5
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pronoun agreement in neither nor
Which one is correct?
Neither my friend nor I feel my best in the morning.
Neither my friend nor I feel her best in the morning.
Neither my friend nor I feel our best in the morning.
I already know ...
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2
votes
1
answer
49
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Multiple possessives of a single object linked by 'or'
In the sentence, 'NCA offers a tool to measure a country's or region's natural capital', are one or both of country and region possessive (country's or region's vs. country or region's)? Ownership is ...
1
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2
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"Neither of us are" -vs- "Neither one of us is" [duplicate]
This cartoon was recently posted on Facebook. My sister (who is a retired HS English teacher) says the grammar is wrong and that the correct wording should be: "Neither one of us is." but I disagree.
...
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2
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Are there errors related to grammatical number in this sentence from an English textbook?
Children always appreciate small gifts of money. Mum or dad, of course, provide a regular supply of pocket money, but uncles and aunts are always a source of extra income.
This is a sentence from "...
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1
answer
671
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Subject-verb agreement with "whether" [duplicate]
Which of the following choices makes this sentence is grammatically correct? or is there a better approach?
It's unclear whether he/him or I/me is/are first in line.
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2
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4k
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Confused about the answer for "Neither the employees nor the owner (cares/care) about the customer." [duplicate]
I'm sorry I couldn't be more specific in my question title. I don't have the vocabulary to pinpoint what exactly I have difficulties with yet; therefore, I'll try to explain through examples.
I came ...
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2
answers
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What verb? Neither you nor I [duplicate]
Neither you nor I are going to the show, or, Neither you nor I am going to the show
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1
answer
302
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"a time when you or a relative were/was a patient" [duplicate]
Is the following sentence correct?
Don't be afraid to talk about a time when you or a relative were a patient.
Or should it be one of the following:
Don't be afraid to talk about a time you or ...
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6
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Is it "John or Mary's house" or "John's or Mary's house"?
I understand that if John and Mary own a house together, it is John and Mary's house. If they jointly owned multiple houses, they would be John and Mary's houses. I also understand that if John and ...
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3
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306
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With which noun should a verb following "(person) or I" agree?
In the sentence below, should the bolded word be prepare or prepares?
When my family eats at home, my mom or I prepares the meal.
Normally, I would side with the verb agreeing with its ...
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2
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127
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"I don’t want your Facebook or Twitter account as I don’t use it" vs. "...don't use them"
Two singular subjects connected by or should always take a singular pronoun. This is what I have understood. But if I want to write something like this then the second one looks more natural to me:
...
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4
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283
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.. or .. which ... - does the which apply to both options?
Hi I'm not sure of the exact meaning of this sentence:
You may not engage in private practice or be connected with any outside business which would interfere with the performance of official duties.
...
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0
answers
59
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Noun-verb agreement for a list of singular nouns including "I" and joined by "or" [duplicate]
I understand that when you have a list of singular nouns joined by "or", you should use a singular verb.
Example:
Either Chris or Len is the next player
But what verb do you use if one of the ...
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1
answer
157
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What is the rule that describes the usage of "or" between multiple adjectives describing the same noun? [closed]
What is the rule that describes the use of "or" in these sentences?
"Do you want strawberry or grape jelly?"
"Can I drive the red, blue, or green car?"
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vote
1
answer
409
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"There (are/were/is/was) no pus or polyps." Which is correct?
Someome asked me which of these sentences is correct:
There are no pus or polyps.
Or
There were no pus or polyps.
Honestly, both sound wrong to me. I'd say, there was neither pus nor polyps.
...
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0
votes
1
answer
1k
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"Is" or "are" when one item is singular, the other plural [duplicate]
Would you say:
There is no fire or hot ashes in the fireplace.
or
There are no fire or hot ashes in the fireplace.
And where does that question mark go?
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3
votes
1
answer
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Neither the plates nor the serving bowl "goes" or "go" on that shelf? [duplicate]
Neither the plates nor the serving bowl goes on that shelf.
Neither the plates nor the serving bowl go on that shelf.
What form of the verb is better in this context, singular or plural? Which ...
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votes
1
answer
128
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Subjunctive that has no subject? [duplicate]
Like it or not, . . . (Whether you like it or not)
I've come across this kind of phrase many times, but this is the only one--among no-subject subjunctives--that I can be sure it's common and right ...
- 1,319
-1
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2
answers
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Usage of neither in a sentence [closed]
Is the sentence "Neither of Jack and Jill is present here" correct? I want to use "neither" and "and" in a sentence.
0
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1
answer
3k
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Is it “set A or B” or “sets A or B”?
Here is my sentence:
The report further identifies two partial sets, which are not in themselves default sets but which one can—wholly or partly—combine with default sets A or B, or ...
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1
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It wasn't someone or I vs. It wasn't me or someone (usage in denial statement) [duplicate]
If one was to state that neither him or another person committed a certain act, how would that be phrased with proper grammar?
ex. Who broke that window?
