verb matching

14:54 Jul 4, 2019 

Bernard Shaw was right, but this is also true of other languages (e.g. European Spanish/Portuguese vs. the Latin American variants). Indeed there is a usage difference, but in terms of prescriptive grammar and logic, the singular is the form to be used, especially iin the case of American English (which I guess it is). By the way, askers should add this important piece of information (i.e. the language variant). https://www.quora.com/Which-is-right-“The-population-ARE-out...

13:25 Jul 4, 2019 

I already did that and yes the plural is more popular. However, our issue is not about popularity but about whether either/both forms are correct. I claim that the singular form is correct, not that the plural is incorrect. This position is confirmed by the Oxford Dictionary site, which confirms that both forms are acceptable.
Prof. Celce-Murcia is referring to US English usage.
So, you are right, but only on your side of the Atlantic.

You sources are impeccable but nevertheless US/American, but then no one is perfect.:)

13:15 Jul 4, 2019 

For your information, the Oxford also shows American usage in many cases I've seen. If you Google these structures, you'll find out that the singular form is way more popular than the plural. If the user picked the singular form, I guess we can safely assume she knows what she's doing. And she's probably dealing with American / Canadian English. Regardless of English variant, the grammar rule is the same, and it calls for the singular!

13:11 Jul 4, 2019 

The two Oxford Dictionary links differ because they reflect a difference between the grammar/usage of US English and UK English.

All the sources you rely on refer to US usage/grammar.

Sorry you didn't get my joke:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q7a4z7zLKts

So let's call the whole thing off.

Britain and America Are Two Nations Divided by a Common Language. George Bernard Shaw

12:48 Jul 4, 2019 

It's clearcut. Not a matter of pronunciation or of US-EN vs. UK-EN. You are ignoring the grammar rule (and by default my analysis). The rule is very clear. So are the examples, one of which is from the Washington Post! Here's one more for you, from Canada: https://ontariotraining.net/grammar-tip-verb-agreement-with-... Glad the Asker picked the right answer. I just wanted to provide the linguistic backing, and I think I did. Now it's for good: I ain't gonna argue anymore. There's no point.

21:51 Jul 3, 2019 

The position is more nuanced that you think and is probably a EN-US v EN-GB issue.
Look at these two Oxford links:
This link, which you posted, is for US English and shows that only the singular verb is acceptable.
https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/us/definition/ame...

However this link, which is not US-specific, shows that both forms are acceptable.
https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/englis...

20:34 Jul 3, 2019 

The following sentences are totally in line with the English grammar and the need for the singular form of the verb.

"What percentage of the world's population ** lives ** less than a meter above sea-level?" -
https://www.quora.com/What-percentage-of-the-worlds-populati...

"The 12 percent of the world’s population that ** lives ** in North America and Western Europe accounts for 60 percent of private consumption spending..." - http://www.worldwatch.org/node/810

From the Washington Post: "Though only five percent of the world's population ** lives ** in the United States, it is home to 25 percent of the world's prison population." - https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/fact-checker/wp/2015/04/...

21:53 Jul 1, 2019 

"Fractions and percentages take a singular verb inflection when modifying a noncount noun and the plural verb inflection when they modify a plural noun." -- Celce-Murcia & Larsen-Freeman

Example: Sixty-six percent of the students are satisfied with the class.

https://thegrammarexchange.infopop.cc/topic/percentage-is-or...

The Oxford Dictionary defines "population" as both countable and uncountable, depending on how you look at it:

population: [countable, uncountable] all the people who live in a particular area, city, or country; the total number of people who live there https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/us/definition/ame...

If we consider "population" as noncount, the verb obviously takes the singular (i.e. the population needs). If we consider it countable, it's still a singular noun (i.e. this one particular population versus other populations on planet Earth, maybe beyond); it's a collective, singular noun.

If the term in question were "people", then the verb has to be "need" because "people" is always a plural noun: https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/us/definition/eng...