Yes, many native speakers would use “us” instead of the “correct” possessive pronoun “our” (the subject of the gerund).
Yes, in your sentence, “country” presumably refers to the area outside the city. (If the speaker had been thinking of another nation under discussion, she or he would probably have used “that” instead of “the.”)
I agree with James’s point of view. ‘Country’ can be used in order to talk about the countryside. See entry 4 in OALD-online.
Here are some more examples of possessive pronouns + ing form used as a gerund:
We would appreciate your participating in the auction.
Could you please tell me that can we use they in place of underlined phrase?
[/quote]
***** NOT A TEACHER *****
Hello, Foreigner:
I believe that you are 100% correct.
Most Americans would probably use “they.”
Personally, that use of “they” drives me up the wall (makes me go crazy), so I used “he or she” because I do not have the courage to use “he.” The use of “he” as a genderless pronoun is no longer acceptable here in the United States. Because I am an old man, my ears are used to hearing “he.” But younger people now accept “they” with no problem.
James
P.S. I do NOT nitpick (mention every little mistake). BUT I thought that you would like to know that your question should read:
Could you please tell me if / whether we can use “they” in place of “she or he”?
By the way, “ go to the country British organize a general election . The Prime Minister will go to the country next May.’ /Macmillan/
I wonder how the British avoid confusion—they usually don’t ‘go to the country’, rather ‘move to the country’?
Is the phrase above grammatically correct? Is the use of “it” here correct?
Can the following sentences be used instead:
(1) My opinion is that using “they” instead of “he or she”(,)meaning as a genderless singular pronoun(,) is entirely wrong usage. (Is comma optional here?)
(2) My opinion is that using “they” instead of “he or she”,which means as a genderless singular pronoun, is entirely wrong usage.
Well, you did just ask to be corrected, so here is how I would phrase your comments.
That’s the very thing I need! [Congratulations! That sentence is something that I often hear from native speakers.] As a learner of EFL, I often make mistakes. I am very happy every time someone points them out.
(As you know, there are many ways to express an idea. Maybe other members will tell you how they would phrase your comments. That’s the great thing about a forum: you get many different opinions.)
My opinion is that using “they” as a genderless (neuter) singular pronoun instead of “he or she” is entirely wrong. OR
My opinion is that choice of “they” for a genderless (neuter) singular pronoun in place of “he or she” is entirely wrong.
Anglophile,
1.
I admit your both sentences are fine.
What do you think about E2e4’s sentence :
“My opinion is that using “they” instead of “he or she”, it means as a genderless singular pronoun, is entirely wrong usage.”
Is it wrong or right?
2.
“I do not want to nitpick every little mistake you make.”
Is this sentence OK?
If you want to stick to the original style (“My opinion is that using “they” instead of “he or she”, it means as a genderless singular pronoun, is entirely wrong usage.”),
I would observe thus:
‘Using’ and ‘usage’ in the same sentence tarnishes the beauty of the sentence.
The word ‘it’ is redundant, for ‘using’ is already a subject.
The article ‘a’ is required before the phrase ‘wrong usage’.
‘it means as a genderless…’ can be replaced by ‘and treating it as a genderless…’
My version could therefore be: My opinion is that using ‘they’ instead of ‘he or she’ and treating it as a genderless singular pronoun is entirely wrong. [This may be called nitpicking (figuratively, as used by James), though]
“I do not want to nitpick every little mistake you make.” Is this sentence OK?
It cannot but be OK, for it has been said by a native English speaker who commands an enormously greater and higher mastery of the language and is a walking encyclopaedia of its grammar. This remark, indeed, is not a eulogy, but the truth.
“I do not want to nitpick OVER every little mistake you make.”
In my view, the idea expressed in the original statement holds good since ‘nitpick’ basically means ‘remove’. However, it sometimes depends on the user; like ‘come here’ and ‘come over here’.