Is “staff” singular or plural?What kind/kinds of car/cars are you interested in?“Uses” vs “are using”Is it correct to say “spendings”?If you have two verbs governed by he/she/it, does the second verb also need to be singular of only the first one?It was = There were?Weighing scale or scales?Can we use “a” after “are”?singular vs plural problem of “profile” in “We first build up a detailed profile of our customers and their requirements.”“The farthest reach” or “the farthest reaches”?Why “pensions products”?
The screen of my macbook suddenly broken down how can I do to recover
Question about the proof of Second Isomorphism Theorem
Is there a working SACD iso player for Ubuntu?
Open a doc from terminal, but not by its name
If a character has darkvision, can they see through an area of nonmagical darkness filled with lightly obscuring gas?
Why did the HMS Bounty go back to a time when whales are already rare?
Intuition of generalized eigenvector.
Is there a single word describing earning money through any means?
What was the exact wording from Ivanhoe of this advice on how to free yourself from slavery?
Did arcade monitors have same pixel aspect ratio as TV sets?
Delivering sarcasm
Is it improper etiquette to ask your opponent what his/her rating is before the game?
Why is it that I can sometimes guess the next note?
Should I stop contributing to retirement accounts?
Creature in Shazam mid-credits scene?
Request info on 12/48v PSU
Is it better practice to read straight from sheet music rather than memorize it?
How much character growth crosses the line into breaking the character
Multiplicative persistence
Is the U.S. Code copyrighted by the Government?
What is this called? Old film camera viewer?
How do I color the graph in datavisualization?
Offered money to buy a house, seller is asking for more to cover gap between their listing and mortgage owed
How should I respond when I lied about my education and the company finds out through background check?
Is “staff” singular or plural?
What kind/kinds of car/cars are you interested in?“Uses” vs “are using”Is it correct to say “spendings”?If you have two verbs governed by he/she/it, does the second verb also need to be singular of only the first one?It was = There were?Weighing scale or scales?Can we use “a” after “are”?singular vs plural problem of “profile” in “We first build up a detailed profile of our customers and their requirements.”“The farthest reach” or “the farthest reaches”?Why “pensions products”?
In the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary there is an example for "get by":
We can get by with four computers at the moment, but we'll need a couple more when the new staff arrive.
(Emphasis changed.)
Shouldn't this be "arrives"?
singular-vs-plural subject-verb-agreement grammatical-number
New contributor
add a comment |
In the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary there is an example for "get by":
We can get by with four computers at the moment, but we'll need a couple more when the new staff arrive.
(Emphasis changed.)
Shouldn't this be "arrives"?
singular-vs-plural subject-verb-agreement grammatical-number
New contributor
3
Reading the title, I thought the question was why we don't write "he's", "she's", or "it's" as the possessive pronouns.
– David K
15 hours ago
BrE has a practice of treating nouns for groups of people (even company or agency names) as plurals grammatically.
– chrylis
10 hours ago
add a comment |
In the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary there is an example for "get by":
We can get by with four computers at the moment, but we'll need a couple more when the new staff arrive.
(Emphasis changed.)
Shouldn't this be "arrives"?
singular-vs-plural subject-verb-agreement grammatical-number
New contributor
In the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary there is an example for "get by":
We can get by with four computers at the moment, but we'll need a couple more when the new staff arrive.
(Emphasis changed.)
Shouldn't this be "arrives"?
singular-vs-plural subject-verb-agreement grammatical-number
singular-vs-plural subject-verb-agreement grammatical-number
New contributor
New contributor
edited 50 mins ago
Solomon Ucko
1094
1094
New contributor
asked 19 hours ago
oscar tabarezoscar tabarez
533
533
New contributor
New contributor
3
Reading the title, I thought the question was why we don't write "he's", "she's", or "it's" as the possessive pronouns.
– David K
15 hours ago
BrE has a practice of treating nouns for groups of people (even company or agency names) as plurals grammatically.
