Incomplete Lists

Question

I have the following sentence.

There is a vast amount of fields to choose from: biology, computer engineering, and politics, just to name a few.

Is this grammatically correct? Is there a better way to write this?

Note that there is a list that isn't complete (hence the "just to name a few"). I do not want to use "etc.".

Bonus

The following sentence is similar (note the end).

There is a vast amount of fields to choose from: biology, computer engineering, and politics, just to name a few that I'm interested in.

Clearly this is an ugly sentence, so how could I write it better?

It looks correct.. whether there is a better way may be a matter of preference (especially not knowing the context). Personally I like: "There are vast amounts of fields to choose from, such as biology, computer engineering, and politics." — Othya, Aug 08 '16 at 18:53
@Othya: Thanks, I like your suggestion; however, I'll wait for more to arrive. I hesitate to give context (in fact, the sentence was bogus, I wasn't planning to put it anywhere), because I asked this question to verify some text for an application essay I'm writing; so, I don't want to plagiarize myself (if that's possible). — Fine Man, Aug 08 '16 at 19:00
EL&U is neither a proofreading service nor a writers workshop, but we can still help you if you identify a specific question about grammar or usage— why do you think the sentence might or might not be grammatically correct? Please take the site [tour] and review the [help] for additional guidance. — choster, Aug 08 '16 at 19:30
'There is a vast amount of fields' should read 'There are a vast number of fields'. — Edwin Ashworth, Aug 08 '16 at 20:10
This usage of "amount" is very unwieldy. The more standard phrasing would be "There is a wide variety of fields to choose from". Personally, "amount" doesn't work here for me at all. — Catija, Aug 08 '16 at 20:10
@EdwinAshworth: Are you sure? There is only one "vast number", right? — Fine Man, Aug 08 '16 at 20:19
There's only one dozen in one dozen eggs. Would you say 'There is a dozen eggs in the fridge'? — Edwin Ashworth, Aug 08 '16 at 20:23
@EdwinAshworth: Yes, of course. I'm taking about the "are". Shouldn't it be "is": "there is a vast number of fields"? — Fine Man, Aug 08 '16 at 20:23
See this thread. And many others, dealing with things like 'the majority are', 'the team are / is' etc. — Edwin Ashworth, Aug 08 '16 at 20:25
Honestly, I'd be fine with either "there are a dozen eggs in the fridge" or "There is a dozen eggs in the fridge" because you can see "dozen" as being a singular or plural thing... for example, if you said "six" instead of "dozen", then "are" would be correct... "There are six eggs"... odd. — Catija, Aug 08 '16 at 20:27
@SirJony There is no single right answer the way you have phrased the question, which makes it impossible to answer authoritatively in the StackExchange model. If you identify a specific problem with grammar or usage, however, we may be able to help. Please review the resources I linked previously. — choster, Aug 08 '16 at 23:15

score 1 · Answer 1 · answered Aug 09 '16 at 15:55

1

Well, first your sentence doesn't have the correct plurality.

There are a vast number of fields to choose from: biology, computer engineering, and politics to name just a few that I'm interested in.

This changes a few things, are/is and word order so as to make it more correct. Rewriting this as two sentences might sound better:

There are a vast number of fields to choose from. Some that interest me include: biology, computer engineering, and politics.

answered Aug 09 '16 at 15:55

Jesse Williams

1,456

Hmmm, actually I suppose you were possibly correct as "amount" reads as a singular, though I'm not sure that is accurate in this case. I would definitely rewrite it. – Jesse Williams Aug 09 '16 at 15:55
+1 for suggesting to split the sentence into 2. I'll wait for other answers to come, but yours seems fine, too. – Fine Man Aug 09 '16 at 22:46

Incomplete Lists

Bonus

1 Answers1