# Favorite fruit is apple vs is an apple



## Vaultec

Hi folks,

So this has always been the odd case where there are more than one way to answer a question but what would be the difference for this case?

Example: My favorite fruit is an apple vs My favorite fruit is apple

I can see that apple is countable but in the context of an apple vs apple, I was wondering what would be the significant difference of these two?

In my opinion, I could also see it as one type of apple vs all the types of apple.


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## Glenfarclas

"Apple" is not a fruit; it is a substance or flavor.  "*An* apple" is a fruit.  But anyway, what we really say is "Apples are my favorite fruit."


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## Englishmypassion

What about "My favourite fruit is the apple"?


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## Packard

I would say "My favorite fruit are apples." And for the same reasoning that Glenfar stated above.


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## Glenfarclas

Englishmypassion said:


> What about "My favourite fruit is the apple"?



Not incorrect, but we don't say it that way.


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## Englishmypassion

Thanks a lot, Packard and Glenfarclas.


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## Packard

It becomes clearer when you create other sentences:

I love apples, bananas, peaches and strawberries.  

I love apple, banana, peach and strawberry.


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## Glenfarclas

Packard said:


> I love apple, banana, peach and strawberry.



Right.  That would be a great sentence  to describe your favorite flavors of ice cream, but not to name your favorite fruits.


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## Packard

Glenfarclas said:


> Right.  That would be a great sentence  to describe your favorite flavors of ice cream, but not to name your favorite fruits.



Yes.  Or soda flavors.  But then they are adjectives, and adjectives don't get pluralized.


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## thetazuo

_<-----Threads have been merged at this point by moderator (Florentia52)----->_

Are these two sentences grammatically correct or acceptable?
1.My favorite fruit is the apple.
2.My favorite fruits are apples.
3.The apples is my favorite fruit(s).
4.Apples are my favorite fruits.
5.Apples is my favorite fruit.
6.My favorite fruit is apple.

I have read another thread where a similar question is mooted. In that thread a native speaker says perhaps the first two and the last one are grammatically acceptable.
So I am wondering whether on earth these sentences are grammatically correct?
Thank you.


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## e2efour

1.My favorite fruit is the apple.
2.My favorite fruits are apples.
3.The apples is my favorite fruit(s).
4.Apples are my favorite fruits.
5.Apples is my favorite fruit.
6.My favorite fruit is apple. (Some people might say this)

Pllural nouns generally take a plural verb (which explains why 3 and 5 are wrong).

(Unlike the previous thread, I cannot imagine a situation where you could say _My favourite fruit are apples and pears_.)


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## thetazuo

e2efour said:


> 1.My favorite fruit is the apple.
> 2.My favorite fruits are apples.
> 3.The apples is my favorite fruit(s).
> 4.Apples are my favorite fruits.
> 5.Apples is my favorite fruit.
> 6.My favorite fruit is apple. (Some people might say this)


Thank you very much. But Sentence 3 and 5 are typos, which should be "The apples are my favorite fruit(s)" and "(The) Apple is my favorite fruit." Then what about these two sentences?


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## e2efour

I would say _(The)_ _apples are my favourite fruit_ or _The apple is my favourite fruit._
How you say it also depends on what you want to say (the context). Are you talking about specific apples or apples generally?


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## thetazuo

e2efour said:


> I would say _(The)_ _apples are my favourite fruit_ or _The apple is my favourite fruit._
> How you say it also depends on what you want to say (the context). Are you talking about specific apples or apples generally?


 Thank you. If I want to talk about specific apples, I should say "the apple(s)" , right? 
For example,
_(The)_ _apples are my favourite fruit_ or _The apple is my favourite fruit._
_or My favorite fruit are the apples.
Correct?_

If I talk about apples generally, just drop "the" by saying "Apple(s) is/are", right?


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## Glenfarclas

The apples are my favorite fruit. 
Apples are my favorite fruit. 
The apple is my favorite fruit. 
My favorite fruit are the apples. 
My favorite fruit is the apple.


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## thetazuo

Thank you for your correction. But e2efour says "(The) apples are my favorite fruit" is correct. I don't know which one of you is right?


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## PaulQ

thetazuo said:


> But e2efour says "(The) apples are my favorite fruit" is correct.


e2efour also says





e2efour said:


> How you say it also depends on what you want to say (the context). Are you talking about specific apples or apples generally?


and this is important.


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## thetazuo

PaulQ said:


> e2efour also saysand this is important.


Thank you. But you don't have to remind me of that. When Glenfarclas and e2efour gave their judgement on the sentences, they didn't mention the context, did they?

When e2efour said "I would say _(The)_ _apples are my favourite fruit_ or _The apple is my favourite fruit.", _he didn't mention the context, so I interpreted what he said as "these two sentences are always correct regardless of the context". Now I am not sure what context Glenfarclas referred to when he made judgement on the five sentences?


