A Lagos-based couple caused a stir days ago. They kidnapped themselves with the hope of getting a N5m ransom. According to the police, the target was to make the husband’s relatives who live abroad pay the money, which they wanted to use to buy back a house they had lost in the Badagry area of Lagos.
Self-kidnap is a terrible crime but the act is not our major concern here. After all, we have seen a cleric kidnap himself to extort ransom from the congregation. We are thus more interested in the grammar of ‘couple,’ in terms of the verb to use with it – number-wise. Casting headlines for the story, some media platforms variously wrote: ‘Couple plan self-kidnap,’ ‘Couple plans self-kidnap,’ ‘Lagos couple kidnaps themselves,’ ‘Lagos couple kidnap themselves’ and ‘Lagos couple kidnaps selves, demands N5m ransom from relatives.’
‘Couple,’ especially as used here, is a collective noun, which is a word used to represent a group of people, animals or things. It is thus in the class of committee, community, class and army, team, flock, group, choir etc. These are peculiar nouns because they can accept both the singular and plural verbs. However, it is the context that determines which. Consider the context-based usages here:
- The couple is in court.
- The couple are divorcing.
- The committee has not begun sitting.
- The committee have not voted on who should be chairman among them.
To determine whether a singular verb or the plural is more appropriate with a collective noun, you have to consider whether or not it is operating as a group or individuals. In this sense, while it is understandable to say ‘The couple is in court’ (as a group), is it correct to say, ‘The couple is divorcing; so, they arrived at the court separately’?
This is odd on two grounds. Firstly, the action of divorcing is being taken by two different people. So, a plural verb is better. Secondly, there has to be consistency or agreement between the verb in the first part of the sentence (is) and the subject of the second ‘they.’ The correct structure, therefore, is:
The couple are divorcing; so, they arrived at the court separately.
Back to the topic statement, the couple are rather kidnapping themselves, or are planning to do so. Or would you say ‘The couple kidnapped itself’? The notion here is that of plurality, while ‘themselves’ also demands a plural verb:
- Couple plan self-kidnap
- Lagos couple kidnap selves, demand N5m ransom from relatives
- American English: The couple is here
- As a clause walking alone, ‘The couple is here’ is a cute sentence. But when it is followed by an expression like ‘They look calm,’ one may have to revisit the verb initially employed:
- The couple is here. They look calm. (Inconsistent.)
- The couple are here. They look calm. (Better.)
So, in extended expressions or clauses, it is advisable you think twice before using singular verbs with collective nouns. Also, note that the collective noun + the singular verb is, according to Cambridge Dictionary, American English. Several other authorities, however, define the choice of the verb based on contexts.
Back to the headlines
Couple plan self-kidnap (Good)
Couple plans self-kidnap (Good)
Lagos couple kidnaps themselves (Disagreement between ‘kidnaps’ and ‘themselves’)
Lagos couple kidnap themselves (Good)
Lagos couple kidnaps selves, demands N5m ransom from relatives (Disagreement between ‘kidnaps’, ‘selves’ and ‘demands’)
Always plural
The clergy, the bench, the poor etc. are also described in the collective sense, but they normally select plural verbs:
- The clergy is meeting tomorrow. (Wrong)
- The clergy are meeting tomorrow. (Correct)
- The poor too has hope. (Wrong)
- The poor too have hope. (Correct)
Unmarried couple
The concept of collective nouns has come up in this class on a number of occasions.
I also recall pointing out – during a past lesson – that two unmarried lovers too can be referred to as a couple, meaning that the word is not for a husband and wife alone.