– chrylis
10 hours ago
add a comment |
3
Reading the title, I thought the question was why we don't write "he's", "she's", or "it's" as the possessive pronouns.
– David K
15 hours ago
BrE has a practice of treating nouns for groups of people (even company or agency names) as plurals grammatically.
– chrylis
10 hours ago
3
3
Reading the title, I thought the question was why we don't write "he's", "she's", or "it's" as the possessive pronouns.
– David K
15 hours ago
Reading the title, I thought the question was why we don't write "he's", "she's", or "it's" as the possessive pronouns.
– David K
15 hours ago
BrE has a practice of treating nouns for groups of people (even company or agency names) as plurals grammatically.
– chrylis
10 hours ago
BrE has a practice of treating nouns for groups of people (even company or agency names) as plurals grammatically.
– chrylis
10 hours ago
add a comment |
3 Answers
3
active
oldest
votes
EDIT
I see from comments and from the answer by @Kshitij Singh that my answer does not cover all cases. I may have to rethink it.
It is a very good question. You can think of staff as an irregular plural.
We can correctly say:
When the sheep arrives we will put it in the paddock.
When the sheep arrive we can put them in the paddock.
This is is because 'sheep' is the plural of 'sheep'.
In the case of "staff", it acts as an irregular plural that has no singular form! The singular is "staff member".
Here you can see the usage in a dictionary:
Meaning of staff in English
Contents staff noun UK /stɑːf/ US /stæf/ staff noun (PEOPLE) A2 [ S, + sing/pl verb ] the group of people who work for
an organization:
There is a good relationship between staff and pupils at the school.
The staff are not very happy about the latest pay increase.
There are over a hundred staff in the company.
He is on (= a member of) the editorial staff of the magazine.
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/staff
Note that if you use 'staff' as a singular noun then you are indicating that it means a long substantial walking stick.
[ C ] formal a long, strong stick held in the hand that is used as a
support when walking, as a weapon, or as a symbol of authority
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/staff
3
Lots of US-centric style guides and grammar sites and blogs obstinately maintain that 'staff' is always singular. The issue also affects company names, teams, etc.
– Michael Harvey
18 hours ago
2
@chasly - yes, exactly. Americans would say that.
– Michael Harvey
18 hours ago
1
@chasly, you should address the OP's confusion by mentioning that staff is singular-only in American English, and may be singular or plural in British English. I am surprised you did not know this.
– Michael Harvey
18 hours ago
1
As an American, “staff” and “team” behave like singular nouns for me, so this is accurate.
– Mixolydian
16 hours ago
1
I didn't say there was anything wrong with "he is on the staff." I'm just saying that it would seem odd to me if "staff" were considered a plural noun in that usage. For example, would you write, "The staff are improved now that he is on them"? I would have written "is" and "it". Is that just an American thing?
– David K
10 hours ago
|
show 10 more comments
In British English staff can be singular or plural. If it is the subject of a verb, this verb is plural.
The staff in this shop are very helpful.
Could you give an example where staff (meaning a number of workers) is singular?
– chasly from UK
18 hours ago
A staff of ten.
– Kshitij Singh
18 hours ago
Hmm... You're right. I'll have to rethink.
– chasly from UK
17 hours ago
add a comment |
In American English, I think both would be acceptable. Either the sentence is treating "the staff" as one entity, which is fine, or "the staff" as multiple staff members (or "staffers").
It reminds me of how the United States used to be plural until after the American Civil War ("The US are" vs "the US is"). A similar case would be "cast" (theatrical); "The cast is all college students" is acceptable, and "the cast put on the show once a night" is also perfectly fine, for example.
