Breakdown of Большинство женщин не хотят иметь много детей, поэтому рождаемость сокращается.
не
not
женщина
woman
много
a lot
хотеть
to want
Questions & Answers about Большинство женщин не хотят иметь много детей, поэтому рождаемость сокращается.
The subject is большинство (a neuter singular noun), so why is the verb хотят in the plural?
When a collective noun like большинство (majority) or ряд (a number of) is followed by a noun in the genitive plural, the verb often takes the plural form. This rule applies especially when the genitive noun refers to animate beings (like женщин) who are actively performing the action.
Would it be grammatically incorrect to use the singular verb хочет here?
It wouldn't be strictly wrong, but the plural хотят is strongly preferred in this context. Singular agreement (хочет) treats the group as one unified, impersonal mass. Plural agreement emphasizes the individual actors. Since "wanting" is a conscious, personal feeling experienced by the individual women, the plural sounds much more natural.
Why is the verb сокращается reflexive (ending in -ся) here?
The non-reflexive verb сокращать is transitive, meaning "to reduce [something else]". Because the birth rate (рождаемость) isn't reducing something else, but rather is decreasing on its own, we need to use the reflexive/intransitive form сокращаться.
Could I use так что instead of поэтому in this sentence?