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It's Grammar time

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K

Kev

Lifer
There have been a number of complaints.

There has been a number of complaints.


Which one is correct, and why?


I'm thinking it should be has, because number is singular.
 


<< Indeed it is. >>

Cool - I'm glad someone got the joke.

azazyel -- "There has been a number of complaints." I thought that's what it was. The reason I made this thread is that both Microsoft word and my English professor say it should be have. Has the whole world gone mad?
 
English teachers screw up all the time. This has/have case is, IMHO, easy to confuse because I want to make complaints the DO, and not include it in the prepositional phrase.

The most common english teacher screwups, in my experience, are "I am well" and "I feel poorly," not "I am good" (or "I am doing well") and "I feel bad."

Nobody cares about adverb use any more 🙂
 


<< So it is has...? >>


It am has.
No, it are has.
No...must conserve power... Linguo shutting down.
 
While we're on the subject of grammar, why the heck are so many people having problems between using Lose and Loose (or loser and looser, for that matter). I once saw a fan's sign on ESPN that said "Rocker is a LOOSER" - WTF?
 
my worst peeves for using wrong words

there - means "a place" The book was sitting over there.
their - means "possession" It was their book.

and

your - means "possession" That is your book.
you're - means "you are" You're going to fail English class.

PLEASE learn the correct usage for each of these.
 
The subject of the sentence is "complaints", which is plural, and not number, so it should be ?have? in my opinion.
 


<< The subject of the sentence is "complaints", which is plural, and not number, so it should be ?have? in my opinion. >>



This is completely correct. The subject of the sentence is "complaints". "a number of" is called an indefinite quantifier, which acts as an adjective to the subject. Thus, the verb of the sentence would take the number of the suject, which is plural.

"There have been a number of complaints." would be correct.
 


<< The subject of the sentence is "complaints", which is plural, and not number, so it should be ?have? in my opinion. >>

I disagree. "number" is the direct object, "of complaints" is the indirect object. The verb tense matches the direct object. (has been a number)
 
It it were one complaint it would be "has". More than one, it's "have". "Have" complaints.. "Has" had a complaint...
 


<< I disagree. "number" is the direct object, "of complaints" is the indirect object. The verb tense matches the direct object. (has been a number) >>



Wow, this disregard for a couple basic principles of the English language is funny. For starters, according to you, the sentence doesn't have a subject. All sentences have subjects, whether stated or understood (and don't say it's "there", "there" is an expletive that starts a sentence). Secondly, the verb phrase, "have been" is a form of "to be" which never has a direct object. After all, you can't exist upon something.
 


<<

<< I disagree. "number" is the direct object, "of complaints" is the indirect object. The verb tense matches the direct object. (has been a number) >>



Wow, this disregard for a couple basic principles of the English language is funny. For starters, according to you, the sentence doesn't have a subject. All sentences have subjects, whether stated or understood (and don't say it's "there", "there" is an expletive that starts a sentence). Secondly, the verb phrase, "have been" is a form of "to be" which never has a direct object. After all, you can't exist upon something. >>



I agree with Basilisk6.
 
This question can be resolved by restructuring the sentence:

- a number of complaints HAVE been lodged (CORRECT)
- a number of complaints HAS been lodged (you wouldn't say this)

---

Hi,

Welcome to AnandTech Forums. I locked the thread because the last previous reply was almost fourteen years ago.

Our members refer to such posts as "necro" posts, and some of them tend to post replies ranging from sarcastic to hostile, including possible accusations of spamming, whether warranted or not.

You are welcome to continue posting on our forums. Thanks for understanding. We hope you enjoy yourself on our forums. 🙂

Harvey
Senior AnandTech Moderator/Administrator
 
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STOP! GRAMMAR TIME!

"A number of" normally means more than one, otherwise one should simply say "a complaint."

"There has been two complaints"? No.
 
My biggest pet peeves are could of/would of instead of could have/would have
and incorrect usage of it's and its. It shows that someone has no understanding of grammar, but I guess it's different for me because English is not my first language so I studied grammar in depth while most native speakers did not or just didn't pay any attention. To be fair I never bothered to study the grammar of my native language but I don't make any spelling mistakes in my native language anyway. I can't say that about English.
Edit:
I didn't notice that this thread is from 2002 😀
 
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'There have been a number of complaints' is correct.

Using 'has' makes you sound outright retarded. There is not even a question here; if someone claims 'has' is right, they are dumb and should not be trusted with anything ever. Doesn't matter if it can somehow be 'technically' right; it's expressing the wrong thought. And if I haven't mentioned: it sounds dumb as shit.
 
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