Why is/ not are

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Why is/ not are
Message from mohammad51 posted on 01-03-2018 at 21:12:44 (D | E | F)
Hello
Please, could anyone illustrate ?
Pleasing people all the time is very hard.
Why is and not are?

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Edited by mohammad51 on 01-03-2018 21:17

Re: Why is/ not are from gerondif, posted on 01-03-2018 at 22:39:51 (D | E)
Hello
[Pleasing people] all the time is very hard.
Pleasing people is the singular subject.
Drinking white wine with grilled fish is very nice.
Pleasing people who are never satisfied is very hard.

Whatever the object of a gerund, it can't be plural.
Helping my neighbour is natural.
Helping people is natural.
Helping the couple in the broken-down car was no problem for me.

IF the gerund became a real noun, then it could take an s in the plural and be considered as a noun.

Look at the evolution of this gerund:
I like painting: (an action)
I like Picasso's painting , I like his delicate painting(the way he paints, his art,, his magic , it is a noun, it can have a possessive adjective and an adjective qualifying it but it is still an action, it is closer to the verb than to the noun, it stays singular)
I like Picasso's recent pictures, I like Picasso's recent paintings, I like his recent paintings ( ah, a real noun, which can take the plural and have a possessive case and an adjective qualifying it)

Then you could have:
Two generous helpings of meat are considered too much.
His elaborate paintings are admired all over the world.

NOW, if pleasing was an adjective or a present participle qualifying people, you would have a plural verb:
Pleasing people are hard to find. Forgiving people are hard to find.
Helpful people are hard to find. Whining people are hard to bear.
The helping people were all rewarded afterwards.(meaning the people who had helped)

Re: Why is/ not are from tanin5, posted on 02-03-2018 at 05:43:32 (D | E)
Hello everybody!
It talks about ( Pleasing ) people not People. so the verb should be singular. Best regards

Re: Why is/ not are from mohammad51, posted on 02-03-2018 at 06:40:59 (D | E)
Hello
Thank you all very much
I understand and agree with gerondif, but let me focus on the matter again.
pleasing, is it not adjective? ( say ING-adjective)= people who can make others pleased.
Then suppose we use ( pleased instead of pleasing)
Pleased people all the time is\ are very hard. ?
What it should be then, is or are?

Best wishes and regards

Re: Why is/ not are from lucile83, posted on 02-03-2018 at 08:58:21 (D | E)
Hello,
Pleasing here is a gerund,which is used as a noun.
Pleased is a past participle or an adjective.
Examples:
Drinking alcohol is not healthy ...gerund and subject of the verb
The drunk man was arrested by the police ...past participle and adjective, 'man' is the subject of the verb
The drunk people were arrested by the police ...past participle and adjective but here 'people' is the subject, thus the verb is in the plural

Pleasing children at Xmas is a good thing ...gerund and subject of the verb
These children were pleased to have a lot of gifts ...past participle and adjective

Pleased people all the time is\ are very hard....it doesn't make sense

Re: Why is/ not are from gerondif, posted on 02-03-2018 at 12:20:03 (D | E)
Hello
Pleasing is not the best word to use because pleasant exists.
"Pleasing people" where pleasing would be a present participle used as an adjective is rather seldom heard.
Eager to please people are difficult to find. Helpful people /devoted people /are hard to find.
Forgiving people are difficult to find.
Understanding people are difficult to find.
Fast-speaking people are difficult to understand.

Pleased people are hard to find could be seen but is rather rare : Satisfied /contented/ people are difficult to find. Yes, you can have a past participle used as an adjective.

Re: Why is/ not are from tanin5, posted on 02-03-2018 at 17:13:31 (D | E)
Hello all!
We were pleased because that happening was pleasing.
In this example pleasing is an adjective. But in your sentence Mohammad pleasing is a noun. Best regards

Re: Why is/ not are from mohammad51, posted on 02-03-2018 at 20:16:41 (D | E)
Hello
I got it thank you very much.
You make it enough clear and no more questions are needed.
I got its meaning from the first explanation of gerondif
He mentioned many examples as :
The helping people were all rewarded afterwards
helpful = adj modified the noun people ( the subject is people)
Pleasing people are hard to find.
Forgiving people are hard to find.
Both forgiving and pleasing = adjectives
( the subject still the people)
Pleasing people who are never satisfied is very hard.
= how to make people pleased = noun
My sentence:
Pleasing people all the time is very hard.
pleasing here = Noun ( action or process)
= how to make people pleased = noun ( the same above)
However,I am translator and this lesson is very useful for me.

Lastly,as lucile83 answered my second question ( pleased people) and said " it does not make sense"
Pleased people all the time is\ are very hard....it doesn't make sense
I think by saying " it does not make sense" = no matter, but pleased can't be a noun as a gerund.

Re: Why is/ not are from lucile83, posted on 02-03-2018 at 20:29:38 (D | E)
Hello,
" it does not make sense" = no matter, but pleased can't be a noun as a gerund."
It doesn't make sense = it doesn't mean anything; it is impossible to understand what it means, what you want to say.
Pleased is either a past participle or an adjective.
A gerund ends with -ing, like a present participle.

Re: Why is/ not are from gerondif, posted on 06-03-2018 at 01:08:30 (D | E)
Hello
It is your "all the time" that makes it wrong because it qualifies an action:
Pleasing people all the time can be tiring.
Helping people day after day (all the time)can be exhausting.

Pleased people alll the time are hard to find sounds wrong.
You meant:
People who are always satisfied and who don't complain are hard to find.
People who are pleased with what we do for them all the time and never complain are hard to find.

Re: Why is/ not are from mohammad51, posted on 06-03-2018 at 16:40:16 (D | E)
Hello
Thank you much gerondif and all members or teachers who explained.
No more, and I said I got it.
I surely confirm that if the ing form started the sentence as a subject then the verb-subject agreement should be singular unless you make that noun- gerund plural and this is not applicable to all items.
However, it can be adjective modifying the noun then the S+V agreement depends on that noun.

Pleased otherwise it can mean ( satisfied) I consider that in my translation when search about the equivalent term find that's correct.
Pleased people= people who feel rather enjoyed in their life expressing their feelings toward others.
pleasing people as we discussed in our example that ( pleasing people all the time is very hard) = that to make people pleased is a hard or impossible way; it is likely a proverb or wisdom. And it means it is difficult or impossible to find those people who give you their satisfaction. As I noted, it is practical saying and can be noticed everywhere in the world. A fact to underline and make it reference.
I am pleased to hear you here. is it correct or wrong?
You feel rather pleased when I meet you.
Then why not pleased people .... adj preceding and modifying the noun ' people"
Pleased people all the time are very hard. inconvenient I know, but I mentioned just an example.
Pleased people all the time are not very hard.
The logically and grammatically correct sentence is:
Pleased people are everywhere found.
Thank you very much that you give me the time once again.

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