the only problem <is/are> bubbles

C

chicanul

Senior Member
SoCal
english/spanish
Hi,

Could you please tell me if "is" or "are" is more appropriate please?


"The only problem is/are bubbles that appear in the dough."
 
    • Hello, chicanul. I'd use "is" and switch the position of "that" so it helps readers understand that the singular "is" refers to "problem": The only problem is that bubbles appear in the dough.
     
    Thanks!!

    If it read like this, which would be correct? "The only problem is/are the bubbles that appear in the dough."
     
    Since you're obviously attached to the original version of your sentence, you should follow Esustad's advice and use "is".
     
    Despite over 8 million hits** on Google for "the only problem are", you cannot have a singular subject with a plural verb like this.

    You could write What is the only problem are the bubbles ... However, this sounds clumsy to me.

    ** Actually the real number is only 307.
     
    Last edited:
    e2efour said:
    Despite over 8 million hits on Google for "the only problem are", ...
    Click to expand...
    Actually, if you click through to the last page of results, there are only 299 hits:cool:

    (I agree that I would write The only problem is the bubbles:).)
     
    e2efour said:
    [...] You could write What is the only problem are the bubbles ... However, this sounds clumsy to me. [...]
    Click to expand...
    Even with that clumsy construction, the main verb would still be is, not are, because the noun phrase (or noun clause, depending on the school of thought), "What is the only problem", has singular status. If you replaced it by a pronoun, that pronoun would be "it", not "they".

    Ws:)
     
    I don't think that it is all that clear-cut. A what clause is sometimes regarded as singular and sometimes as plural.

    When what is the object it is usually followed by plural agreement, as in What we need in government .. are men who seek to understand issues in all their complexity.
    When it is the subject, we more often find singular agreement, as in What we are getting is old answers to old questions.
     Both sentences are from MW Concise Dictionary of English Usage, which discusses what sentences of this kind.

    A singular what clause is sometimes followed by a plural verb, as in:
    For now what is important are the implications of these provisions for the sovereignty of Parliament.     (Turpin, British Government and the Constitution: Text and Materials).

    Not surprisingly, writers do not always follow the same rules. :)
     
    e2efour said:
    ...
    When what is the object it is usually followed by plural agreement, as in What we need in government .. are men who seek to understand issues in all their complexity.
    When it is the subject, we more often find singular agreement, as in What we are getting is old answers to old questions.
    ...
    Click to expand...
    Is it just me or do your first two sentences both have 'What' as the object in the clause and the subject in the whole sentence?
     
    You're quite right. :)

    Here is an example from MW where what is the subject of the clause and the subject in the main clause is plural:
    What impresses them are planes and divisions and ships. (Harry S. Trueman, radio address).

    Some grammarians would criticise this sentence and say that it should be What impress them... But I find it difficult to choose between is planes etc. and are planes etc.
     
    e2efour said:
    I don't think that it is all that clear-cut. A what clause is sometimes regarded as singular and sometimes as plural.

    When what is the object it is usually followed by plural agreement, as in What we need in government .. are men who seek to understand issues in all their complexity.
    When it is the subject, we more often find singular agreement, as in What we are getting is old answers to old questions. [...]
    Click to expand...
    As Welkin already spotted, there's no difference in construction between those two sentences. "What" is the object of the what-clause in both cases, so if "is old answers" is correct (and I maintain that it is) I don't see an argument there for "are men".

    In "What is the only problem [are] is the bubbles", "what" is the subject of the what-clause, and is clearly singular (because we see "What is"). But what governs whether the main verb should be "is" or "are" is whether its subject (the whole what-clause) is singular or plural. In this construction, "what" is sometimes called a fused relative pronoun, because it stands for "that which". So the what-clause can be rewritten as "That which is the only problem".

    That gives us a true relative clause ("which is the only problem") modifying "That". "That" is the head word of the subject of the main clause, and it's singular, so the main verb must be singular:
    - "That [which is the only problem] is the bubbles" (not "That [which is the only problem] are the bubbles"!). Similarly ...
    - "What is the only problem is the bubbles" (not "What is the only problem are the bubbles"!)

    The fact that Messrs Turpin and Truman have written obviously singular what-clauses followed by "are" simply shows that not everyone writes grammatically. How much their readers care is of course another question — but what those gentlemen are doing is making the main verb agree in number with the subject complement and not with the subject. "What impresses them are planes ..." is the same construction as "The subject of the book are planes ...", yet I can't imagine they'd ever have written the latter.
    Welkin1990 said:
    Is it just me or do your first two sentences both have 'What' as the object in the clause and the subject in the whole sentence?
    Click to expand...
    "What" is indeed the object in each of the what-clauses, but it's not the subject of the whole sentence. The subject of the main clause is the whole what-clause.

    Ws:)
     
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