Which is grammatically correct?

[sjwright]

Just to settle an ongoing disagreement in the office:

Which is grammatically correct:

- A whole new range of houses is coming soon to Royston
- A whole new range of houses are coming soon to Royston

I say that its the first, as the (singuar) range of (many) houses is 1 unit, therefore should be 'is coming soon'...

If there were more than 1 range of houses, then fair enough, 'are' is correct?

Ideas on a postcard please!

[MrsLeeG]

I would say A whole new range of homes are coming soon to Royston

[woofgang]

you are right

[MrsLeeG]

however "houses is coming soon" would be correct

[mike11111]

You are both wrong, though common parlance will accept the latter.

[LoftyLottie]

A whole new range of houses is coming soon to royston.

'A whole new range of houses' is treated as one item

So either new houses are coming to .................


or a range of houses is coming to.

[LoftyLottie]

True Mike, but strictly not grammatically correct.

[mike11111]

Try rephrasing it:
There is a whole new range of houses...
There are a whole new range of houses...

The former is clearly correct.

[sjwright]

Damn shame we can't put a poll on here!

[HowardKennitby]

depends on the meaning you are attaching to the word 'range'

[jno]

how can they both be wrong, mike?

I think you're right, a range is singular. The second one sounds wrong.

[LoftyLottie]

A range is only one item. Think of that way

Whether it be chicken, houses, homes, or whatever it is the range that is coming and that is singular.

[sjwright]

Range as in 'The new heritage range' which is our collection of houses that we build, a single collection of many houses ;-)

[mike11111]

Posts one and two agree jno, and therefore they are both wrong.

[LoftyLottie]

New ranges of houses are coming soon

A new range of houses is coming soon

[LoftyLottie]

IS is definitely correct.

[Old_Geezer]

My suspicion is that, "is", is correct as there is only one range. But it sounds better to my ear when I hear, "are", because my mind latches on to the houses, which are plural.

[DTCwordfan]

I write professionally though that may be hard to believe on here.

The answer is "is"

Why?

"Range" is an example of a "mass noun."

A noun (such as advice, bread, knowledge, luck, spaghetti, and work) that names things that in English cannot be counted.

A mass noun (also known as a noncount noun) is used only in the singular. Many abstract nouns are uncountable, but not all uncountable nouns are abstract. Contrast with count noun.

[LoftyLottie]

Are sounds very wrong to me actually.

[jno]

well, I thought you were talking to the OP, mike. Post 2 was, and therefore does not agree with post 1.

[sjwright]

I am loving these answers, however other people in the office are not :-D thanks for settling this guys