# which is/are



## raymondaliasapollyon

Hi,

Suppose there is a reading passage with a question such as the following, and readers are asked to identify multiple true statements. Should "are" or "is" be used? Note there is no "of the following statements" after "which," although it's implied.

According to the passage, which *are/is* true?
(A) ...
(B) ...
(C) ...
(D) ...

I'd appreciate your help.


----------



## nightowl666

If it uses " are" , it means more than one choice should be true. If "is" is used, only one choice is the correct answer.


----------



## grassy

nightowl666 said:


> If it uses " are" , it means more than one choice should be true.


... which means 'are' fits since there are multiple true statements. 😊


----------



## suzi br

grassy said:


> ... which means 'are' fits since there are multiple true statements. 😊


Not really. 
We use IS if only one is correct. 
It’s a guide to students in multi-choice questions, are they looking for one answer (is) or more (are). 
With are, they can ALL be correct.


----------



## grassy

suzi br said:


> We use IS if only one is correct.


Yes, and this does not fit the context described in the OP.


----------



## suzi br

grassy said:


> Yes, and this does not fit the context described in the OP.


Sorry. 
I missed that detail.


----------



## raymondaliasapollyon

suzi br said:


> Sorry.
> I missed that detail.



Do you think the bare "According to the passage, which *are* true?" is as natural as the more detailed "According to the passage, which of the following statements *are* true"?


----------



## suzi br

I would not see any advantage in shortening it that way. It's too short.  Maybe "which of these are true?" 
You want to be as clear as you can for students in test conditions.


----------



## raymondaliasapollyon

suzi br said:


> I would not see any advantage in shortening it that way. It's too short.  Maybe "which of these are true?"
> You want to be as clear as you can for students in test conditions.



I'm investigating whether "which are" is natural in English (when "which" is an interrogative pronoun, of course), whether in test conditions or not.


----------



## nightowl666

Neil R. Nicholson：_ A Transition to Proof: An Introduction to Advanced Mathematics_​


----------



## heypresto

This implies that only _one _of the two statements is true.

If it had said 'Which of the following statements *are *true?' it would imply they were _both _true. Hardly a sensible question.


----------



## raymondaliasapollyon

nightowl666 said:


> View attachment 74417
> Neil R. Nicholson：_ A Transition to Proof: An Introduction to Advanced Mathematics_​View attachment 74424
> View attachment 74422



Thank you, but I am asking about the bare "which are," not "which of the following ... are."

And I'm asking native speakers.


----------



## heypresto

How many of the statements A, B, C and D in your question are true?


----------



## raymondaliasapollyon

heypresto said:


> How many of the statements A, B, C and D in your question are true?



Presumably, at least two.


----------



## suzi br

raymondaliasapollyon said:


> I'm investigating whether "which are" is natural in English (when "which" is an interrogative pronoun, of course), whether in test conditions or not.


I did answer that too. 
It’s too short, in most circumstances. 

You might say “which are” in a conversation, thus: 
A. There are lots of good reasons to wear pink clothes 
Long pause
B Which are?

It’s chatty, there.


----------



## heypresto

raymondaliasapollyon said:


> Presumably, at least two.



Then 'Which of these/the following (statements) *are *true?'


----------



## Forero

suzi br said:


> I did answer that too.
> It’s too short, in most circumstances.
> 
> You might say “which are” in a conversation, thus:
> A. There are lots of good reasons to wear pink clothes
> Long pause
> B Which are?
> 
> It’s chatty, there.


That's the relative pronoun, not the interrogative pronoun.


----------



## nightowl666

raymondaliasapollyon said:


> Thank you, but I am asking about the bare "which are," not "which of the following ... are."
> 
> And I'm asking native speakers.


I am not a native speaker, but what I've quoted is derived from English books written by native speakers:





by Kathy Sierra, Bert Bates, Elisabeth Robson
OCP Java SE 8 Programmer II Exam Guide (Exam 1Z0-809)​


----------



## raymondaliasapollyon

heypresto said:


> Then 'Which of these/the following (statements) *are *true?'



