IN one of the Mind Our English columns, the writer begins by saying: “Each funny story below contains an error. Can you spot them?”

Yes, there are four stories and, therefore, four errors. Yet, I do not feel comfortable with the use of “them” instead of “it”. – I.Ho

The writer should not have used a plural pronoun in the second sentence when there is no plural noun in the first. But to use “it” instead of “them” sounds awkward, because the context denotes there is more than one story and therefore more than one error overall. I would suggest the following:

“Each funny story below contains an error. Can you spot the errors?”

Do or does?

Which is correct in these questions: “do” or “does”?

1. (Do/Does) any of you ...?

2. (Do/Does) any one of you ...?

3. (Do/Does) any of your parents ...? – Jacky

In all your questions, the word “any” is used as a pronoun (it can also function elsewhere as a determiner or an adverb). Definition 2 of “any” as a pronoun in the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary reads: “one or more of a number of people or things, especially when it does not matter which.” Therefore “any” can go with either a singular or a plural verb. The online Compact Oxford English Dictionary agrees with this in its note on the usage of “any” as a pronoun, which says that it “can be used with either a singular or a plural verb, depending on the context.” (www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/any?view=uk)

1. Your question can thus begin with either “Do” or “Does”. Let me give you an example of each alternative from the Internet:

a. “... Can I ask for some comments from biologists – we’ve got several round the table, Derek, Ellen, John, Geoffrey – do any of you want to comment?” (spoken by the chairman of an after-dinner discussion between some academics and the professor who had earlier delivered a special lecture at Cambridge University).

b. Does any of you have any questions about any aspect of that direction?

(spoken by a Judge of a High Court in England to members of the jury during a trial)

2. Here, the singular “Does” ought to be used, because “any one of you” refers to only one person. Here’s an example from a text available online:

And every god preferred some favorite, until vexed with the clamor, Jupiter implored, “If you can have regard for me, consider the strange blessings you desire: does any one of you believe he can prevail against the settled will of Fate?

(from Brookes More’s translation of Metamorphoses, a mythological poem by Ovid, a Roman poet who lived from 43 BC to 17 AD).

3. This is a tricky one. It is usually written as “Do any of your parents ...?” in application forms to universities, or in questionnaires. This seems rather puzzling. Anyone who has applied for an undergraduate course in a British university since 2008 would have encountered the optional question:

“Do any of your parents have any higher education qualifications such as a degree, diploma or certificate of higher education?” in a UCAS (Universities And Colleges Admissions Service) form.

Since such forms have questions directed to only one person, and since we all have only two biological parents, why not ask “Does either or both of your parents ...?” Perhaps “Do any of your parents ...?” can also mean “Does either or both of your parents ...?” (since “any” means “one or more of a number of people”) and also covers students who have had experience of more than two parents in the form of step-parents, etc., as the following question from another application form elaborates:

“Do any of your parents (natural parents, adoptive parents, step-parents or guardians who have brought you up) have any higher education qualifications, such as a degree, diploma or certificate of higher education?”

(from application form to study part-time for the Postgraduate Certificate in Education at Yeovil College, University of Exeter, England)

If the question is asked not in a form or a questionnaire, but to a group of people, “do” should be used, because “any” would probably refer to more than one person. For example, a group of children or adults could be asked: “Do any of your parents speak more than one language?”

“Does any of your parents ...” is hardly ever used in asking a group of people a question.

Apostrophe ‘s’ for plurals?

Can you please enlighten me on an error that The Star makes often?

We use an apostrophe “s” for two reasons: one, to show the possessive and another for contractions. In the case of denoting the plural, we do not use an apostrophe. But The Star tends to use ’s to denote the plural as in the heading, “Girl, blinded in acid attack, scores 9A’s”. Is there an exception? – Kalaimathy Irene George

It is not an error to use an apostrophe “s” after a letter or a figure; it is a choice. The Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (2005) in its Reference pages, says the following in its “Punctuation” section under “apostrophe” (p.R61):

“sometimes, with s to form the plural of a letter, figure or an abbreviation: roll your r’s, during the 1990’s”

Michael Swan, in Practical English Usage (2005) says “Apostrophes are used in the plurals of letters, and sometimes of numbers and abbreviations.” (p.465, 479.3) Among the examples he gives is: “He writes b’s instead of d’s.”

It is very common practice to use an apostrophe after the letter “A” especially, to distinguish “A’s” from the word “As”.

UPSR query

During the course of studying with my grandson who is in Year Six, I happened upon the Astro UPSR series. The English and BM taught are of a higher level than the subjects taught at his school. Also the use of adjectives, adverbs, names (if any), and sentences is subject to those given in the school text. This is in direct contrast to what is taught and the advice given in the programme. All I could tell him was to do at school as his teacher says but in the exam he must follow what is taught over the TV.

He says he may fail if he does this because his teacher says she will be marking the papers. I have assured him this cannot be so but I don’t think he believes me. – Cynthia Hassan

Perhaps you could tell your grandson that the UPSR is a public exam and so his teacher will definitely NOT be marking his papers. If she is marking some UPSR papers, they would come from another school, not her own school, and certainly not her own class.

As well as

The answer given to Yu Siong (MOE, Feb 10) confuses me. In it you say:

1. The farmer as well as the labourers are hard at work. (is)

a. The subject does not include what comes after “as well as”?

Could you please why with examples?

b. So in 1, the verb should be singular to agree with the singular subject, “the farmer”.

If “the farmer” is the subject, what about “labourers”?

What is the correct tense if the answer is “are”?

My English teacher always reminds us that “is” comes with “as well as”. – MOE Chinese reader

In the sentence “The farmer as well as the labourers is hard at work.”, the phrase “as well as” joins two noun phrases, i.e. “the farmer” and “the labourers”. But the two are not of equal importance in the sentence. “The farmer” is more important and is the subject of the sentence. The noun phrase that comes after “as well as” is considered an addition and not one of the subjects. This is also true of noun phrases that come after along with, in addition to, together with, and some other phrases.

Since “the farmer” in the sentence is singular, the singular verb “is” is used.

If the subject is plural, a plural verb is used: “The farmers as well as the labourer are hard at work.”

However, if the two noun phrases are joined by “and” both the phrases are the subjects of the sentence, and a plural verb is used, as in: “The farmer and the labourers are hard at work.

Your question and my answer are NOT about tenses, but subject-verb agreement.

Here are some examples of the use of the other phrases I mentioned:

“California, along with Florida and Hawaii, is among the most popular US tourist destinations.” (online Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary)

“Co-curricular activities, in addition to homework, take up a lot of a pupil’s time outside the classroom.”

“The use of the drug, in addition to aspirin, is associated with an increased risk of bleeding.” (from a government health service website in UK)

“Her father, together with all her brothers has gone to watch a football match.”

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