favorite

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beachboy

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This is one of the most common questions in forums, and I´ll ask again just to check my understanding, and to help other students who haven´t thought about it yet. Here it goes:
What´s your favorite fruit?
My favorite fruit is oranges (or orange)
Oranges are (Orange is) my favorite fruit
My favorite fruit is watermelon
Watermelon is my favorite fruit
My favorite fruit is strawberries
Strawberries are my favorite fruit
Watermelon
Oranges
If it´s right, does the answer to the question depend on the number of items I can eat at once? And how would a native normally answer this question?
 

TheParser

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This is one of the most common questions in forums, and I´ll ask again just to check my understanding, and to help other students who haven´t thought about it yet. Here it goes:
What´s your favorite fruit?
My favorite fruit is oranges (or orange)
Oranges are (Orange is) my favorite fruit
My favorite fruit is watermelon
Watermelon is my favorite fruit
My favorite fruit is strawberries
Strawberries are my favorite fruit
Watermelon
Oranges
If it´s right, does the answer to the question depend on the number of items I can eat at once? And how would a native normally answer this question?

***** NOT A TEACHER *****

. Good morning, Beachboy.

(1) Yes, this is, indeed, a favorite topic.

(2) I think that you understand it well:

(a) My favorite fruit (singular) IS oranges.

(b) Oranges (plural) ARE my favorite fruit.

*****

Onr book says that even native speakers may want to say:

My favorite fruit are oranges (because their minds are thinking about

"oranges," not "fruit," but they realize that it is "bad" English, so they

follow the rule. )

Have a nice day!
 

beachboy

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Have a nice day too!
 

bertietheblue

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We would say:

My favourite fruit is oranges (plural oranges)

But would we say:

My favourite fruit is watermelon (singular watermelon)

or
My favourite fruit is watermelons (plural watermelon as with oranges)?

And if 'watermelon', is it because we would be unlikely to eat more than one watermelon? I'm trying to think what I would say and to be honest I'd probably say 'watermelon' even though it's a countable noun like oranges.
 
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