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## heypresto

e2efour asked if you were talking about some specific apples, or apples generally. These are two different contexts. In the first context, you could say '_the_ apples', and in the second, you would say 'apples', without the article.


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## thetazuo

Thank you, I see. But if "the apples" refer to specific apples, then why "The apples are my favorite fruit." and " My favorite fruit are the apples. " are wrong, when I try to talk about specific apples?


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## PaulQ

thetazuo said:


> But if "the apples" refer to specific apples, then why are "The apples are my favorite fruit." and " My favorite fruit are the apples. "  wrong, when I try to talk about specific apples?


They are not wrong when you talk about specific apples, but you gave no context, and the default meaning is that you were talking about apples in general.


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## thetazuo

Thank you. I get it.
Then what about these two correct sentences? Do both of them talk about specific apples or apples in general?
The apple is my favorite fruit. 
My favorite fruit is the apple.


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## Dale Texas

"The apples are my favorite fruit" sounds bizarre to me in the present tense.  

That still sounds like a comment about apples in general, which calls for "Apples are my favorite fruit."

I can only make "specific apples" work if I put this *in the past and contrive a special situation.* 

Someone sees a display of various fruits, apples, bananas, strawberries, etc.  They sample all the different kind of fruits.  That sampling, tasting, is now over and finished.

A person could then reasonably say:  "The apples _(the specific ones_ *offered --past tense--* at the display) *were *my favorite fruit."  = Out of all the fruits I tried, the apples were the best.


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## PaulQ

thetazuo said:


> The apple is my favorite fruit.
> My favorite fruit is the apple.



A: "In this bowl there is a banana, a plum, an orange and an apple, which do you like the best?"
B: "Of those in the bowl, my favorite fruit is the apple."

C: "I see you have over 50 apple trees."
D: "Yes, my favorite fruit is the apple."


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## thetazuo

PaulQ said:


> A: "In this bowl there is a banana, a plum, an orange and an apple, which do you like the best?"
> B: "Of those in the bowl, my favorite fruit is the apple."
> 
> C: "I see you have over 50 apple trees."
> D: "Yes, my favorite fruit is the apple."


Thank you. I get it. So "My favorite fruit are the apples/the apples are my favorite fruit" also works, right?
As in the following context:
A: In this bowl there is a banana, an orange and three apples, which do you like best?
B: Of course in the bowl, My favorite fruit is/are the apples/The apples are my favorite fruit.

Right?


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## PaulQ

Right.


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## e2efour

So you would say _My favourite fruit are the apples_, would you?
Would you also say _The fruit are on the other side of the room?_
Or _My favourite food are noodles?_


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## PaulQ

e2efour said:


> So you would say _My favourite fruit are the apples_, would you?


If someone were pointing at, for example, a fruiterer's market stall upon which were boxes of various fruit, "Yes".


> Would you also say _The fruit are on the other side of the room?_


_"Yes" - if I were offering a desert and there were various fruits there._


> Or _My favourite food are noodles?_


No, this is grammatically wrong - but I think you know that.


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## e2efour

The use in the corpuses of _the fruit are_ is rather rare, compared with _the fruit is._
He1re are some statistics:
BNC:   _is _(19)_                  are_ (0)
COCA: _is_ (129)               _are_ (4)
NOW:  _is_ (1200 at least)  _are_ (16) (This is a worldwide corpus)

_Fruit_ is like _food _or_ cheese_ (which are used both as count and non-count nouns).

If you go into a supermarket, you would not say _Where are the fruit?_
Nor would you be told _The fruit are to the left of the door._


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## PaulQ

e2efour said:


> If you go into a supermarket, you would not say _Where are the fruit?_
> Nor would you be told _The fruit are to the left of the door._


I think we are both agreed that "the fruit are" is possible and correct in context.

Google Ngrams "the fruit are"

There are a few examples from the link from the Ngram:
The fruit are globose to oblate in shape and of a medium size.
The fruit are 5.7 to 7 cm (2 1/4 to 2 3/4 inches) with 50% mottled red over a green- cream ground color.
The fruit are immersed for 30 to 60 seconds at 30 to 35 °C
Aware of the inherent symbolism of objects, Sarkis painted fruit "with the sense that the fruit are sacred" (Miro, 1980).

The fruit are has the nuance of "All the different fruits/individual fruit are."


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## Joseph A

Hello everyone,
Is the phrase "is apples and is strawberries" correct in the following sentences?
1. My favorite fruit *is stawberries.*
2. My favourite fruit *is apples.*
I think they're okay.


