grammar - "When all you hear is fear and lies"


The first time I heard it (When You Believe by Leon Jackson), my grammar instinct screamed "When all you hear are fear and lies." But then again, I feel that the phrase "all you hear are" sounds a little odd, "all you hear is" sounds perfectly fine to me. But maybe I am wrong.


Would you use is or are in such a phrase?



Answer



"All" here actually means "The only thing," as in:



The only thing you hear is fear and lies.



So, for me, the original line is better.


*All is singular when used as the subject with a linking verb or when it means the only thing or everything: All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth; all we found was candy wrappers and soda cans.


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