Thank you. Let's consider a different scenario to see if your answer is the same:

Suppose there are 10 individually packed and numbered balls, and you know some of them are blue. Is the following "which are" natural if the sentence is intended as a request to identify the blue balls?

Which are blue?


----------



## RM1(SS)

Forero said:


> That's the relative pronoun, not the interrogative pronoun.



A. "There are lots of good reasons to wear pink clothes."
Long pause
B "[There are lots of good reasons to wear pink clothes], which are...?"


----------



## suzi br

Forero said:


> That's the relative pronoun, not the interrogative pronoun.


I don’t see your point. 

The OP is asking if native speakers use “which are” as a bare question and I said “generally not”, but I have heard it in the context I created.


----------



## suzi br

raymondaliasapollyon said:


> Thank you. Let's consider a different scenario to see if your answer is the same:
> 
> Suppose there are 10 individually packed and numbered balls, and you know some of them are blue. Is the following "which are" natural if the sentence is intended as a request to identify the blue balls?
> 
> Which are blue?


Still no. 
Which of these are blue?


----------



## raymondaliasapollyon

suzi br said:


> Still no.
> Which of these are blue?



Thank you. Let's compare how the singular "which is" fares in a slightly different scenario:

Suppose there are 10 individually packed and numbered balls, and you know only one of them is blue. Is the following "which is" natural if the sentence is intended as a request to identify the one and only blue ball?

Which is blue?


----------



## suzi br

Still no. 
I’d say Which is the blue one?
Or 
which one is blue?


----------



## raymondaliasapollyon

suzi br said:


> Still no.
> I’d say Which is the blue one?
> Or
> which one is blue?



How about "Which are the blue ones" when it is used in the first 10-ball scenario?


----------



## heypresto

raymondaliasapollyon said:


> How about "Which are the blue ones" when it is used in the first 10-ball scenario?


 This is OK. Or 'Which ones are blue?'


----------



## Forero

raymondaliasapollyon said:


> Do you think the bare "According to the passage, which *are* true?" is as natural as the more detailed "According to the passage, which of the following statements *are* true"?


Yes, if the context makes clear what you are talking about. For example, a statement at the top of a list of questions may give more explicit instructions, such as "Under each question, indicate each applicable answer by placing a checkmark in front of the letter."

It is sometimes possible to arrange a question so that it frames the choices.


			
				Example1 said:
			
		

> Any of the following are obviously possible:
> (A) ...
> (B) ...
> (C) ...
> (D) ...
> But according to the passage, which are true?


In these forums, I have always wished I could combine a colon and a question mark, but I usually end up having to strand the question mark on a line by itself:


			
				Example2 said:
			
		

> According to the passage, which are true:
> (A) ...
> (B) ...
> (C) ...
> (D) ...
> ?


It is hard to imagine the packaged balls scenario as anything but some sort of test:


raymondaliasapollyon said:


> Thank you. Let's consider a different scenario to see if your answer is the same:
> 
> Suppose there are 10 individually packed and numbered balls, and you know some of them are blue. Is the following "which are" natural if the sentence is intended as a request to identify the blue balls?
> 
> Which are blue?


But that does sound to me like a natural question for an inquiring mind. (All this reminds me of Dorothy's question in _The Wizard of Oz_: "Which is the way back to Kansas? I can't go the way I came.")


suzi br said:


> I don’t see your point.
> 
> The OP is asking if native speakers use “which are” as a bare question and I said “generally not”, but I have heard it in the context I created.


This is what I thought we were trying to answer (my highlighting):


raymondaliasapollyon said:


> I'm investigating whether "which are" is natural in English (*when "which" is an interrogative pronoun*, of course), whether in test conditions or not.


----------



## raymondaliasapollyon

heypresto said:


> This is OK. Or 'Which ones are blue?'



There appear to be some restrictions on the use of the interrogative pronoun "which," especially when it functions as the subject.
Let's investigate how it behaves as an object:

In the two 10-ball scenarios, do you find the following question okay?

Which do you consider to be blue?


----------



## Forero

raymondaliasapollyon said:


> There appear to be some restrictions on the use of the interrogative pronoun "which," especially when it functions as the subject.
> Let's investigate how it behaves as an object:
> 
> In the two 10-ball scenarios, do you find the following question okay?
> 
> Which do you consider to be blue?