add a comment |
Your Answer
StackExchange.ready(function()
var channelOptions =
tags: "".split(" "),
id: "481"
;
initTagRenderer("".split(" "), "".split(" "), channelOptions);
StackExchange.using("externalEditor", function()
// Have to fire editor after snippets, if snippets enabled
if (StackExchange.settings.snippets.snippetsEnabled)
StackExchange.using("snippets", function()
createEditor();
);
else
createEditor();
);
function createEditor()
StackExchange.prepareEditor(
heartbeatType: 'answer',
autoActivateHeartbeat: false,
convertImagesToLinks: false,
noModals: true,
showLowRepImageUploadWarning: true,
reputationToPostImages: null,
bindNavPrevention: true,
postfix: "",
imageUploader:
brandingHtml: "Powered by u003ca class="icon-imgur-white" href="https://imgur.com/"u003eu003c/au003e",
contentPolicyHtml: "User contributions licensed under u003ca href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/"u003ecc by-sa 3.0 with attribution requiredu003c/au003e u003ca href="https://stackoverflow.com/legal/content-policy"u003e(content policy)u003c/au003e",
allowUrls: true
,
noCode: true, onDemand: true,
discardSelector: ".discard-answer"
,immediatelyShowMarkdownHelp:true
);
);
oscar tabarez is a new contributor. Be nice, and check out our Code of Conduct.
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function ()
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
);
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
StackExchange.ready(
function ()
StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2fell.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f201939%2fis-staff-singular-or-plural%23new-answer', 'question_page');
);
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
3 Answers
3
active
oldest
votes
3 Answers
3
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
EDIT
I see from comments and from the answer by @Kshitij Singh that my answer does not cover all cases. I may have to rethink it.
It is a very good question. You can think of staff as an irregular plural.
We can correctly say:
When the sheep arrives we will put it in the paddock.
When the sheep arrive we can put them in the paddock.
This is is because 'sheep' is the plural of 'sheep'.
In the case of "staff", it acts as an irregular plural that has no singular form! The singular is "staff member".
Here you can see the usage in a dictionary:
Meaning of staff in English
Contents staff noun UK /stɑːf/ US /stæf/ staff noun (PEOPLE) A2 [ S, + sing/pl verb ] the group of people who work for
an organization:
There is a good relationship between staff and pupils at the school.
The staff are not very happy about the latest pay increase.
There are over a hundred staff in the company.
He is on (= a member of) the editorial staff of the magazine.
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/staff
Note that if you use 'staff' as a singular noun then you are indicating that it means a long substantial walking stick.
[ C ] formal a long, strong stick held in the hand that is used as a
support when walking, as a weapon, or as a symbol of authority
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/staff
3
Lots of US-centric style guides and grammar sites and blogs obstinately maintain that 'staff' is always singular. The issue also affects company names, teams, etc.
– Michael Harvey
18 hours ago
2
@chasly - yes, exactly. Americans would say that.
– Michael Harvey
18 hours ago
1
@chasly, you should address the OP's confusion by mentioning that staff is singular-only in American English, and may be singular or plural in British English. I am surprised you did not know this.
– Michael Harvey
18 hours ago
1
As an American, “staff” and “team” behave like singular nouns for me, so this is accurate.
– Mixolydian
16 hours ago
1
I didn't say there was anything wrong with "he is on the staff." I'm just saying that it would seem odd to me if "staff" were considered a plural noun in that usage. For example, would you write, "The staff are improved now that he is on them"? I would have written "is" and "it". Is that just an American thing?
– David K
10 hours ago
|
show 10 more comments
EDIT
I see from comments and from the answer by @Kshitij Singh that my answer does not cover all cases. I may have to rethink it.
It is a very good question. You can think of staff as an irregular plural.
We can correctly say:
When the sheep arrives we will put it in the paddock.
When the sheep arrive we can put them in the paddock.
This is is because 'sheep' is the plural of 'sheep'.
In the case of "staff", it acts as an irregular plural that has no singular form! The singular is "staff member".
Here you can see the usage in a dictionary:
Meaning of staff in English
Contents staff noun UK /stɑːf/ US /stæf/ staff noun (PEOPLE) A2 [ S, + sing/pl verb ] the group of people who work for
an organization:
There is a good relationship between staff and pupils at the school.
The staff are not very happy about the latest pay increase.
There are over a hundred staff in the company.
He is on (= a member of) the editorial staff of the magazine.
