Collective noun:

"An array of groups fear/fears the trade alliance with the United States will wipe out many local businesses and impoverish farmers. " Do you consider "an array of groups" singular or plural? Considering an expression "a lot of...", I think fear is correct. Which one is correct? If you put collective nouns into Dictionary and Thread title search - or click on the relevant link in the frequently-raised topics list mentioned above - you'll be taken to a large number of previous discussions about particular cases. I think the key is to realize that 'couple' can be either a plural or collective noun and has slightly different meaning for each. As a collective noun , you refer to a group as a whole and imply that there is some sort of relationship between them. In AE this is what I hear most often. "The couple has just been told that their flight was canceled" In a discussion about collective nouns, I found that 'the police' should have a plural verb like'The police are looking for a missing girl.", and 'the government' a singular verb as in"The government has ".