shall/will IS attached to... (or ARE attached to...)?

[tyrp]

Hello everyone,
I've got quite puzzled recently with the subject-verb agreement. Does a forward slash (/)used between two synonymous subjects ask for a singular or plural verb-predicate?
E.g. Shall/will IS (or ARE ???) attached to the infinitive of the notional verb to form future tenses.
The problem is that if I understand '/' as synonymous with OR, the verb will be in the singular: Shall, or will, is attached...
If, on the contrary, '/' means AND, the verb will be plural: Shall and will are attached....
Actually, the change in the meaning of the whole sentence brought about by the use of OR or AND is very slight and unimportant in the context given. It holds good in either case.

So which is the traditional way of treating '/', and, thus, the form of the verb after it?
Thanks a million in advance!!!

 

[GoesStation]

The forward slash has been used to mean either and or or. This usage has only become widespread fairly recently; I would say too recently to have established any firm tradition.

 

[emsr2d2]

It depends what you call recent. I've been using it for 40 years and it can indeed mean "and" and "or", depending on context.

Please email the date/time of the next meeting. (Here it means "and".)
Dinner Menu: Meat pie with veg/Sausage and mash/Fish and chips/Vegetarian lasagne. (You can choose one of them so it could mean "Dish 1 and Dish 2 and Dish 3 and Dish 4 are available" or "You can choose either Dish 1 or Dish 2 or Dish 3 or Dish 4.")

 

[tyrp]

Dear emsr2d2, thanks a lot for your examples, they are quite illustrative. But which is the best variant in mine above? A friend of mine needs this for a term paper or something of the kind, so he must come up with a definitiely correct pattern (and there are quite many of such phrases in the paper). I was asked for help, and I don't want to let him down. Could you help us both out, please?

 

[emsr2d2]

As I'm sure you know by now, we don't help with homework or assignments, whether they're for members or their friends. Your friend's term paper needs to be his/her own work, not ours.

Thread closed.