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Grammar

Forums: Grammar, Esl, English
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Loh Jane
 
Reply Thu 25 Jun, 2015 09:24 am
Hi English Teacher,
I am a bit uncertain whether my following sentence is grammatically correct,please advise.
Their favorite fruits are durians.
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Type: Question • Score: 1 • Views: 603 • Replies: 12
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InfraBlue
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Reply Thu 25 Jun, 2015 10:51 am
@Loh Jane,
It is grammatically correct.
Loh Jane
 
  1  
Reply Thu 25 Jun, 2015 04:16 pm
@InfraBlue,
Many thanks.
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FBM
 
  1  
Reply Thu 25 Jun, 2015 05:56 pm
@Loh Jane,
Loh Jane wrote:

Hi English Teacher,
I am a bit uncertain whether my following sentence is grammatically correct,please advise.
Their favorite fruits are durians.


It's grammatically correct, but it's still awkward. If you use the plural form, it sounds like you're talking about specific durians on a specific table, for example. The more fluent alternative would be to treat 'durian' as a singular type of fruit:

Their favorite fruit is (the) durian.
dalehileman
 
  1  
Reply Thu 25 Jun, 2015 06:56 pm
@FBM,
Wow FBM I'm impressed

Honest
FBM
 
  1  
Reply Thu 25 Jun, 2015 07:13 pm
@dalehileman,
I'm not sure why, but cool.
dalehileman
 
  1  
Reply Thu 25 Jun, 2015 07:21 pm
@FBM,
Well FBM, having spent most of my life int the field of journ I'm impressed in the interest by our ESL in the most obscure grammatical principle
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InfraBlue
 
  1  
Reply Fri 26 Jun, 2015 01:33 pm
@FBM,
That's probably what Loh Jane had in mind, but one can refer to durians in the plural when referring to the different varieties of durian fruits.

That's how I read the sentence.
FBM
 
  1  
Reply Fri 26 Jun, 2015 04:08 pm
@InfraBlue,
Are there different varieties of durians?
InfraBlue
 
  1  
Reply Fri 26 Jun, 2015 04:45 pm
@FBM,
According to Wikipedia, there are at least nine out of thirty know species that produce edible fruits.
FBM
 
  1  
Reply Fri 26 Jun, 2015 04:59 pm
@InfraBlue,
Cool. I didn't know that. If the OP meant a variety of durian, then:

"Their favorite fruits are durians." would be, "Their favorite durian is the Golden Button." Or whatever variety they liked most.

But since the OP uses "fruits" first, and the durian is one variety of fruit, then we're getting way off track of what the OP was asking.
InfraBlue
 
  1  
Reply Sat 27 Jun, 2015 11:14 pm
@FBM,
Durians are several varieties of fruits from several species of trees.
FBM
 
  1  
Reply Sun 28 Jun, 2015 08:27 am
@InfraBlue,
"Their favorite fruits are durians."

Yeah, OK. In light of the info about multiple varieties of durians, can see that now. Good work.
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