Has or Have, which is it?

English grammar questions, answered by Alan

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karensteven
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Has or Have, which is it?

Post by karensteven »

Hi! I'm currently studying Japanese on Duolingo and I came across one activity that asked me to translate a sentence to English. As per the app, the correct answer was "The couple who has 3 children are kind."

I'd like to confirm if this grammar is correct. As far as I know, it should be "The couple who has 3 children is kind".

The base grammar is either "has... is" or "have... are", right?
Can anyone explain if this grammar is correct? And if so, please tell me why.

Thank you.
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Alan
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Re: Has or Have, which is it?

Post by Alan »

Nouns denoting groups (including 'couple') are generally treated as singular in American English but as plural in British English. Thus either 'has' or 'have' would be possible here.
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