That's fine. "Which are blue?" is fine too.

I don't think there are any real restrictions on the interrogative pronoun _which_, whether as subject or anything else, aside from being clear about what you are referring to, especially when testing someone.


----------



## heypresto

raymondaliasapollyon said:


> In the two 10-ball scenarios, do you find the following question okay?
> 
> Which do you consider to be blue?


No. The blue ball/s *is/are* blue. You don't _consider_ them to be blue, they _are _blue.


----------



## raymondaliasapollyon

heypresto said:


> No. The blue ball/s *is/are* blue. You don't _consider_ them to be blue, they _are _blue.



Consider instead the following questions, which do not ask about the color.

Which do you consider to be the most expensive?

Which is (considered) the most expensive?


----------



## raymondaliasapollyon

Forero said:


> That's fine. "Which are blue?" is fine too.
> 
> I don't think there are any real restrictions on the interrogative pronoun _which_, whether as subject or anything else, aside from being clear about what you are referring to, especially when testing someone.



Dialectal and diachronic differences may be involved.


----------



## Uncle Jack

raymondaliasapollyon said:


> Consider instead the following question, which does not ask about the color.
> 
> Which do you consider to be the most expensive?


What do you mean by "consider"? "Consider" tends to involve some thought, not merely a comparison. For a simple opinion, use "think": "Which do you think is the most expensive?" Since you use "most expensive", I assume you mean only one, so I used "is". However, you can force people to think of more than one by using "are" instead.



heypresto said:


> No. The blue ball/s *is/are* blue. You don't _consider_ them to be blue, they _are _blue.


"Consider" might be fine if the balls are all shades of turquoise or violet. It makes no sense at all if they are all primary colours.


----------



## raymondaliasapollyon

Uncle Jack said:


> What do you mean by "consider"? "Consider" tends to involve some thought, not merely a comparison. For a simple opinion, use "think": "Which do you think is the most expensive?" Since you use "most expensive", I assume you mean only one, so I used "is". However, you can force people to think of more than one by using "are" instead.
> 
> 
> "Consider" might be fine if the balls are all shades of turquoise or violet. It makes no sense at all if they are all primary colours.



Suppose the balls are each made of a different metal.

Are the following questions okay?

Which do you consider to be the most expensive?

Which is (considered) the most expensive?


----------



## heypresto

The relative expensiveness of the metal will not be a matter of consideration, but a matter of fact.


----------



## raymondaliasapollyon

heypresto said:


> The relative expensiveness of the metal will not be a matter of consideration, but a matter of fact.



Assume the addressee does not know the relative values of the metals.


----------



## heypresto

In that case use 'think' as Uncle Jack suggested in post #33.


----------



## raymondaliasapollyon

heypresto said:


> In that case use 'think' as Uncle Jack suggested in post #33.



I'm testing whether "which" as an object differs from "which" as a subject.
If "consider" is used, then "which" is the object of "consider." 

If "think" (or one of its variant forms) is used instead,  are the following questions okay?

Which do you think to be the most expensive?

Which is (thought to be) the most expensive?


----------



## raymondaliasapollyon

heypresto said:


> The relative expensiveness of the metal will not be a matter of consideration, but a matter of fact.



How about usefulness?

Which do you consider to be the most useful?

Which is (considered to be) the most useful?


----------



## heypresto

Which do you think *to be* the most expensive?
Which do you think* is* the most expensive? 

Which is (thought to be) the most expensive? Thought by whom? 


Which do you consider to be the most useful? 
Which is (considered to be) the most useful? Considered by whom?


----------



## raymondaliasapollyon

heypresto said:


> Which do you think *to be* the most expensive?
> Which do you think* is* the most expensive?
> 
> Which is (thought to be) the most expensive? Thought by whom?
> 
> 
> Which do you consider to be the most useful?
> Which is (considered to be) the most useful? Considered by whom?



Is the following okay?

Which is the most useful?


----------



## heypresto

Yes.


----------



## raymondaliasapollyon

heypresto said:


> Yes.



Then I wonder why "Which is/are blue" is unacceptable to suzi br.


