dixitnagpal wrote:Hi Mitch ,
I'm really confused here about how to choose between "is" and "Are". As to me Icelandic should be the subject of sentence and it is singular so the correct answer should contain "is". Moreover , How to judge in situation like this and choose right Verb? can u please explain this in detail with some example.
Icelandic is one of several Germanic LANGUAGES THAT ARE COMPACT.
The construction here is NOUN + THAT-CLAUSE.
In most cases, this construction implies that the THAT-CLAUSE serves as an ADJECTIVE modifying the immediately preceding noun.
If the immediately preceding noun is singular, the THAT-CLAUSE requires a SINGULAR verb; if the immediately preceding noun is plural, the THAT-CLAUSE requires a PLURAL verb.
Here, the immediately preceding noun (
languages) is PLURAL, so the THAT-CLAUSE requires a plural verb:
languages that ARE compact.
In terms of meaning:
When a THAT-CLAUSE serves as an adjective, its purpose is to provide ESSENTIAL information about the modified noun.
Here,
several Germanic languages is not sufficient to indicate which languages are being discussed.
To make the meaning clear, an additional modifier is needed.
WHAT TYPE of Germanic languages?
Germanic languages THAT ARE COMPACT.
Please note that the subject of the sentence is ICELANDIC.
The conveyed meaning is that ICELANDIC IS ONE of a particular group of languages.
Of several Germanic languages that are compact when written, ICELANDIC IS ONE.
I suggest that you also check my post here:
https://www.beatthegmat.com/number-rule-t105096.html
Exceptions:
When a THAT-CLAUSE serving as an adjective does NOT refer to the immediately preceding noun, the meaning will be made clear by CONTEXT.
From the OG12:
Marconi conceived of the radio as a tool for private conversation THAT COULD SUBSTITUTE for the telephone.
Here, the THAT-CLAUSE clearly serves to modify not
conversation but A TOOL:
A TOOL...THAT COULD SUBSTITUTE for the telephone.
The interceding essential modifier --
for private conversation -- serves as an adjective indicating WHAT TYPE of tool could substitute for the telephone.
WHAT TYPE OF TOOL could substitute for the telephone?
A TOOL FOR PRIVATE CONVERSATION that could substitute for the telephone.
This exception notwithstanding, in most cases, NOUN + THAT-CLAUSE implies that the THAT-CLAUSE serves to modify the immediately preceding noun.
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