A huge crowd was/were present...

[subhajit123]

Should I use was or were in the following sentence?

A huge crowd was/were present in the ground.

 

[GoesStation]

Re: A huge was/were present...

We use was in American English. It doesn't make sense with in, though. Just leave out in the ground and you'll have a complete, logical sentence.

 

[Raymott]

Re: A huge was/were present...

I'll add that even though 'was' is correct, you can write a colloquial sentence like, "A huge crowd was present. They enjoyed the music a lot." - at least in AusE. Obviously, you are now interpreting 'crowd' to mean the people. You can't say, "A huge crowd was present. It enjoyed the music a lot." You can say, "The huge crowd enjoyed the music."

 

[Lynxear]

Re: A huge was/were present...

"ground" can be used but it must be plural.

A huge crowd was present on the grounds.

 

[subhajit123]

Re: A huge was/were present...

"ground" can be used but it must be plural.

A huge crowd was present on the grounds.

Hi everyone, I am still confused. Should I use "a huge crowd was present" or "a huge crowd were present"

 

[emsr2d2]

Re: A huge was/were present...

Use "A huge crowd was present". The clue is in the use of the singular indefinite article at the beginning. To use "were", the sentence would need to be "Huge crowds were present".

I'm not keen on "in the ground" either. However, using "ground" in the singular would be possible in BrE as part of "at the ground". If the crowd had gathered at a football ground (that's what we call a football stadium), then "A huge crowd was present at the ground" would be OK.

 

[subhajit123]

Re: A huge was/were present...

Use "A huge crowd was present". The clue is in the use of the singular indefinite article at the beginning. To use "were", the sentence would need to be "Huge crowds were present".

I'm not keen on "in the ground" either. However, using "ground" in the singular would be possible in BrE as part of "at the ground". If the crowd had gathered at a football ground (that's what we call a football stadium), then "A huge crowd was present at the ground" would be OK.

Then why do some people use phrases like - the crowd were angry?

 

[GoesStation]

Re: A huge was/were present...

Then why do some people use phrases like - the crowd were angry?

Native Anglophones are often unsure about subject-verb agreement.

 

[Lynxear]

Re: A huge was/were present...

Then why do some people use phrases like - the crowd were angry?

Crowd as a noun is not plural. It represents a group of people.

So... "A huge crowd were present." is incorrect and as emsr2d2 points out the use of "a" in the sentence reinforces the fact it was singular.

If I read "Huge crowds were present" , I would assume there were different large groups of people were present each representing a different crowd.

 

[andrewg927]

Re: A huge was/were present...

You can say "the crowd were angry" but cannot say "A crowd were angry."

 

[GoesStation]

Re: A huge was/were present...

Say The crowd was angry.