a people

English grammar questions, answered by Alan

Moderator: Alan

Locked
Nami Nami
Rising Star
Rising Star
Posts: 216
Joined: Thu Jun 24, 2004 2:29 am
Location: Mars

a people

Post by Nami Nami »

Dear teacher,

Below is from the song "Do you hear the people sing?".

It is the music of a people who will not be slaves again!

My question is why "a" is placed in front of the plural noun "people"? Thanks.
User avatar
Alan
Teacher/Moderator
Teacher/Moderator
Posts: 15204
Joined: Mon Dec 29, 2003 7:56 pm
Status: Teacher of English
Location: Japan

Re: a people

Post by Alan »

'People' here is a singular noun meaning 'race/ethnic group' (not the plural of 'person').
Locked