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/staff
Note that if you use 'staff' as a singular noun then you are indicating that it means a long substantial walking stick.
[ C ] formal a long, strong stick held in the hand that is used as a
support when walking, as a weapon, or as a symbol of authority
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/staff
3
Lots of US-centric style guides and grammar sites and blogs obstinately maintain that 'staff' is always singular. The issue also affects company names, teams, etc.
– Michael Harvey
18 hours ago
2
@chasly - yes, exactly. Americans would say that.
– Michael Harvey
18 hours ago
1
@chasly, you should address the OP's confusion by mentioning that staff is singular-only in American English, and may be singular or plural in British English. I am surprised you did not know this.
– Michael Harvey
18 hours ago
1
As an American, “staff” and “team” behave like singular nouns for me, so this is accurate.
– Mixolydian
16 hours ago
1
I didn't say there was anything wrong with "he is on the staff." I'm just saying that it would seem odd to me if "staff" were considered a plural noun in that usage. For example, would you write, "The staff are improved now that he is on them"? I would have written "is" and "it". Is that just an American thing?
– David K
10 hours ago
|
show 10 more comments
EDIT
I see from comments and from the answer by @Kshitij Singh that my answer does not cover all cases. I may have to rethink it.
It is a very good question. You can think of staff as an irregular plural.
We can correctly say:
When the sheep arrives we will put it in the paddock.
When the sheep arrive we can put them in the paddock.
This is is because 'sheep' is the plural of 'sheep'.
In the case of "staff", it acts as an irregular plural that has no singular form! The singular is "staff member".
Here you can see the usage in a dictionary:
Meaning of staff in English
Contents staff noun UK /stɑːf/ US /stæf/ staff noun (PEOPLE) A2 [ S, + sing/pl verb ] the group of people who work for
an organization:
There is a good relationship between staff and pupils at the school.
The staff are not very happy about the latest pay increase.
There are over a hundred staff in the company.
He is on (= a member of) the editorial staff of the magazine.
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/staff
Note that if you use 'staff' as a singular noun then you are indicating that it means a long substantial walking stick.
[ C ] formal a long, strong stick held in the hand that is used as a
support when walking, as a weapon, or as a symbol of authority
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/staff
EDIT
I see from comments and from the answer by @Kshitij Singh that my answer does not cover all cases. I may have to rethink it.
It is a very good question. You can think of staff as an irregular plural.
We can correctly say:
When the sheep arrives we will put it in the paddock.
When the sheep arrive we can put them in the paddock.
This is is because 'sheep' is the plural of 'sheep'.
In the case of "staff", it acts as an irregular plural that has no singular form! The singular is "staff member".
Here you can see the usage in a dictionary:
Meaning of staff in English
Contents staff noun UK /stɑːf/ US /stæf/ staff noun (PEOPLE) A2 [ S, + sing/pl verb ] the group of people who work for
an organization:
There is a good relationship between staff and pupils at the school.
The staff are not very happy about the latest pay increase.
There are over a hundred staff in the company.
He is on (= a member of) the editorial staff of the magazine.
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/staff
Note that if you use 'staff' as a singular noun then you are indicating that it means a long substantial walking stick.
[ C ] formal a long, strong stick held in the hand that is used as a
support when walking, as a weapon, or as a symbol of authority
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/staff
edited 16 hours ago
answered 18 hours ago
chasly from UKchasly from UK
2,742313
2,742313
3
Lots of US-centric style guides and grammar sites and blogs obstinately maintain that 'staff' is always singular. The issue also affects company names, teams, etc.
– Michael Harvey
18 hours ago
2
@chasly - yes, exactly. Americans would say that.
– Michael Harvey
18 hours ago
1
@chasly, you should address the OP's confusion by mentioning that staff is singular-only in American English, and may be singular or plural in British English. I am surprised you did not know this.
– Michael Harvey
18 hours ago
1
As an American, “staff” and “team” behave like singular nouns for me, so this is accurate.
