his family were vs his family was

Both 'his family were' and 'his family was' can be correct depending on the context. 'His family was' is more commonly used in American English, where collective nouns are treated as singular. 'His family were' is more common in British English, where collective nouns can be treated as plural.

Last updated: March 11, 2024

his family were

This phrase is correct in British English, where collective nouns can be treated as plural.

In British English, collective nouns like 'family' can be treated as plural, so 'his family were' is used to indicate multiple members of the family.

Show examples from the web [+]

The Tsar and his family were executed by Bolsheviks led by Yakov Yurovsky .... of the Russian Federation ruled that Nicholas II and his family were victims of ...
Nicholas II abdicated following the February Revolution of 1917 during which he and his family were imprisoned first in the Alexander Palace at Tsarskoye Selo, ...
Against this backdrop of political chaos, the Tsar and his family were initially kept as prisoners near St. Petersburg and then transported beyond the Ural ...
... and in July the anti-Bolshevik "White" Russian forces advanced on Yekaterinburg, where Nicholas and his family were located, during a campaign against the ...

Alternatives:

his family members were
his relatives were
his kin were
his household were
his folks were

his family was

This phrase is correct in American English, where collective nouns are treated as singular.

In American English, collective nouns like 'family' are treated as singular, so 'his family was' is used to refer to the family as a single unit.

Show examples from the web [+]

2 days ago ... A 57-year-old Indian man visiting his family was paralyzed by a cop after being reported as “suspicious”. Screen Shot 2014-01-13 at 1.02.38 ...
The execution of the Tsar and his family was carried out by the Ural Soviet which was led by Yakov Yurovsky. The order has been attributed by some historians ...
... and his family was exposed and the compromising documents will be published), the Presidium of the Ural Regional Soviet, fulfilling the will of the Revolution, ...
Nov 9, 2014 ... Patrick McStay Has a Theory About Why His Family Was Murdered. 0SHARES. Reprint. 131 Comments. McStay Family Murders: Patrick ...

Alternatives:

his family members were
his relatives were
his kin were
his household were
his folks were

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his family were vs his family was

his family were

his family was

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