OT- requesting a little help with grammar

RoseandJoan

I am planning a new tattoo and wish to reference a line from one of my Mum's poems, however, I wish to make sure the grammar is 100% correct.

The line of the poem is

'All the things I thought was/were true
was/were bottled up and labelled blue'

I would really appreciate your assistance with this matter

13 years ago

Off Topic

8 replies

Latest reply was from Angie

Queen Mum

Veteran

it would be "were" in both cases because "things" is plural

also, double check the spelling on labeled.,,,, I always spell it with one "L"... is the British way to spell it with 2 "L's"?
Okay,,., I just looked it up and yes, in the US, it's labeled, but in your neck of the woods it's labelled.

13 years ago

RoseandJoan

Veteran

Thanks Kim, that was my first thought too but I also thought it would be wise to double check

13 years ago

Gaylene

Veteran

Grammar Girl here (that's the nickname my students give me)

QM is correct. When "all" is used in a sentence this way, the verb takes its number (singular or plural) from the noun to which "all" refers-- in this case "things" which is plural.

It gets confusing because, if "all" referenced a singular noun like "money", you'd need to use the singular form of the verb.

My students HATE this sort of thing, but, eventually it gets drilled into them.

13 years ago