Which of the following phrases is correct and why? "...what the rest of the sentences is/are."

Question

I would like to know what the rest of the sentences is.
I would like to know what the rest of the sentences are.

Can they both be correct depending on the context? The meaning I am aiming for is that some sentences are cut off mid-sentence, and so I cannot understand what is being said.

I think this is a duplicate of Which is correct: The rest of the staff is or are? The rest of my family is or are? — Laurel, Aug 01 '23 at 14:26
I think the question you mentioned covers collective nouns, which is not the case here.@Laurel — RoseDavie, Aug 01 '23 at 14:52
• I would like to know what the rest of each sentence is. / • I would like to know how the sentences end. Neither of the originals works as there is more than one 'rest of sentence x' and 'rest' doesn't countify readily here. — Edwin Ashworth, Aug 01 '23 at 15:25
Suppose you're presented with half-a-dozen "incomplete" sentences, and you're told that all of them are syntactically valid if the same additional pair of words are appended. I think if you concede defeat and admit that you can't think of any two words that could be appended like that, you could reasonably say I would like to know what the rest of the sentences is** (although there are multiple sentences, there's only one rest of the sentences). — FumbleFingers, Aug 01 '23 at 15:37
Does this answer your question? Which is correct: The rest of the staff is or are? The rest of my family is or are? — Chenmunka, Aug 01 '23 at 20:54
@Laurel — OP is correct: The question referenced as a duplicate is not; that one has to do with the treatment of collective nouns (which tends to be different depending on your flavor of English). This is a question about synesis, or notional agreement. — Tinfoil Hat, Aug 01 '23 at 23:02
I've just clocked the alternative reading. << 'The first sentence is what some would class as a complex sentence. I would like to know what the rest of the sentences are. >> Here, 'the rest of the sentences' = 'the other sentences'. As far as I can see, this is the only grammatical reading (the first example sentence having none, @FF: 'each' or equivalent required). — Edwin Ashworth, Aug 02 '23 at 11:01
The rest of the pizza was eaten. The rest of the slices were eaten. This is notional agreement. The putative subject (rest) is not in charge of the verb. — Tinfoil Hat, Aug 03 '23 at 02:16

MarcInManhattan · Answer 1 · 2023-08-02T05:54:15.783

First of all, let's establish the subject of the subordinate clause:

I would like to know what it is.
*I would like to know what they is.
*I would like to know what it are.
I would like to know what they are.

It's clear that the verb agrees not with the first nominal ("what") but with the second ("it" or "they"), making the latter the subject. (This word order is normal for such clauses.)

In your sentences, the subject is "the rest of the sentences". Unfortunately, many dictionaries don't do a good job of explaining that the noun "rest" can be either singular or plural with no change in spelling. Nevertheless, the American Heritage Dictionary correctly suggests that either is possible:

That or those remaining: The beginning was boring, but the rest was interesting. The rest are arriving later.

In this regard, "rest" is similar to indefinite pronouns such as "all" and "some". (In fact, the Collins Dictionary even claims, "Rest is also a pronoun". I wouldn't agree, but the claim is interesting.)

Beecause in your sentences "sentences" is plural, "rest" should also be construed as plural, so the verb should be "are".

(Edit: It might be possible to construe "rest" as singular if it actually refers to a single quantity, even of multiple sentences. However, using "is" in this situation is liable to sound awkward, so I recommend against it unless you really must denote the singular meaning.)

Which of the following phrases is correct and why? "...what the rest of the sentences is/are."

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