Do we hyphenate adjectives including numbers?
What is the correct way of saying this:
- I have completed three years of a six years course.
- I have completed three years of a six-years course?
And also, should it be 'six year' or 'six years' here?
adjectives grammatical-number
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What is the correct way of saying this:
- I have completed three years of a six years course.
- I have completed three years of a six-years course?
And also, should it be 'six year' or 'six years' here?
adjectives grammatical-number
edited 8 mins ago
Andrew Leach♦
79.5k8150256
asked 34 mins ago
user329952
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What is the correct way of saying this:
- I have completed three years of a six years course.
- I have completed three years of a six-years course?
And also, should it be 'six year' or 'six years' here?
adjectives grammatical-number
edited 8 mins ago
Andrew Leach♦
79.5k8150256
asked 34 mins ago
user329952
1
New contributor
user329952 is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
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What is the correct way of saying this:
- I have completed three years of a six years course.
- I have completed three years of a six-years course?
And also, should it be 'six year' or 'six years' here?
adjectives grammatical-number
adjectives grammatical-number
edited 8 mins ago
Andrew Leach♦
79.5k8150256
asked 34 mins ago
user329952
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edited 8 mins ago
Andrew Leach♦
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asked 34 mins ago
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edited 8 mins ago
Andrew Leach♦
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edited 8 mins ago
Andrew Leach♦
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edited 8 mins ago
Andrew Leach♦
79.5k8150256
79.5k8150256
asked 34 mins ago
user329952
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asked 34 mins ago
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asked 34 mins ago
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John Lawler calls this the eleven-year-old boy rule.
When a noun modifier consists of more than one word, it goes after the noun it modifies.
When a noun modifier consists of only one word, it goes before the noun it modifies.
Mnemonic: an eleven-year old boy versus a boy eleven years old
A single word (which includes a hyphenated word, as here) is an adjective; a multi-word phrase is an adjectival phrase. Adjectives are not inflected for number, and will always be singular — hence "eleven-year". It doesn't matter whether you are talking about a seven-year itch or an eleven-year-old boy, it's always year before the noun. You might get an itch every seven years, where the adjectival phrase does have a plural.
In your example, six-year is a single adjective going before the noun it modifies. It should be hyphenated because it's a single word, and it should be singular because adjectives are always singular.
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John Lawler calls this the eleven-year-old boy rule.
When a noun modifier consists of more than one word, it goes after the noun it modifies.
When a noun modifier consists of only one word, it goes before the noun it modifies.
Mnemonic: an eleven-year old boy versus a boy eleven years old
A single word (which includes a hyphenated word, as here) is an adjective; a multi-word phrase is an adjectival phrase. Adjectives are not inflected for number, and will always be singular — hence "eleven-year". It doesn't matter whether you are talking about a seven-year itch or an eleven-year-old boy, it's always year before the noun. You might get an itch every seven years, where the adjectival phrase does have a plural.
In your example, six-year is a single adjective going before the noun it modifies. It should be hyphenated because it's a single word, and it should be singular because adjectives are always singular.
answered 10 mins ago
Andrew Leach♦
79.5k8150256
add a comment |
John Lawler calls this the eleven-year-old boy rule.
When a noun modifier consists of more than one word, it goes after the noun it modifies.
When a noun modifier consists of only one word, it goes before the noun it modifies.
Mnemonic: an eleven-year old boy versus a boy eleven years old
A single word (which includes a hyphenated word, as here) is an adjective; a multi-word phrase is an adjectival phrase. Adjectives are not inflected for number, and will always be singular — hence "eleven-year". It doesn't matter whether you are talking about a seven-year itch or an eleven-year-old boy, it's always year before the noun. You might get an itch every seven years, where the adjectival phrase does have a plural.
In your example, six-year is a single adjective going before the noun it modifies. It should be hyphenated because it's a single word, and it should be singular because adjectives are always singular.
answered 10 mins ago
Andrew Leach♦
79.5k8150256
add a comment |
John Lawler calls this the eleven-year-old boy rule.
When a noun modifier consists of more than one word, it goes after the noun it modifies.
When a noun modifier consists of only one word, it goes before the noun it modifies.
Mnemonic: an eleven-year old boy versus a boy eleven years old
A single word (which includes a hyphenated word, as here) is an adjective; a multi-word phrase is an adjectival phrase. Adjectives are not inflected for number, and will always be singular — hence "eleven-year". It doesn't matter whether you are talking about a seven-year itch or an eleven-year-old boy, it's always year before the noun. You might get an itch every seven years, where the adjectival phrase does have a plural.
In your example, six-year is a single adjective going before the noun it modifies. It should be hyphenated because it's a single word, and it should be singular because adjectives are always singular.
answered 10 mins ago
Andrew Leach♦
79.5k8150256
John Lawler calls this the eleven-year-old boy rule.
When a noun modifier consists of more than one word, it goes after the noun it modifies.
When a noun modifier consists of only one word, it goes before the noun it modifies.
Mnemonic: an eleven-year old boy versus a boy eleven years old
A single word (which includes a hyphenated word, as here) is an adjective; a multi-word phrase is an adjectival phrase. Adjectives are not inflected for number, and will always be singular — hence "eleven-year". It doesn't matter whether you are talking about a seven-year itch or an eleven-year-old boy, it's always year before the noun. You might get an itch every seven years, where the adjectival phrase does have a plural.
In your example, six-year is a single adjective going before the noun it modifies. It should be hyphenated because it's a single word, and it should be singular because adjectives are always singular.
answered 10 mins ago
Andrew Leach♦
79.5k8150256
answered 10 mins ago
Andrew Leach♦
79.5k8150256
answered 10 mins ago
Andrew Leach♦
79.5k8150256
answered 10 mins ago
Andrew Leach♦
79.5k8150256
79.5k8150256
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add a comment |
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