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## I WONDER WHY

<Added to this thread. Nat>

Hello. I'm studying English now, and I'm not English speaker
So my English is not good maybe.. please understand

In my text book, 'The apples are my favorite fruit.' is wrong when I want to make a generalization and the correct sentence is 'Apples are my favorite fruit.'

1. Then 'An apple is my favorite fruit.' is also right? or wrong?

And,

2. My favorite fruit is an apple.
3. My favorite fruit is apples.
4. My favorite fruits are apples.

All that sentences are right? or wrong?
If they are wrong, why?
Which sentences are natural?

Please give me the answer...


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## rhitagawr

Welcome to the forum._ Apples are my favourite fruit_ is best. _An apple_ sounds like one item of fruit even though you're talking about fruit in general. _Is apples_ jars with the singular and plural together. _Fruits_ means kinds of fruit. You're only talking about one kind of fruit.


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## I WONDER WHY

Thank you for your help!!
Then only 'Apples are my favorite fruit.' is grammatically and semantically right.

Actually, I searched this problem in google before I wrote this post.
Someone said that 'My favorite fruit is apple/apples.' is right.
I know that sentence is grammatically wrong, but could it be accepted in informal conversation?


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## rhitagawr

I WONDER WHY said:


> Thank you for your help!!
> Then only 'Apples are my favorite fruit.' is grammatically and semantically right.
> 
> Actually, I searched this problem in google before I wrote this post.
> Someone said that 'My favorite fruit is apple/apples.' is right.
> I know that sentence is grammatically wrong, but could it be accepted in informal conversation?


_Apples_ doesn't sound right to me. _Apple_ sounds like a flavour. _My favourite flavour's apple/Apple's my favourite flavour_. 
But people don't always agree on what's acceptable and other people may disagree with me.


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## sb70012

1. Apples are my favorite fruit.* (correct/best)*
2. My favorite fruit are apples. *(correct)*
3. My favorite fruit is the apple. *(correct)*
4. My favorite fruits are apples.* (wrong)*
5. The apples is my favorite fruit(s). *(wrong)*
6. Apples are my favorite fruits. *(wrong)*
7. Apples is my favorite fruit. *(wrong)*
8. My favorite fruit is apple. *(wrong)*
9. Apples are my favorite fruit. *(correct)*
10. The apples are my favorite fruit. *(wrong)*
11. The apple is my favorite fruit. *(correct)*
12. My favorite fruit are the apples.* (wrong)*
13. My favorite fruit is apples.   

Hello,
How about #13? Is it correct or wrong?

Thank you.


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## Glasguensis

I would regard it as wrong. But this whole question is a bit artificial as the most common situation where you would want to address this topic is when someone asks you about it, and then you probably wouldn’t use a full sentence.

What is your favourite fruit? 
Apples


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## sb70012

How about "My favorite fruit is an apple."?


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## IlyaTretyakov

sb70012 said:


> 13. My favorite fruit is apples.
> 
> Hello,
> How about #13? Is it correct or wrong?





Glasguensis said:


> I would regard it as wrong.


Why do you think it is wrong?

I though the verb agreement is always with the subject.


natkretep said:


> The verb agreement is always with the subject.



All you need *is *these things. 
All you need *are *these things. 
This object *is *scissors. 
This object *are *scissors. 
So, why do you think "My favorite fruit(subject) *is *apples(object)" is wrong?


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## heypresto

IlyaTretyakov said:


> This object *is *scissors.


 

This object is *a pair* of scissors. 
This is a pair of scissors. 
These are scissors.


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## Glasguensis

IlyaTretyakov said:


> Why do you think it is wrong?
> 
> I though the verb agreement is always with the subject


That’s not the issue. It’s uncomfortable to have a subject which doesn’t match the object in number, and we tend to avoid it. So much so that I would tend to mark that sentence as incorrect. But sometimes we have no choice - with fruits that we generally refer to in the plural, such as grapes, I’d be more open.


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## sb70012

2. My favorite fruit are apples. *(correct)*
3. My favorite fruit is the apple. *(correct)*
14. My favorite fruit is an apple. *(correct)*

Hello,
Excuse me, I have some more questions to ask:

Do all of these sentences above mean all apples in general?
If yes, then which one is more common?
Doesn't "the apple" in #3 mean a specific single apple on display?
Doesn't "an apple" in #14 mean a specific unknown apple?

Thank you.


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## heypresto

The only one of these options that sounds OK to me is #3. (The second of your 3 options.)

But then I agree with what Glasguensis said in post #37. And:



Glasguensis said:


> What is your favourite fruit?
> Apples


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## sb70012

3. My favorite fruit is the apple. *(correct)*

Doesn't "the apple" in #3 mean a specific single apple on display? If "the apple" in #3 means all apples in general, then what if we mean a specific known apple on display?


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## sb70012

Packard said:


> I would say "My favorite fruit are apples." And for the same reasoning that Glenfar stated above.


