Neither is, neither are

Kittens Starburst

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jan 6, 2013
Messages
117
Reaction score
11
Location
Scotland
I have a character talking to two people, and he says, 'Quite frankly, neither of you is ready to hear.'

My grammar checker thinks it should be 'are ready'. It's wrong, right?
 

Bufty

Where have the last ten years gone?
Kind Benefactor
Super Member
Registered
Joined
May 9, 2005
Messages
16,768
Reaction score
4,663
Location
Scotland
You just decided to leave a word out - as you are perfectly free to do. And dialogue is priviledged content, so the speaker can say whatever he wishes in whatever manner his character would say it.

I have a character talking to two people, and he says, 'Quite frankly, neither [one] of you is ready to hear.'

My grammar checker thinks it should be 'are ready'. It's wrong, right?
 

Corussa

I fight like a dairy farmer
Kind Benefactor
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jul 7, 2012
Messages
539
Reaction score
130
Location
Lincolnshire Wolds
As Bufty says, you're just omitting the word 'one' so I would use 'is' - i.e. 'neither one... is ready'.

Darn grammar checkers, always trying to tell us humans what is and isn't right. :)
 

MaxWriter

Bring it on, I can take it...
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Feb 16, 2011
Messages
146
Reaction score
31
"Is" sounds wrong to my ear.

You are not ready to hear this. Neither of you are ready to hear.
 

Chase

It Takes All of Us to End Racism
Kind Benefactor
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jan 13, 2008
Messages
9,239
Reaction score
2,316
Location
Oregon, USA
"Is" sounds wrong to my ear.

You are not ready to hear this. Neither of you are ready to hear.

You are not ready to hear this is correct.

Neither of you are ready to hear may sound correct when the ear regards "you" as the subject when it's really the object of the preposition.

"Neither" is singular, so "is" is correct.

However, as plural antecedents referring to singular nouns become more and more popular, the mixing of all plurals and singulars tends to blur the lines between old school correct and what's accepted by publishers and readers.
 

JimHeskett

Writers gon write.
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Feb 14, 2013
Messages
268
Reaction score
39
Location
Colorado
Website
jimheskett.com
but, it's dialogue, so does that particular character need to speak technically correctl?
 

Jamesaritchie

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Feb 13, 2005
Messages
27,863
Reaction score
2,311
but, it's dialogue, so does that particular character need to speak technically correctl?

Usually, no, but a character who uses language like this is almost certainly going to get it right.

A different character might say, "Ain't neither of you ready to hear", but this language strikes me as to well refined for the character to get it wrong.

Dialogue must be true to character. Something this means wrong is perfect, but at other times, when the character is one who knows and uses proper grammar, only perfect is perfect.
 

Susan Coffin

Tell it like it Is
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Aug 24, 2007
Messages
8,049
Reaction score
770
Location
Clearlake Park, CA
Website
www.strokingthepen.com
I have a character talking to two people, and he says, 'Quite frankly, neither of you is ready to hear.'

My grammar checker thinks it should be 'are ready'. It's wrong, right?

Well, "of you" is the prepositional phrase. Take at the prepositional phrase and it's "neither is/are ready to hear." Finally, neither (one) (of you) is ready to hear.

Spell check is incorrect.
 

LucindaLynx

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Sep 25, 2005
Messages
628
Reaction score
112
Location
Finland
Aw! Susan, I just have to say 'thank you'. English grammar is something I think I never learn to understand. I barely know in which order to write the ordinary words. English grammar sure makes my head spin at times.