Is Any Singular or plural? - QuranMualim

The English language can often be confusing. Is “any” plural or singular? Is it just the same as the word it’s attached? Can you use the word “any” for any situation? These are the questions that this article will address.

Is “Any” singular or plural?

It is wrong to think of “any” strictly as a singular or plural word. “Any” should be used to refer to uncountable nouns, plurals, questions, or negatives. There are many situations where you can use “any”.

Truth is, “any” can be used in plural nouns almost all the time. However, it cannot be used with singular nouns except under certain circumstances like a question.

“Any” + Singular

When a singular noun is either uncountable or used in a question, or in a negative sentence, you can only use “any” with it. These are extremely specific situations and can be difficult to remember but very helpful to remember.

As long as the circumstances are described, it’s okay to use “any” in conjunction with a singular noun.

The “negative sentence” would not be understood if you said “I have no idea”. Instead, you would say “I don’t have any idea”. This context is the only one where the singular “any” makes sense.

These are some examples of sentences that show how you can use “any” to refer to a singular noun.

Are you able to imagine what could have happened yesterday?

I don’t have any water, but I can offer you some soda.

What are the chances of me being accepted despite all of these circumstances?

This collection doesn’t have any music I like.

Did you have any success setting up your sound system correctly?

I don’t think there is any difference in the final selections for the program.

Do you have any ideas on how we can solve this problem?

“Any” + Plural

It isn’t that much different to use “any” in conjunction with a plural noun than using it with a singular. It is simply added before any plural noun. You can use it in sentences with questions or that are negative. The rules for using “any” in conjunction with a singular noun or plural noun are very similar.

Plural nouns have a major difference. Uncountable nouns don’t have the same impact as when they modify a singular noun.

These are examples of sentences that show how “any” can modify plurals.

This subject is not covered in any of his books.

I don’t have any ideas for this Friday’s meeting, so I’m anxious about it.

Do you have any recommendations for novels I might like to read from this bookstore?

Are there any films from last year’s festival at this location?

Do you have any ideas from the productivity meeting that we should be working on?

I don’t have any papers or essays from last year about economics. We don’t have any drawings or tiles that we can show investors.

Does “Any” Most Commonly Count as Singular Or Plural?

Google Ngram Viewer provides fascinating information about the usage of “any are” in comparison to “any is”. Since 1800, “anyare” has been more popular than the “any is” word. However, this gap has decreased over time.

Although the gap between “any one” and “any one” was huge at the beginning of 1800, this was not the case by the beginning of 1900s.

In the 1900s, “any are” was still the most popular option. However, “any is” was always a little behind with what was really a minor difference. In reality, “any is” was almost overtaken in 1962 at a particular point, but this didn’t happen in the end.

Is There Any or Are Both?

This phrasing is most commonly used in questions. The correct answer is usually “are all”. If “any” is used after a verb, “is any” will be considered incorrect and “are all” will be used instead.