phenomena
Americannoun
noun
Usage
As with other plurals of Latin or Greek origin, like media and criteria, there is a tendency to use the plural phenomena as a singular ( This phenomena will not be seen again ), but such use occurs infrequently in edited writing. The plural form phenomenas, though occasionally seen, has even less currency.
Etymology
Origin of phenomena
First recorded in 1580–90 with spelling phænomena
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
This will allow for spectacular views of the International Space Station as well as some of the natural phenomena we're treated to seeing through summer.
From BBC • Jun. 6, 2026
The Fermi mission is part of NASA's network of observatories designed to track changing events across the universe and help scientists better understand how cosmic phenomena work.
From Science Daily • May 27, 2026
But what are consistently intriguing are the methods of detection—ever-evolving and ever-revealing—focused on historical phenomena.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 26, 2026
Hardly anything is overdone here and, in one essential way, Enyedi is also making the case for movies themselves as phenomena to protect and treasure: ecosystems of light, texture, wonder and nourishment.
From Los Angeles Times • May 15, 2026
If there was no rain at all, there were freakish, inexplicable phenomena like the epidemic of diarrhea or the bomb line that moved.
From "Catch-22" by Joseph Heller
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