----------



## heypresto

Different sentence, different question, different context. 

('Which is/are blue?' is unacceptable to me too.)


----------



## raymondaliasapollyon

heypresto said:


> Different sentence, different question, different context.
> 
> ('Which is/are blue?' is unacceptable to me too.)



What exactly is the crucial difference that renders "Which is/are blue" unacceptable?
Can you offer a generalization?


----------



## heypresto

I don't think I can offer a rule, I'm afraid. One sounds fine to me, and the other doesn't. As a _guideline_, I _think _it will always sound OK if you include 'one', but it might sound odd if you don't.


----------



## Forero

raymondaliasapollyon said:


> Dialectal and diachronic differences may be involved.


Has anyone actually said "Which are blue?" is ungrammatical, or unacceptable no matter what the context?

So far, it seems to me that the objections are to lack of context or logic, not to the structure itself.


----------



## Roxxxannne

If I pose a multiple-choice question and ask "Which of the following statements is true?" I expect the students to mark one of the following statements as true.
"If I ask which of the following statements are true?" I expect them to mark at least two of them as true.

If I ask "which of these colored balls do you consider to be blue?" I expect the other person to pick anywhere from 'none' to 'all of them' depending on what the other person considers 'blue' to be.

If I have six red balls and six blue balls in a basket and the other person is not completely colorblind, when I ask "which are blue?" I expect the person to pick out the six blue ones and say 'these.'  If they pick out one and say 'this one' I'd assume they don't understand the words "which are...".  

If I have eleven red balls and one blue ball in a basket and the other person is not completely colorblind, when I ask "which are blue?" I expect the person to say "Don't you mean which _is_ blue?" while holding up the one blue ball.


----------



## Wordy McWordface

Roxxxannne said:


> I expect the person to pick out the *six blue ones* and say *'these.*'  If they pick out one and say '*this one'* .....


So the plural of* this one* really is just *these* (and not _these ones_)?

These ones


----------



## Roxxxannne

It's the other way around.  The distinct singularity of one blue ball requires 'this one [out of all the other balls here]' rather than 'this'.


----------



## raymondaliasapollyon

Forero said:


> Has anyone actually said "Which are blue?" is ungrammatical, or unacceptable no matter what the context?
> 
> So far, it seems to me that the objections are to lack of context or logic, not to the structure itself.




suzi and heypresto's evaluations of "which is/are blue" are in relation to the very contexts where you find the sentences fine.


----------



## Forero

nightowl666 said:


> I am not a native speaker, but what I've quoted is derived from English books written by native speakers:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 1. Which are true? (Choose all that apply.)
> A. "X extends Y" is correct if and only if X is a class and Y is an interface​B. "X extends Y" is correct if and only if X is an interface and Y is a class​C. "X extends Y" is correct if X and Y are either both classes or both interfaces​
> 
> 
> 
> by Kathy Sierra, Bert Bates, Elisabeth Robson
Click to expand...

I see no need to add "of the following" in this case. The question number ("1.") and the remark to choose all that apply make this question clear enough.


> OCP Java SE 8 Programmer II Exam Guide (Exam 1Z0-809)​
> 
> 
> 
> […] viewer must choose. If you give a list of answers, indicate which are correct.
Click to expand...

This example of interrogative _which_ as a subject is fine with no additional words.


heypresto said:


> Which do you think *to be* the most expensive?
> Which do you think* is* the most expensive?


The first example here is ugly compared to the second, but it is not wrong.

In the first example, _which_ is a direct object (or part of one); in the second example _which_ is a subject.


raymondaliasapollyon said:


> suzi and heypresto's evaluations of "which is/are blue" are in relation to the very contexts where you find the sentences fine.


I agree with most of their answers as far as style is concerned, but aren't you looking mainly for syntax rules rather than style requirements?


----------



## raymondaliasapollyon

Forero said:


> I agree with most of their answers as far as style is concerned, but aren't you looking mainly for syntax rules rather than style requirements?



A sentence can be unacceptable for various reasons; we don't know exactly what makes a sentence unacceptable unless we have isolated and examined potential contributing factors, which is what I was doing.


----------

