phenomena

American  

[fi-nom-uh-nuh] / fɪˈnɒm ə nə /

noun

1. a plural of phenomenon.

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phenomena British  

/ fɪˈnɒmɪnə /

noun

1. a plural of phenomenon

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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

Seen through this lens, contemporary phenomena that appear baffling begin to make sense.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 2, 2026

Welikala had stumbled upon one of L.A.’s more unlikely cultural phenomena: Public Assembly theater.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 2, 2026

In January Macleod's eldest daughter captured her first images of the phenomena.

From BBC • Feb. 14, 2026

"Our experimental results indicate that existing theoretical models need to be refined to fully capture the observed phenomena," says Wrachtrup.

From Science Daily • Feb. 13, 2026

In Greek there was the phenomenon, but the phenomena were malleable—they could be ‘saved’ or ‘salved’; while facts are stubborn.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton