"A new episode of a series"

[Rachel Adams]

Is it wrong to use "a" before "series"?


"My friend thinks watching movies is an unhealthy activity. It is becoming popular even among young women to lay on a sofa and watch a new episode of a series."

 

[5jj]

No.

'lay' should be 'lie'.

 

[Rachel Adams]

No.

'lay' should be 'lie'.

Why is acceptable to use it before "series" a noun which has the plural form? :shock:.

 

[5jj]

https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/series?q=series_1

 

[Rachel Adams]

https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/series?q=series_1

There is no explanation, unfortunately.

 

[Rachel Adams]

https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/series?q=series_1

Can I use "a serial" instead of "series"? "It is becoming popular even among young women to lie on a sofa and watch a new episode of a serial."

 

[5jj]

Yes, but it has a different meaning.

 

[Rachel Adams]

Yes, but it has a different meaning.

Thus a new episode of "The Medici" TV series or serial but not "serials". Right?

 

[slevlife]

Why is acceptable to use it before "series" a noun which has the plural form? :shock:.

Series is not plural in your sentence. There are multiple episodes in a single TV series.

Series is a countable noun. That's indicated by the "[C]" in the dictionary entry 5jj linked you to. If you have multiple series, the word is unchanged because it's a zero plural (the dictionary entry shows that the plural form is series).

She watched the latest episode of the series. [singular]
She watched the latest episodes of all her favorite series. [plural]

Series will normally be interpreted as singular unless the context and/or supporting words and grammar indicate you are talking about multiple series (as I have done here with "episodes" and "all her favorite"). The plurality can be ambiguous, and using it in an ambiguous way is likely to make your sentence sound like an error or unnatural. Thus, we're more likely to avoid the zero plural series in favor of a less ambiguous plural like shows.

 

[5jj]

There is no explanation, unfortunately.

The dictionary entry I linked you to shows that 'series' is a countable noun. The plural form is 'series', i.e., its plural form is the same as its singular.
What more do you want?

 

[Rachel Adams]

The dictionary entry I linked you to shows that 'series' is a countable noun. The plural form is 'series', i.e., its plural form is the same as its singular.
What more do you want?

An answer to this: Thus a new episode of "The Medici" TV series or serial but not "serials". Right? Post #8.

 

[Rachel Adams]

Series is not plural in your sentence. There are multiple episodes in a single TV series.

Series is a count noun. If you have multiple series, the word is unchanged because it's a zero plural.

She watched the latest episode of the series. [singular]
She watched the latest episodes of all her favorite series. [plural]

The plurality can be ambiguous. It will normally be interpreted as singular unless the context and/or supporting words and grammar indicate you are talking about multiple series (as I have done here with "episodes" and "all her favorite"). We're more likely to avoid the zero plural series in favor of a less ambiguous plural like "shows."

But saying "Watch a new series of a serial" is wrong. It should be either a new episode of a series or a new episode of a serial. Am I right?

 

[slevlife]

It should be either a new episode of a series or a new episode of a serial. Am I right?

Yes. But as 5jj already pointed out, they are not perfect synonyms. Also, we rarely use "serial" to describe TV shows in American English.

 

[emsr2d2]

I am intrigued to know why your piece suggests that it's surprising that young women (or women of any age) want to lie on a sofa and watch the latest episode of their favourite TV series. Where did you get the idea that this activity was the preserve of the male of the species?

 

[Rachel Adams]

I am intrigued to know why your piece suggests that it's surprising that young women (or women of any age) want to lie on a sofa and watch the latest episode of their favourite TV series. Where did you get the idea that this activity was the preserve of the male of the species?

I can say I almost never express any personal ideas in short pieces I post. I am asking about grammar.

 

[emsr2d2]

I can say I almost never express any personal ideas in short pieces I post. I am asking about grammar.

I know you're asking about grammar but you wrote the piece. Let me ask you this from a grammatical point of view then - did you intend, grammatically, for your piece to suggest that it is surprising that young women want to lie on the sofa and watch TV?

 

[Rachel Adams]

I know you're asking about grammar but you wrote the piece. Let me ask you this from a grammatical point of view then - did you intend, grammatically, for your piece to suggest that it is surprising that young women want to lie on the sofa and watch TV?

Grammatically -yes. I know many people in their early thirties who don't do any sport at all. They are young but already quite fat. It seems they don't really care about that. This is the lifestyle of many people here who don't work. It's not my business, though. I also know lots of other people who would agree with what this piece suggests. People should definitely care about their looks and health.

 

[Tarheel]

You don't have to play sports to be in shape. Also, just because you watch TV for an hour that doesn't mean you do it all day.

 

[emsr2d2]

I know you're asking about grammar but you wrote the piece. Let me ask you this from a grammatical point of view then - did you intend, grammatically, for your piece to suggest that it is surprising that young women want to lie on the sofa and watch TV?

Grammatically -yes. I know many people in their early thirties who don't do any sport at all. They are young but already quite fat. It seems they don't really care about that. This is the lifestyle of many people here who don't work. It's not my business, though. I also know lots of other people who would agree with what this piece suggests. People should definitely care about their looks and health.

You haven't really answered my question. I have marked in bold the part I am asking if you intended it to mean grammatically. It still seems to suggest that this activity is to be expected of men but not of women. I'm not clear if that was your intention.

 

[Rachel Adams]

You haven't really answered my question. I have marked in bold the part I am asking if you intended it to mean grammatically. It still seems to suggest that this activity is to be expected of men but not of women. I'm not clear if that was your intention.

Oh, sorry. I missed that part. No, I didn't mean to express the idea that lying on a sofa is common or expected of the local men not women. I think both men and women should be mentioned to avoid the confusion.