– Mixolydian
16 hours ago
1
I didn't say there was anything wrong with "he is on the staff." I'm just saying that it would seem odd to me if "staff" were considered a plural noun in that usage. For example, would you write, "The staff are improved now that he is on them"? I would have written "is" and "it". Is that just an American thing?
– David K
10 hours ago
|
show 10 more comments
3
Lots of US-centric style guides and grammar sites and blogs obstinately maintain that 'staff' is always singular. The issue also affects company names, teams, etc.
– Michael Harvey
18 hours ago
2
@chasly - yes, exactly. Americans would say that.
– Michael Harvey
18 hours ago
1
@chasly, you should address the OP's confusion by mentioning that staff is singular-only in American English, and may be singular or plural in British English. I am surprised you did not know this.
– Michael Harvey
18 hours ago
1
As an American, “staff” and “team” behave like singular nouns for me, so this is accurate.
– Mixolydian
16 hours ago
1
I didn't say there was anything wrong with "he is on the staff." I'm just saying that it would seem odd to me if "staff" were considered a plural noun in that usage. For example, would you write, "The staff are improved now that he is on them"? I would have written "is" and "it". Is that just an American thing?
– David K
10 hours ago
3
3
Lots of US-centric style guides and grammar sites and blogs obstinately maintain that 'staff' is always singular. The issue also affects company names, teams, etc.
– Michael Harvey
18 hours ago
Lots of US-centric style guides and grammar sites and blogs obstinately maintain that 'staff' is always singular. The issue also affects company names, teams, etc.
– Michael Harvey
18 hours ago
2
2
@chasly - yes, exactly. Americans would say that.
– Michael Harvey
18 hours ago
@chasly - yes, exactly. Americans would say that.
– Michael Harvey
18 hours ago
1
1
@chasly, you should address the OP's confusion by mentioning that staff is singular-only in American English, and may be singular or plural in British English. I am surprised you did not know this.
– Michael Harvey
18 hours ago
@chasly, you should address the OP's confusion by mentioning that staff is singular-only in American English, and may be singular or plural in British English. I am surprised you did not know this.
– Michael Harvey
18 hours ago
1
1
As an American, “staff” and “team” behave like singular nouns for me, so this is accurate.
– Mixolydian
16 hours ago
As an American, “staff” and “team” behave like singular nouns for me, so this is accurate.
– Mixolydian
16 hours ago
1
1
I didn't say there was anything wrong with "he is on the staff." I'm just saying that it would seem odd to me if "staff" were considered a plural noun in that usage. For example, would you write, "The staff are improved now that he is on them"? I would have written "is" and "it". Is that just an American thing?
– David K
10 hours ago
I didn't say there was anything wrong with "he is on the staff." I'm just saying that it would seem odd to me if "staff" were considered a plural noun in that usage. For example, would you write, "The staff are improved now that he is on them"? I would have written "is" and "it". Is that just an American thing?
– David K
10 hours ago
|
show 10 more comments
In British English staff can be singular or plural. If it is the subject of a verb, this verb is plural.
The staff in this shop are very helpful.
Could you give an example where staff (meaning a number of workers) is singular?
– chasly from UK
18 hours ago
A staff of ten.
– Kshitij Singh
18 hours ago
Hmm... You're right. I'll have to rethink.
– chasly from UK
17 hours ago
add a comment |
In British English staff can be singular or plural. If it is the subject of a verb, this verb is plural.
The staff in this shop are very helpful.
Could you give an example where staff (meaning a number of workers) is singular?
– chasly from UK
18 hours ago
A staff of ten.
– Kshitij Singh
18 hours ago
Hmm... You're right. I'll have to rethink.
– chasly from UK
17 hours ago
add a comment |
In British English staff can be singular or plural. If it is the subject of a verb, this verb is plural.
The staff in this shop are very helpful.
In British English staff can be singular or plural. If it is the subject of a verb, this verb is plural.
The staff in this shop are very helpful.
answered 18 hours ago
Kshitij SinghKshitij Singh
1,254113
1,254113
Could you give an example where staff (meaning a number of workers) is singular?
