Wednesday, May 8, 2013

Grammar Girl : Is "Data" Singular or Plural? :: Quick and Dirty Tips ™

Grammar Girl : Is "Data" Singular or Plural? :: Quick and Dirty Tips ™: "If you wish to use data as a singular mass noun, you should be able to replace it in the sentence with the word information, which is also a mass noun. For example,

Much of this information is useless because of its lack of specifics.

If, however, you want to or need to use data as a plural count noun, you should be able to replace it with the word facts, which is also a plural count noun. For example,

Many of these facts are useless because of their lack of specifics."

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