Singular and plural nouns and its and their thread

[UncleHappyPants]

Please add and/or correct. I am writing this thread in the hopes that the wizened folks who read this board respond enough times so that Google picks it up and all the young journalists find it when searching in the year 2095.

Kansas City, which played its (NOT THEIR!!!!) fifth game in the last five days, is ready for a day off.

The Royals, who girded their (PLURAL NOUN!!!) loins in anticipation of feasting on Cub pitching, are a fine franchise.

The Avalanche moved all of their (AP says Avalanche is plural??) games from the Pepsi Center to Britney Spears' backyard.

The girls basketball team is interested in playing more of its (SINGULAR NOUN, RIGHT??!) games with three referees.


Sincerely,

me

 

[Chi City 81]

 

[buckweaver]

To each his own, but yes. For my money, all of those are right.

Avalanche -- and all team names -- should be plural. Sometimes you get some funny ones like "Heat are" or "Cardinal are," but those are exceptions.

"Girls basketball team" is always "its." Collective singular.

Its and their -- it's not that hard, but they're not easy.

 

[Phobia27]

Note to all who want to whine about grammar or AP Style: Please use the Writers' Workshop sub board. Seems like most people here are eager to correct misuses in journalists' grammar, but they forget to follow rules and post in the appropriate location. And isn't that ironic ... er.. I mean coincidental.

 

[UncleHappyPants]

Note to all who want to whine about grammar or AP Style: Please use the Writers' Workshop sub board. Seems like most people here are eager to correct misuses in journalists' grammar, but they forget to follow rules and post in the appropriate location. And isn't that ironic ... er.. I mean coincidental.

Phobia is correct. Thanks for pointing out the Writers' Workshop board. I had missed that in all my previous trips here. Lots of good info there. Please accept my apologies for posting this nonsense in the wrong area.

 

[SF_Express]

Um, with all due respect to Phobia and whoever...

I don't think we have a 'rule' that says we can't have style and grammar and writing discussions outside of the Writers Workshop.

Do we?

Moddy or whoever, feel free to set me straight.

And Phobia, are you a reincarnation of a long-time regular here? Your post total suggests a newcomer, but you're talking about 'rules' as if you've been here a long time.

 

[Ace]

This nonsense is fine here. It's a journalism board.

But it should be girls' basketball team (possessive).

 

[ARD]

Congress is.
The Senate is.
The Heat is.
The Cardinal is.

No apostrophe needed with girls basketball. It's descriptive, not possessive.

 

[SF_Express]

Congress is.
The Senate is.
The Heat is.
The Cardinal is.

No apostrophe needed with girls basketball.  It's descriptive, not possessive.

Whenever we have the singular/plural discussion, it always comes back to the same place -- it's whatever your publication's style is.

If you worked for an English paper, it'd be "Ghana are ..."

Our style is "Heat are."

On the apostrophe, I agree; the only reason I ever saw to do it the other way was to make it consistent with men's and women's, which are possessive out of necessity.

 

[BillySixty]

I never quite understood why people make singular mascots (i.e. Heat, Lightning, etc.) plural. I suppose its for the sake of consistency but still doesn't read well.

 

[Ace]

No apostrophe needed with girls basketball. It's descriptive, not possessive.

I was hoping to get that argument going.

So it's womens soccer then?

 

[SF_Express]

[So it's womens soccer then?

I've stopped worrying about the consistency thing. men's and women's get the apostrophes, and girls and boys don't, I guess.