– chasly from UK
18 hours ago
A staff of ten.
– Kshitij Singh
18 hours ago
Hmm... You're right. I'll have to rethink.
– chasly from UK
17 hours ago
add a comment |
Could you give an example where staff (meaning a number of workers) is singular?
– chasly from UK
18 hours ago
A staff of ten.
– Kshitij Singh
18 hours ago
Hmm... You're right. I'll have to rethink.
– chasly from UK
17 hours ago
Could you give an example where staff (meaning a number of workers) is singular?
– chasly from UK
18 hours ago
Could you give an example where staff (meaning a number of workers) is singular?
– chasly from UK
18 hours ago
A staff of ten.
– Kshitij Singh
18 hours ago
A staff of ten.
– Kshitij Singh
18 hours ago
Hmm... You're right. I'll have to rethink.
– chasly from UK
17 hours ago
Hmm... You're right. I'll have to rethink.
– chasly from UK
17 hours ago
add a comment |
In American English, I think both would be acceptable. Either the sentence is treating "the staff" as one entity, which is fine, or "the staff" as multiple staff members (or "staffers").
It reminds me of how the United States used to be plural until after the American Civil War ("The US are" vs "the US is"). A similar case would be "cast" (theatrical); "The cast is all college students" is acceptable, and "the cast put on the show once a night" is also perfectly fine, for example.
add a comment |
In American English, I think both would be acceptable. Either the sentence is treating "the staff" as one entity, which is fine, or "the staff" as multiple staff members (or "staffers").
It reminds me of how the United States used to be plural until after the American Civil War ("The US are" vs "the US is"). A similar case would be "cast" (theatrical); "The cast is all college students" is acceptable, and "the cast put on the show once a night" is also perfectly fine, for example.
add a comment |
In American English, I think both would be acceptable. Either the sentence is treating "the staff" as one entity, which is fine, or "the staff" as multiple staff members (or "staffers").
It reminds me of how the United States used to be plural until after the American Civil War ("The US are" vs "the US is"). A similar case would be "cast" (theatrical); "The cast is all college students" is acceptable, and "the cast put on the show once a night" is also perfectly fine, for example.
In American English, I think both would be acceptable. Either the sentence is treating "the staff" as one entity, which is fine, or "the staff" as multiple staff members (or "staffers").
It reminds me of how the United States used to be plural until after the American Civil War ("The US are" vs "the US is"). A similar case would be "cast" (theatrical); "The cast is all college students" is acceptable, and "the cast put on the show once a night" is also perfectly fine, for example.
answered 13 hours ago
user45266user45266
1,269116
1,269116
add a comment |
add a comment |
oscar tabarez is a new contributor. Be nice, and check out our Code of Conduct.
oscar tabarez is a new contributor. Be nice, and check out our Code of Conduct.
oscar tabarez is a new contributor. Be nice, and check out our Code of Conduct.
oscar tabarez is a new contributor. Be nice, and check out our Code of Conduct.
Thanks for contributing an answer to English Language Learners Stack Exchange!
- Please be sure to answer the question. Provide details and share your research!
But avoid …
- Asking for help, clarification, or responding to other answers.
- Making statements based on opinion; back them up with references or personal experience.
To learn more, see our tips on writing great answers.
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function ()
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
);
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
StackExchange.ready(
function ()
StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2fell.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f201939%2fis-staff-singular-or-plural%23new-answer', 'question_page');
);
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function ()
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
);
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function ()
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
);
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Sign up or log in
StackExchange.ready(function ()
StackExchange.helpers.onClickDraftSave('#login-link');
);
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Sign up using Google
Sign up using Facebook
Sign up using Email and Password
Post as a guest
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
Required, but never shown
3
Reading the title, I thought the question was why we don't write "he's", "she's", or "it's" as the possessive pronouns.
– David K
15 hours ago
BrE has a practice of treating nouns for groups of people (even company or agency names) as plurals grammatically.
– chrylis
10 hours ago