“More than half” = “More than half of”?
I have a problem with using more than half. Frequently all the word “more than half” is wrong and can be used exactly the same for any sentence or one sentence.
As mentioned above, here are two ways of using “more than half”
in two phrases: More than
half the group More than
half of jobs (or more than half of jobs) In my view, we can use “of” when the noun that follows “more than half” is a plural noun. How can we not use “of” before the singular noun? Am I wrong?
Theoretically, if allowed, is everything right. Who will do it?
I’ve questioned your review of the book “The Conscience Of Ingenuity” which is partially correct. The word “of” is implied, so technically the sentence is “more than half the group. In the second sentence of your description, you could omit “of,” but you would have to include the article “the” (so it would become’more than half of the jobs’). The omission of “of” is not specific to plural or singular necessarily. “More than half the pizza” and “more than half the pizza?” are both colloquially correct. To reiterate the word “of” is implied*, even when it is omitted, and this phenomenon is not specific to singular or plural arguments.
*This omission may have come from Latin, in which the genitive case does not have an auxiliary word meaning “of” like English. English is based on Latin. Many of its strange grammar rules are still in English. How do you treat an incident, and show why?
Example of Latin genitive: Filius Dei
Example of English genitive: Son of God
