# team is or team are??



## Beatrix Kiddo

Hello!!

Is team plural or singular??

Thanks!!


----------



## Sallyb36

Team is singular, teams is plural


----------



## pacadansc

This is a tricky one. It is always helpful to see some kind of context for a grammatical question, but I will try to give you a general answer. 

The general rule for collective nouns like team, family, committee, etc., is to use the singular verb to show that the group is considered as one unit: Our team (it) is playing today.
The commitee (it) has reached a decision.

The plural verb can be used to emphasize the individual members of the group: 
The italian team (they) are the world champions.
The committee (they) have reached a decision.

This latter usage is often confusing even for native speakers.

It can be confusing on one hand because in english, the singular and plural form of the verb are often the same:
The committee (it) came to a decision.
The committee (they) came to a decision.
The team (it) arrived home today.
The team (they) arrived home today.

Often we get around this confusion by adding the word "members" to the sentence: 
The committee members have reached a decision.
The team members arrived home today.

It can also be confusing because of differences in usage in Briitsh English or in American English, or even regional differences.

I hope you find this explanation useful.


----------



## sound shift

Yo hablo BE, así que diría,
_Manchester United have _(pl) _scored_.


----------



## Jonah D. Conner

Although I agree that it could be possible to use a plural verb with 'team' without breaking any rules, I rarely hear it in the U.S. and do not use it myself.


----------



## Dueño de Brucéfalo

Bueno, yo suelo decir "the band is on stage" u otras cosas semejantes....pero los aficionados de Metallica, por ejemplo, siempre dicen "Metallica are going on tour this fall" y siempre me molesta, porque "Metallica" es una banda, visto como una cosa.


----------



## anothersmith

Jonah D. Conner said:


> Although I agree that it could be possible to use a plural verb with 'team' without breaking any rules, I rarely hear it in the U.S. and do not use it myself.



This is true unless you're saying the name of the team and the name is plural:  "The Dodger*s* *have* won the World Series."  (Compare:  "UCLA (sing.) *has* won the game.")


----------



## sound shift

I would never say "Manchester United *has *scored/lost/been relegated", but then I speak BE.

I keep reading "[Insert name of band] *has *just released *their* fifth album", which I think is sloppy and wrong.


----------



## anothersmith

sound shift said:


> I would never say "Manchester United *has *scored/lost/been relegated", but then I speak BE.
> 
> I keep reading "[Insert name of band] *has *just released *their* fifth album", which I think is sloppy and wrong.



By the same token, it sounds strange to someone from the U.S. to hear "U2 have just released an album."  It's just one of those differences between the two sides of the pond.


----------



## sound shift

anothersmith said:


> By the same token, it sounds strange to someone from the U.S. to hear "U2 have just released an album."  It's just one of those differences between the two sides of the pond.


Perhaps I didn't make myself clear. By all means say "U2 *has *released an album" if you want to, but "has", which is singular, doesn't go with "their", which is plural, so I regard "U2 has released *their *20th album" as incorrect. It is not a theoretical example - I see that type of construction all the time in record reviews.


----------



## JackInMadrid

To me, from the UK, when you name the team/band, it sounds better using the plural:

Metallica are awesome (though the drummer is a bit of a pesado)
Manchester United have lost the game 

But 
Without naming a band, to me, both sound alright (no-one on the street will care less):
The band is gonna tour this summer
The band are gonna tour this summer

Without naming a team, the singular sounds better to me:
The team is on a winning streak
The team are on a winning streak (not quite so nice on the ears)

The team needs to win some games
The team need to win some games (not quite so nice on the ears)

This seems to be quite a subjective topic, therefore feel free to disregard me. Though it seems in the USA you should only use the singular (unless the team name is a plural (eg The Dodgers)) and in the UK, well we're just all confused about it.

Jack


----------



## sanjosanjo

It's interesting.  As a native English (American) speaker, I read this forum to improve my Spanish.  But here is an example where I have improved my English.   

I also have commonly seen the sentence construction: "U2 *has *released *their *20th album".  I've heard (and used) this so much that it actually sounds wrong to hear "U2 *have *released *their *20th album".   I will need to pay attention to this more while I'm speaking.


----------



## jacinta

Or saying, "U2 has released *its* 20th album".  It sounds wrong to refer to people as "its".
We are so used to using *their* as an impersonal his or her that it sounds wrong not to use it.

The next person to ask to go to the bathroom will lose *their* priviledges for the semester.
I am quite to blame.


