If you’re familiar with the English language and grammar, you’d know about irregular nouns. Unlike standard nouns, these nouns look and act differently, which makes them confusing, especially when it comes to plurality. Like, is it ‘is there any news?’ or ‘are there any news?’ Let’s see and find out.
Is It ‘Is There Any News’ or ‘Are There Any News?’
‘Is there any news’ is the grammatically correct and appropriate phrase, while ‘are there any news’ is incorrect. The word ‘news’ is uncountable and therefore acts as a singular noun all the time. Following the subject-verb agreement rule, the phrase should be ‘is there any news?’ and not ‘are.’
Take a look at the two examples below.
- Correct: Is there any news about the elections?
- Incorrect: Are there any news about the elections?
In the examples above, the first sentence is correct while the latter is grammatically incorrect. ‘News’ acts as a collective noun, in a sense that news as a whole, and all the information that’s part of it, is under one name, which is ‘news.’ In this sense, we treat ‘news’ as a singular noun.
The fundamental subject-verb agreement rule tells us that if your noun is singular, your verb should be singular as well. While if your noun is plural, your verb should follow to be plural. Since ‘news’ is singular, we should use the singular verb ‘is.’ Thus, ‘Is there any news?’ is the grammatically correct and appropriate phrase.
Most English speakers and writers would agree as well. According to the Google Ngram Viewer, ‘is there any news’ is significantly used more often than ‘are there any news.’ It is probably because most recognize the latter as grammatically incorrect, and ‘is there any news’ to be most appropriate.
Is There Any News
‘Is there any news’ is grammatically correct and appropriate to use in any context. Despite ending with ‘s,’ ‘news’ is a noun that acts singularly, so it follows that a singular verb shall be used in the sentence. Thus, ‘Is there any news?’ is most appropriate and grammatically correct.
Below are examples of using ‘is there any news’ in a sentence.
- Is there any news about the recent fire incident?
- Is there any news about missing people?
- I haven’t read anything personally, but is there any news about a plane accident?
- Is there any news about increasing the minimum wage?
- Is there any news you’re assigned to report today?
- Is there any news you find interesting or new?
- Is there any news we can use for tomorrow’s report?
Are There Any News
‘Are there any news’ is generally grammatically incorrect and inappropriate in whatever context. ‘News’ is a singular noun that calls for a singular verb. However, ‘are’ is plural, and therefore our noun ‘news’ and verb ‘are’ do not agree with each other. Thus, ‘are there any news’ is grammatically incorrect.
However, there is a particular exception we can make. Take a look at the examples below.
- Are there any news reports about climate change?
- Are there any news updates about climate change?
Both sentences above are grammatically correct. It is because ‘news’ is not your noun anymore and is just an adjective to your nouns ‘reports’ and ‘updates.’ ‘Reports’ and ‘updates’ are plural, so ‘are’ is appropriate and grammatically correct to use in contexts like these.
Below are more examples of incorrect usage of ‘are there any news’ in a sentence.
- Are there any news to report for tomorrow?
- Are there any news I haven’t read today?
- Are there any news about a sinking ship accident?
- Are there any news about job openings for new graduates?
- Are there any news about bombings?
- Are there any news we need to review?
- Are there any news about economic feuds?
Is It ‘Is There Some News’ or ‘Are There Some News?’
‘Is there some news’ is the grammatically correct and appropriate phrase. ‘News’ is a singular noun, and therefore it needs a singular verb, ‘is.’ ‘Some’ may act like it’s quantifying ‘news,’ but ‘news’ is still considered singular. Thus, ‘is there some news’ is still grammatically correct and appropriate.
Take a look at the examples below.
- Correct: Is there some news about climate protests?
- Incorrect: Are there some news about climate protests?
In the examples above, the first sentence is correct, while the latter is incorrect. ‘Are’ and ‘news’ do not agree as ‘are’ is plural while ‘news is singular. On the other hand, ‘is’ and ‘news’ agree in being singular.
Final Thoughts
‘News’ is and always acts as a singular noun. Following the basic subject-verb agreement rule, ‘news’ calls for a singular verb. Thus, ‘is there any news’ is most appropriate and grammatically correct. On the other hand, ‘are there any news’ doesn’t follow the SVA rule and is incorrect.
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Martin holds a Master’s degree in Finance and International Business. He has six years of experience in professional communication with clients, executives, and colleagues. Furthermore, he has teaching experience from Aarhus University. Martin has been featured as an expert in communication and teaching on Forbes and Shopify. Read more about Martin here.
