Which one is correct-"life" or "lives"? [closed]

I am not sure about what is correct use of words in the following line:

• They lost their lives saving our lives.

or

• They lost their life saving our lives.

Solution 1:

A plural subject requires a plural object (lives), accordingly a singular subject requires a singular object (life).

They can be used to mean one person or several people, however.

So, if your intention is to refer to an individual who lost his or her life whilst saving the lives of more than one others, then the second is correct and the first incorrect. They is singular in this context, so you should use the singular, life.

However, if you mean that more than one person lost their lives whilst saving the lives of more than one others, then the first is correct, the second incorrect.

If the latter is what you are trying to say, a good suggestion made in the comments of this answer is that you leave off the second lives. It's not required because if you write ours then you convey that several of their lives were lost in saving several of our lives.

They lost their lives saving ours.