Buckle up, folks. People have strong feelings about whether to treat “data” as a singular or plural noun. And we are going to talk all about it today.
Technically, “datum” is the singular version, and “data” is the plural version.
This means—technically—“data” takes a plural version of a verb.
Examples:
The data are correct.
The data show these numbers.
The data illustrate the findings.
But . . . these days, most people treat “data” as if it were singular. So they use a singular verb with it.
Examples:
The data is correct.
The data shows these numbers.
The data illustrates the findings.
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This is where you have to make a decision. Are you going to be a stickler and fight for “data” as a plural, or are you going to buckle under peer pressure and treat it as singular?
You are entitled to your own thoughts about this. But guess what? Language does change. It evolves. For instance, we don’t use “decimate” to mean “to destroy by one tenth” anymore, right? Or what about “nice”? Once upon a time four centuries ago, it meant “foolish and ignorant.” And once upon a time seven centuries ago, “girl” meant a “small child,” whether they were female or male.
So if you want to treat “data” as a singular noun, go for it. It’s true that the times they are a-changing. And if you want to treat “data” as plural, go for it, too. You’re not incorrect, but know you may find people who think you are.
Erin Servais is a book editor, author coach, and founder of Dot and Dash LLC, an author-services company. She takes authors from the plotting and planning phase, all the way through editing and marketing. To learn more, check out her website: www.dotanddashllc.com. You can also email her at Erin@dotanddashllc.com.
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Grammar Party 
It’s plural.. A “bit” is singular.
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The word “data” is one of those which may correctly take either a singular or plural verb. Other words of a similar kind are, for example, “board” and “council” which, however, tend to use one number or the other depending on whether it is intended to refer to the entity as a collective with a single mind or, on the contrary, divided on an issue as in “The council are bitterly divided on this decision”. The singular “datum” most correctly indicates a single point of reference, as in ” Tidal heights are with reference to Mean Low Water Springs as the datum”. The plural form generally finds use in reference to at least two values so the plural verb is appropriate.
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Great point. Thanks!
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