Notional agreement is a term used in linguistics and grammar to describe the matching of a verb to the meaning or idea of the subject, rather than its strict grammatical form. It is also commonly referred to as semantic agreement or conceptual agreement.
In traditional grammar, agreement between the subject and the verb is based on the grammatical number, gender, and person of the subject. However, in some cases, the agreement may not be solely based on the grammatical form of the subject, but on its meaning or concept instead.
For instance, consider the sentence: “The team is playing well.” Here, the subject “team” is singular, so according to traditional rules, the verb “is” should also be singular. However, we know that a team consists of multiple players, so intuitively we might want to say “are playing well.” This is an example of notional agreement, where the verb agrees with the idea of the subject rather than its grammatical form.
Notional agreement is particularly common in cases where the subject is a collective noun that refers to a group of people or things, such as “family,” “group,” “team,” or “committee.” Depending on the context and the speaker`s intention, the verb can either agree with the collective noun as a single entity or with the individual members of the group.
For example, consider the sentence: “The committee has made its decision.” Here, the verb “has” agrees with the collective noun “committee” as a single entity. However, if the speaker wants to emphasize the individual members of the group, they might say: “The committee have made their decisions.” In this case, the verb “have” agrees with the plural sense of the collective noun.
Notional agreement can also be used in cases where the subject is a singular noun that refers to a group of things or people that are seen as a unit, such as “the government,” “the public,” or “the media.” In these cases, the verb can agree with either the singular noun or the plural sense of the group, depending on the speaker`s intention and the context.
For example, consider the sentence: “The media is reporting on the situation.” Here, the verb “is” agrees with the singular noun “media.” However, if the speaker wants to emphasize the individual reporters and outlets that make up the media, they might say: “The media are reporting on the situation.” In this case, the verb “are” agrees with the plural sense of the group.
In conclusion, notional agreement is a concept in linguistics and grammar that allows for more flexible and intuitive agreement between the subject and the verb, based on the meaning or idea of the subject rather than its strict grammatical form. While it may sometimes conflict with traditional rules of agreement, notional agreement is widely used in everyday language and can help make sentences more clear and effective. As a professional, it is important to understand notional agreement and how it can be used effectively in writing to improve search engine optimization and organic traffic.