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What is the correct way to reply “What is the most expensive food in the market”?

Should I say:

  1. The most expensive food is banana.
  2. The banana is the most expensive food.
  3. A banana is the most expensive food
ColleenV
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1 Answers1

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All of your answers are grammatical, and would work for a formal question.

Using a singular (banana) instead of a plural (bananas) is a little unusual, as people rarely buy a single banana. The sign at my grocery store uses the plural and says "Bananas 49¢ / pound."

The most common way to respond is simply to name the item:

Bananas.

However, in many markets, bananas are inexpensive. So the correct answer might be

Wagyu beef is the most expensive food.

rajah9
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  • 'A banana is the most expensive/popular food' sounds bizarre in any register. The generic plural is, I'd say, the overwhelmingly natural-sounding choice. – Edwin Ashworth Jun 09 '21 at 11:32
  • My wife is learning Korean from a textbook and discussing the answers with native Korean speakers. They will sometimes say, "the Korean is understandable, but nobody talks that way." A banana is the most expensive food is a textbook response, but nobody talks that way. Bananas (or Wagyu beef) is a response that native English speakers would actually use. – rajah9 Jun 09 '21 at 11:58
  • 'Beef' is of course non-count. – Edwin Ashworth Jun 09 '21 at 12:00