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When we mention one (singular) speicific thing from a group (plural), is it singular or plural?

This is a fragment of a sentence taken from an English novel:

..., but kids like Bryce have only come around in the last couple of years.

I got a hint that it was a present perfect, am I right? And since they wrote have, it means it's plural, isn't it? So, is it also correct to say:

  • People like him are talented.

  • Adults like my father are so lame.

  • Children like my son like to play.

Then I tried to translate a sentence (my original language to English), this is the sentence:

People like me are someone who never gives up.

Is that sentence correct? How come there is a singular there? If it's plural why wasn't it like this:

People like me are people who never give up.

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    What is the subject of your sentence? (The fact you used "like me" instead of "like I" is a clue here) The been must age with the subject.
    – The Photon
    Jun 7, 2021 at 1:36
  • 1
    A good trick is to take out the adjective phrase or simile for clarity. Use the non-simile noun to determine the correct sentence structure, e.g.Kids (like Bryce) have….
    – CodeGnome
    Jun 7, 2021 at 1:36

2 Answers 2

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Q. it was a present perfect, am I right? And since they wrote have, it means it's plural, isn't it?

A. WHEN TO USE Have Had & Had Had

In the present perfect, the auxiliary verb is always have (for I, you, we, they) or has (for he, she, it).

In the past perfect, the auxiliary verb is always had.

So yes it is present perfect and plural, however it is the "kids" that defines the plural not the "have" in this instance. Have can also be used with the singular "I" and "you".

Ref Have & Had In English


So, is it also correct to say: People like him are talented; Adults like my father are so lame; Children like my son like to play;

A. Once again; It is not all about grammar To answer this question first you need to define the sentence. Does what you have written make sense, even when you are just using them as examples?

Talented in what? or should it be Talented People like him?

Are all adults lame? Do all children like to play?

Talented People like him; Children like to play; Some adults, like my Father are lame.

It would be different if you were to add more detail

*Artists like him are talented; Jerks like my father are so lame;


Then I tried to translate a sentence (my original language to English), this is the sentence:

Singular ?

People like me are someone who never gives up. This is incorrect

The correct translation would be

A person like me is someone who never gives up.


Plural

People like me are people who never give up.

so look at what you have written "people (like me) are people", "who never give up" Well I think we already know people are people so we only need to write people once and to define who they are a third time is also unnecessary so we can drop the "who" and simplify the sentence to .

"people, like me, never give up"

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The correct wording is:

People like me never give up.

All of the following are examples about groups of people.
A group of people contains MANY people:

  • "kids like Bryce"
  • "People like me"
  • "politicians like Joe"
  • "employees similar to Sarah"
  • "men with beards"
  • "people who own more than one car"
  • "people who do not own any cars"

Some examples of correct and incorrect English are shown below:

Sentence Good English or Bad English?
"kids are young" 😃 Good English
"kids like Bryce are young" 😃 Good English
"kids like Bryce is young" Bad English
"People are talented." 😃 Good English
"People like William are talented" 😃 Good English
"People like William is talented" Bad English
"Adults like my father are lame. 😃 Good English
"Adults are lame" 😃 Good English
"Adults is lame" Bad English
"Adults like my father is lame. Bad English
"Children like my son like to play" 😃 Good English
"Children like to play" 😃 Good English
"Children likes to play" Bad English
"Children, such as my son, likes to play" Bad English
"Children like my son likes to play" Bad English
People like me are happy. 😃 Good English
People are happy. 😃 Good English
People like me is happy. Bad English
People is happy. Bad English

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