But in post #4 Packard says that my sentence _#2. My favorite fruit are apples. _*(correct) *is also OK. I don't know why it's not OK by you. Any reason?

Thank you.


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## heypresto

sb70012 said:


> Doesn't "the apple" in #3 mean a specific single apple on display? If "the apple" in #3 means all apples in general, then what if we mean a specific known apple on display?


It _could _mean a specific apple in a certain context, but without any context I assumed the question was about what fruit (in general) I like the best.

What _context _do _you _have in mind?


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## heypresto

sb70012 said:


> But in post #4 Packard says that my sentence _#2. My favorite fruit are apples. _*(correct) *is also OK. I don't know why it's not OK by you. Any reason?


No. We evidently disagree.


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## sound shift

heypresto said:


> No. We evidently disagree.


I too disagree with Packard.


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## Cagey

Depending on the context, I might say, _"Apples are my favorite fruit."_ I might also say _"My favorite fruit is an apple,"_ meaning that I like apples in general even though I am thinking of apples one by one.

I would not say "_My favorite fruit are apples."  _It is confusing to equate [are] a non-count noun in the singular form [fruit] with a count-noun in the plural [apples].

_"My favorite fruit is the apple"_ is a grammatically correct way to say that you like apples in general, but '_the apple_' seems overly formal to me and I wouldn't say it.


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## sb70012

Thank you.
So, both of the sentences below almost mean the same, right? (all apples in general)

_My favorite fruit is an apple.
My favorite fruit is the apple._


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## sb70012

Cagey said:


> I would not say "_My favorite fruit are apples."  _It is confusing to equate [are] a non-count noun in the singular form [fruit] with a count-noun in the plural [apples].


Could you please tell me that in what context "My favorite fruit are ..." can work?
Dictionaries say that the plural form of the "fruit" can be either "fruit" or "fruits".

Would you please tell me that in what construction or context or word order "My favorite fruit are ..." can work?

Thank you.


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## heypresto

I agree with Glasguensis, when he says:


Glasguensis said:


> But sometimes we have no choice - with fruits that we generally refer to in the plural, such as grapes, I’d be more open.



But, in every other sentence or context I can think of, "My favourite fruit are . . . " will sound wrong.

It seems futile to persist in asking about "My favourite fruit are . . . ". I think it's far more useful to learn what we _do_ say, rather insist on something that we _don't_ say.


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## sb70012

Thank you but Dictionaries say that the plural form of the "fruit" can be either "fruit" or "fruits". So, the construction "*My favorite fruit* + *are* + *plural noun*" looks fine to me. What is the problem here exactly?






fruit | meaning of fruit in Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English | LDOCE


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## heypresto

sb70012 said:


> What is the problem here exactly?


The 'problem' is that we don't say it. Usage trumps logic and/or grammar every time.


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## sb70012

Thank you. Do you know any condition or sentence in your mind in which "My favorite fruit are ..." construction can work?
The reason that I keep asking this is to know that in what context or circumstance, that construction can work.

Thank you.


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## Wordy McWordface

I'm sure someone has already pointed this out earlier in this very long combination of threads, but both those statements are unidiomatic.  No proficient speaker of English would ever say either of those things. If we're talking about apples in general, we use the plural. The only remotely natural utterance I can think of is this:

_Apples are my favorite fruit._


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## Glasguensis

I wholeheartedly agree. There is no situation in which “My favourite fruit are…” would be the best choice, or even a good choice. Do not use it, unless you want to highlight that you’re not a native speaker.


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## heypresto

sb70012 said:


> Thank you. Do you know any condition or sentence in your mind in which "My favorite fruit are ..." construction can work?
> The reason that I keep asking this is to know that in what context or circumstance, that construction can work.
> 
> Thank you.


As I said above, no.


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## sb70012

Dictionaries say that the plural form of "fruit" can be "fruit" too. Do you deny it, too?


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## heypresto

No, of course not.


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## sb70012

Thank you. Understood. I will forget the structure "My favorite fruit are ..."

One more question:

How about this one? _My favorite fruit is apple._

Without any articles *(an/the)*. Is it right or wrong? I couldn't find any posts about this word order in this thread.

I only found it in this thread. In this thread in post #9, Suzi br says that "_My favorite fruit is apple_." is right.

Do you agree with her?


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## heypresto

I can't think of a context in which I would say it.


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## Wordy McWordface

Nor can I.

"Apple" on its own suggests a flavour, rather than the fruit itself.  For example, "My favourite juice is apple" (short for "apple juice").


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## heypresto

I think we've now exhausted just about every permutation of 'My favourite fruit' and 'apple'. Stick to the ones we've said work and you won't go wrong.


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## sb70012

Completely understood. Thank you very much, everybody.


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