Thread: была или были?

У кого была большая банка икры?
или
У кого были большая банка икры?

Originally Posted by tohca

У кого была большая банка икры?
или
У кого были большая банка икры?

The first is right.

Originally Posted by Cocos

Originally Posted by tohca

У кого была большая банка икры?
или
У кого были большая банка икры?

The first is right.

Thanks, and may I ask, if the second sentence is also technically correct? I am not clear on the rule that the verb (был) is supposed to agree with the noun икры (which is plural). Sorry for asking what must be a silly question.

Originally Posted by tohca

Thanks, and may I ask, if the second sentence is also technically correct? I am not clear on the rule that the verb (был) is supposed to agree with the noun икры (which is plural). Sorry for asking what must be a silly question.

The second tense is wrong. "Икры" (икра=caviar) is not plural and can't be plural. This word stands in the Genitive case to the "банка" word.

Originally Posted by Cocos

Originally Posted by tohca

Thanks, and may I ask, if the second sentence is also technically correct? I am not clear on the rule that the verb (был) is supposed to agree with the noun икры (which is plural). Sorry for asking what must be a silly question.

The second tense is wrong. "Икры" (икра=caviar) is not plural and can't be plural. This word stands in the Genitive case to the "банка" word.

Спасибо.

Originally Posted by tohca

Спасибо.

На здоровье. Приятно видеть человека, увлечённого изучением такого сложного языка как русский.

FYI: у кого были большие икры? = Who has big calves?

Originally Posted by Rtyom

FYI: у кого были были большие икры? = Who has big calves?

Yep.

Originally Posted by tohca

У кого была большая банка икры?
или
У кого были большая банка икры?

I think that было, meaning there was, is used more often in this kind of sentence.

Originally Posted by mudrets

Originally Posted by tohca

У кого была большая банка икры?
или
У кого были большая банка икры?

I think that было, meaning there was, is used more often in this kind of sentence.

Could you clarify what you mean? I'm afraid, you got it wrong.

Originally Posted by ambi

Originally Posted by mudrets

Originally Posted by tohca

У кого была большая банка икры?
или
У кого были большая банка икры?

I think that было, meaning there was, is used more often in this kind of sentence.

Could you clarify what you mean? I'm afraid, you got it wrong.

Yes, I got it wrong. I was thinking of the negative usage:У него не было банки

Using Google, though, I have found было being used occasionally in the affirmative with masculine and feminine words. Those instances might be typos.