It wasn't me or Steve.
vs.
It wasn't Steve ...
-1
votes
1
answer
609
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Is it right to use a singular form of the verb in this sentence?
I wanted to know if it is grammatically correct to say:
Either the teacher or the students WAS enjoying the picnic.
I'm talking about a grammatical principle and not a proximity or attraction one.
...
4
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3
answers
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Is it correct to use “or” in place of “and/or”?
Consider the following sentence:
A project is a large and/or complex undertaking.
To me, the expression “and/or” seems redundant since in formal logic “or” implies “...
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2
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595
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Which variation of this sentence would be correct? Are vs. Is [duplicate]
I'm curious which I should use of the following:
If you or someone you know are having troubles logging on to VMware, please ask Bob Smith for help.
If you or someone you know is having troubles ...
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1
answer
2k
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why is there a difference in the usage of "neither...nor" in similar sentences? [duplicate]
look at these two sentences:
neither the coach nor the players are going to the beach.
neither the players nor the coach is going to the beach.
why does one sentence use "are" while the other has "...
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4
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1
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Using "nor" at the end of a list begun with "no" [duplicate]
Which is correct?
"The book has no marks, tears, wrinkles or writing."
"The book has no marks, tears, wrinkles nor writing."
(I understand the use of neither/nor and either/or.) In this ...
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2
answers
482
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Mixed person subjects and verb agreement
Please consider this sentence.
"Not for as long as I or Patricia Smith live will you be allowed to forget that."
In this sentence, I've chosen to write live as I believe it is more correct as it ...
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1
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4k
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Neither is or are [duplicate]
Should this be neither is or neither are?
Neither of these two books is suitable.
Neither of these two books are suitable.
Which one is correct?
3
votes
2
answers
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Either + plural noun + plural verb
I know that "either" is singular as is "neither". But I've seen it used as a plural pronoun. Take this sentence for example:
It's the only chance either of us have of getting home.
Is this usage ...
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vote
1
answer
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Can "nor" be used without "neither"?
I came across this sentence:
Cummings Motors, Smith Electric nor our subcontractors can be held liable.
Is this a proper use of the word nor?
I can understand
Neither Cummings Motors nor Smith ...
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5
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"Either A, or B, or both"
I want to say that it's possible that at least one of {A,B} is true, and possibly both of them are true. Is it correct to phrase it as "either A, or B, or both are true".
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Controversy over verb choice in "neither you nor I {is/am/are} in control"
I was watching the film A Game of Shadows starring Robert Downey Junior and Jude Law when this line came up, "...neither you nor I is in control..." (I can’t remember the exact words that ended the ...
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3
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Singular or plural verb after a series connected by "or"
The following sentence refers to an apocalyptic story where money no longer has any value:
A can of sardines, radio batteries, or a bicycle is/are more precious than money.
Should I use is or are ...
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What form of the verb is used with compound subjects containing "or"?
We always get work done, regardless of what mood Bill or I is/am/are in.
Which form of 'be' would be used here?
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Is it good style to factor out the common root word of two (or more) prefixed compound words?
I see sometimes in conjunciton or disjunction, the common root of two or more compound words are factored out, for example, "super- and sub-script" (maybe bad example, but it suffices to describe the ...
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1
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When a sentence contains both “not” and “or”, which one has priority?
I am changing a piece of text which current reads:
Payment not deducted
to also include the situation where payments are withheld. The suggested revision of text given to me is
Payment not ...
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2
answers
1k
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Which of several or’d-together subjects should the verb agree with? [duplicate]
There are instances when I have difficulties with the agreement between the subject and the predicate. Which of these should I say:
Neither you nor I am to blame
Neither you nor I are to blame.
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answer
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Correct use of is/are in a list of pronouns [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Using “are/is” after a list with “and/or”
My company's website recently received an E-mail stating there was a grammatical error in our greeting message. The sentence in ...
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3
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3k
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Is "tell neither X nor Y" equivalent to "not tell both X and Y" or "not tell either X and Y"? [closed]
Given the sentence "John told neither the boss nor the secretary.", which of the following has the same meaning?
John did not tell both the boss and the secretary.
John did not tell either the ...
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2
answers
577
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Is this 'neither' a determiner?
However, this mirror will give us neither knowledge or truth. (Harry
Potter book 1, p213)
However, this mirror will give us neither knowledge nor truth.
As I’m accustomed to ‘neither~nor’ ...
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1
answer
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Using "are/is" after a list with "and/or" [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Singular or plural following a list
James and Mark are going to help you.
Here, I use 'are' because the subject is plural.
James or Mark are going to help you.
James or Mark is ...
9
votes
1
answer
20k
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When should we use proximity rule in "either/or", and "neither/nor"?
According to this link, if at least one of the nouns involved is plural then it should take the plural form of the verb. Otherwise, it should take the singular form of the verb. But in the last part ...
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