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What is the right way to write the following sentence

Profit and Loss Statement and Income Statement are the same thing.

Profit and Loss Statement and Income Statement is the same thing.

Radomir
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  • Neither is correct. At a minimum, you need to use indefinite articles or plural nouns. (And which you use, and where, will also inform the verb to use, and if the sentence should be rephrased to avoid confusion.) – Jason Bassford Aug 21 '20 at 16:25
  • This is an amusing one. One has to say that 'Profit and loss statement and Income statement are the same thing' has a first-order notionally unitary coordinate subject, apparently licensing 'is', but there are two different things being compared – the two different terms. So 'are' is justified, even notionally, and sounds better. – Edwin Ashworth Aug 21 '20 at 16:26
  • @Jason 'Compound interest is interest applied yearly say to the running total' needs another article? Aren't we defining terms? – Edwin Ashworth Aug 21 '20 at 16:31
  • The complex predicate (be) the same (thing/person) as is a normal commutative verb; it can be transitive with either NP order (A is the same as B = B is the same as A), licensing a singular form of be; or it can be intransitive, so it licenses a plural form of be, as here. – John Lawler Aug 21 '20 at 16:39
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    @EdwinAshworth *A* Profit and Loss Statement or Profit and Loss *Statements. In the specific sentence in the question, statement* is a count noun. In your new example, interest is a mass noun, which is something entirely different. Unless the question is referring to the phrases (words) themselves rather than using them functionally as part of the sentence grammar. If so, it hasn't been made clear. – Jason Bassford Aug 21 '20 at 16:42
  • I'd corrected to mention-mode in my comment, 'Profit and loss statement and Income statement are the same thing'. Non-count usages. – Edwin Ashworth Aug 21 '20 at 16:45
  • Does this answer your question? Singular or plural following a list – Rand al'Thor Aug 22 '20 at 10:56

1 Answers1

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Both sentences need articles, but either way the plural verb is correct since there are two subjects which, coincidentally are the same.

A profit and loss statement and an income statement are the same thing.

If you are making a general statement.

The profit and loss statement and the income statement are the same thing.

If you are making a specific statement, about specific statements.

You can use a singular subject to say something similar:

The profit and loss statement is the same thing as the income statement.

Fraser Orr
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  • The use of the definite article in this context, although understandable, isn't entirely idiomatic unless there are referents for the two terms. (Making it demonstrative.) It would be more natural to drop the article and make the nouns plural. – Jason Bassford Aug 21 '20 at 16:53