Can you use persons in a sentence? There are two persons of interest being questioned for the murder of John Doe. The Douglas County Police Department has seventeen open missing persons cases. No more than six persons can occupy the hot tub at any one time. One political context in which persons is correct is in the expression displaced persons.
Is persons a correct grammar?
The AP Stylebook flatly states “ The word people is preferred to persons in all plural uses .” And The New York Times Manual of Style and Usage now also states “Use people as the plural of person,” although they add that persons may still be used in certain settings (“letters to the editor, in untranslated texts, in ...
Can you say persons?
“When we say persons,” says Wilson Follett’s Modern American Usage, “we are thinking, or ought to be, of ones—individuals with identities; whereas when we say people we should mean a large group, an indefinite and anonymous mass.” The traditional rule is that persons is used for either an exact or a small number.
What is the plural of a person?
Is it right to say some persons?
Yes, but somewhat legalistic , even old fashioned and “fuddy duddy” If this is not the effect you are afer, try “some people” instead, it means exactly the same thing.
Can I say 4 persons?
One case is your example, when specifying a particular number of persons. You could say “Starter for 4 persons” or “Starter for 4 people” , although in the context of a restaurant menu, it would (in my opinion) be slightly less awkward-sounding to use persons rather than people. The word people is more of a collective.
Does persons need an apostrophe?
The person who posted above me was correct, and apostrophes should never be used to indicate that a noun is plural . Any word ending with an “s” should have an apostrophe after the s when something is belonging to the person or thing described by the word.
Is 2 persons grammatically correct?
The words people and persons can both be used as the plural of person, but they are not used in exactly the same way . People is by far the more common of the two words and is used in most ordinary contexts: “a group of people”; “there were only about ten people”; “several thousand people have been rehoused”.
Is it okay to say two persons?
“Two persons” has a somewhat technical or specialized feeling, such as might be written by a policeman in a report. From a grammatical viewpoint, both are correct, but I should always use the first one – ‘two people. ‘ ‘Two persons’ sounds as if it has been lifted straight out of a policeman’s notebook!
Is person singular or plural?
Person is a singular noun . We use it to refer to any human being. Diana is a very emotional person. Even though it’s the plural of person, persons is rarely used.
What is the difference between person and persons?
The plural of person should be people in the vast majority of contexts, although legalese uses the plural persons . Peoples should be reserved for instances where you are referring to more than one distinct ethnic group.
How many persons are there in English grammar?
English has three persons (first, second, and third).
What is person English grammar?
In grammar, a person is the way of referring to someone taking part in an event , such as the person talking, the person being talked to, the person being talked about. Grammatical persons are accomplished by pronouns, words used to take the place of a noun, in order to make speech easier.
Which is correct some people or some people?
“Some” takes plural nouns and verbs .
Some people are looking for you. Some students are lazy. But, when the followed noun is uncountable, the noun remains in its basic form without any inflections and the verb also remains singular: Some water is needed.
Why do legal documents say persons?
Use ‘Persons’ With Law Enforcement
The phrase persons of interest refers to individuals whom law enforcement believes may be involved with a crime . Assuming they have not been arrested or charged, such individuals are referred to as persons of interest, not people of interest.
What is a two person?
A system designed to prohibit access by an individual to nuclear weapons and certain designated components by requiring the presence at all times of at least two authorized persons , each ... From: two-person rule in The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military »
How do you write possessive of two people?
Where two or more people own one item together, place an apostrophe before an “s” only after the second-named person . For example: Incorrect: Bill’s and Mary’s car was a lemon, leading them to seek rescission of their contract under the state’s lemon law.
How do you write the plural possessive of a name?
Plural and Possessive Names: A Guide
To show possession using an apostrophe, add ‘s for individuals (“Smith’s car”) and just the apostrophe after the s for plurals (“the Smiths’ car”). If a family name ends with an s or z, you can choose to use just the apostrophe (“the Williams’ dog”) or ‘s (“the Williams’s dog”).
How do you add an apostrophe to people?
PEOPLE is a plural noun, but it does not end in -s, because it is one of those irregular nouns (like geese, children, women etc). We don’t make it plural by adding an s because it is already plural. To make it possessive, revert back to the rule for singular nouns: add apostrophe -s .
Which is correct people’s lives or peoples lives?
Simply put: a life is SINGULAR and lives is PLURAL . Don’t confuse with: She lives in London with People’s lives are at risk by taking this vaccine. People’s life is INCORRECT at all times.
Is the word hair correct?
It is singular when it refers to an entire head of hair (brown hair, blonde hair, curly hair). The plural is hairs when referring to individual strands of hair When used as a mass noun, the plural is “hair”. When used as a count noun, the plural is “hairs”.
What are the examples of persons?
The definition of a person is an individual human being. An example of a person is one man . Any of the different forms or inflections expressing these distinctions. Personality; self; being.
What is 1st person 2nd person 3rd person with examples?
I, me, my, mine, myself, we, our, ours, ourselves — First person. You, your, yours, yourself — Second person. She, her, hers, herself, he, him, his, himself, they, them, themselves, their, theirs — Third person.
How many persons are present?
World Population Clock: 7.96 Billion People (2022) – Worldometer.
Is third person plural?
The singular “they” is a generic third-person singular pronoun in English.
What is person pronoun?
A personal pronoun is a short word we use as a simple substitute for the proper name of a person . Each of the English personal pronouns shows us the grammatical person, gender, number, and case of the noun it replaces. I, you, he, she, it, we they, me, him, her, us, and them are all personal pronouns.
What are the categories of persons?
Person is a category used to distinguish between (1) those speaking, (2) those being addressed, and (3) those who are neither speaking nor being addressed (i.e., everybody else). These three categories are called the first person, the second person, and the third person .
Is 2 persons grammatically correct?
The words people and persons can both be used as the plural of person, but they are not used in exactly the same way . People is by far the more common of the two words and is used in most ordinary contexts: “a group of people”; “there were only about ten people”; “several thousand people have been rehoused”.
Is person singular or plural?
How many persons are there in grammar?
There are three grammatical persons in English: 1) First person.
What is grammar person?
In grammar, a person is the way of referring to someone taking part in an event , such as the person talking, the person being talked to, the person being talked about. Grammatical persons are accomplished by pronouns, words used to take the place of a noun, in order to make speech easier.
