syllabus

American  

[sil-uh-buhs] / ˈsɪl ə bəs /

noun

plural

syllabuses, syllabi

1. an outline or other brief statement of the main points of a discourse, the subjects of a course of lectures, the contents of a curriculum, etc.

2. Law.

   1. a short summary of the legal basis of a court's decision appearing at the beginning of a reported case.

   2. a book containing summaries of the leading cases in a legal field, used especially by students.

3. Also called Syllabus of Errors.  (often initial capital letter) the list of 80 propositions condemned as erroneous by Pope Pius IX in 1864.

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syllabus ¹ British  

/ ˈsɪləbəs /

noun

1. an outline of a course of studies, text, etc

2. 1. the subjects studied for a particular course

   2. a document which lists these subjects and states how the course will be assessed

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Syllabus ² British  

/ ˈsɪləbəs /

noun

1. Also called: Syllabus of Errors.  a list of 80 doctrinal theses condemned as erroneous by Pius IX in 1864

2. a list of 65 Modernist propositions condemned as erroneous by Pius X in 1907

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Usage

Plural word for syllabus The plural form of syllabus can be either syllabuses or syllabi, pronounced [ sil-uh-bahy ], but syllabi is more widely used. The plurals of several other singular words ending in -us are also formed in this way, such as virus/viruses, sinus/sinuses, and walrus/walruses. Irregular plurals that are formed like syllabi, such as cactus/cacti and fungus/fungi, derive directly from their original pluralization in Latin. However, the standard English plural -es ending is often also acceptable for these terms, as in cactuses.

Etymology

Origin of syllabus

1650–60; < New Latin syllabus, syllabos, probably a misreading (in manuscripts of Cicero) of Greek síttybās, accusative plural of síttyba label for a papyrus roll

Related Words

• curriculum
• synopsis