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collective noun - question

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collective noun - question

by confuse mind » Tue May 22, 2012 10:19 pm
The Confederate general Stonewall Jackson led a feared army that idolized him; it all mourned his ironic death from "friendly fire."



Can someone please explain me how 'it' is correct in the above sentence. It is the army personnel who will mourn and since reference should be to individual members of the collective noun, why are we not using they?
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by jimmyjimmy » Thu May 24, 2012 12:33 pm
army takes it form....
people in the army take they form....

ex..

world is corrupt..
people in the world are corrupt..

hope it helps..!!
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by Bill@VeritasPrep » Thu May 24, 2012 1:00 pm
Army is a collective noun; as such, it takes a singular pronoun, much like team, audience, and crowd.

The bigger question is why is "all" in the original sentence?
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