----------



## Reina140

jacinta said:


> Or saying, "U2 has released *its* 20th album". It sounds wrong to refer to people as "its".
> We are so used to using *their* as an impersonal his or her that it sounds wrong not to use it.
> 
> The next person to ask to go to the bathroom will lose *their* priviledges for the semester.
> I am quite to blame.


 
U2 has released their 20th album . . . sounds fine to me.  That's the way I've always said it.  And the impersonal his or her . . . that is not correct?

WOW . . . confusing!


----------



## AmethystSW

Reina140 said:


> U2 has released their 20th album . . . sounds fine to me. That's the way I've always said it. And the impersonal his or her . . . that is not correct?
> 
> WOW . . . confusing!


According to the Webster's Online Dictionary it is correct.

http://www.m-w.com/dictionary/their
http://www.m-w.com/dictionary/they


----------



## Reina140

AmethystSW said:


> According to the Webster's Online Dictionary it is correct.
> 
> http://www.m-w.com/dictionary/their
> http://www.m-w.com/dictionary/they


 
So then the sentence "U2 has released their first album" is entirely correct."


----------



## invisibleu

"*has* released *their*" doesn't sound good to me (I'd always say "have released their"), but looks like it's another one of those transatlantic differences.


----------



## Reina140

invisibleu said:


> "*has* released *their*" doesn't sound good to me (I'd always say "have released their"), but looks like it's another one of those transatlantic differences.


 
Yes, I went to word and typed in that sentence and then used the grammar and spelling check, and it didn't find any problems.


----------



## jacinta

invisibleu said:


> "*has* released *their*" doesn't sound good to me (I'd always say "have released their"), but looks like it's another one of those transatlantic differences.



Yes it is, exactly. You´re right and we´re right!


----------



## Dueño de Brucéfalo

Well, for me personally, it sounds wrong to hear anyone say anything about U2 releasing any album at all. It's just that the idea of a band like U2 being allowed to make music is offensive to me.  

*ANYWAY*...this also applies to nouns like "the media" when used to talk about all the various news networks taken as a collective whole. I would say, for example: "The American media *is* biased."


----------



## Jellby

Reina140 said:


> Yes, I went to word and typed in that sentence and then used the grammar and spelling check, and it didn't find any problems.



Of course, it has no way to know whether they released *their own* album or someone else's. I could also release their album if I was a rich man.


----------



## mulmex

I'm just a stupid old English teacher, but this is a case of common usage versus correct usage.  
Technically the verb must agree with the subject.  U2 refers to the group U2 which is singular (even though it has more than one person in it).  So, technically U2 has released their fifth album *is incorrect*.  But the real point here is *who cares*?  Only stupid English teachers.  In reality, the use of plural possessive adjectives is so common that it doesn't confuse the idea that is being communicated.  So, even though it's incorrect, it's *OK*.


----------



## mulmex

another point:
then used the grammar and spelling check, and it didn't find any problems.
The spell check in MS Word is fine, the grammar check is absolutely useless.  It constantly makes incorrect recommendations.  I turn my grammar check off to avoid confusion.


----------



## Erasmoose06

It depends on which form of English you are speaking.

Being from the United States, I would say, "Renault *is *winning the championship this year." 

But in the United Kingdom, they would say, "Renault *are* winning the championship this year."

Both are acceptable and both understood to be grammatically correct. Interestingly, in Spanish, a word such as "la gente" (the people) is considered singular, although it refers to a collective group of people. In English, "the people" is considered plural and equally refers to a collective group of people. 

*Example:*

English: "The people *are* ready."

Español: "La gente *está* lista."

They are both conveying the same message, but in English, regardless of where you are on the globe, "the people" is plural.


----------



## mulmex

Interesting

 But in the United Kingdom, they would say, "Renault *are* winning the championship this year."

Since I don't live in the UK, I don't know, but I accept that this is true.  
However, I bet no Brit would say:  "My team *are* winning the championship this year."


----------



## Erasmoose06

Agreed. One would never say, "My team are winning," but rather "My team is winning."

I suppose it's just one of those things, right?


----------



## invisibleu

mulmex said:


> However, I bet no Brit would say: "My team *are* winning the championship this year."


Don't bet your mortgage on it :

From Google:

The Times Online:_ Imagine the goalkeeper deciding to charge up the other end for a last-minute corner when his *team are winning* 1-0 at Old Trafford._

The Guardian: _None of the above is mentioned when the *team are winning*, but that safety net has gone._

BBC Sport: _Arsene Wenger's *team are winning* an unwanted reputation as men who refuse to go_ _quietly..._


----------



## mulmex

¡Hijole!   I should have said, no self-respecting Brit


----------

