Tag Archives: interest-plurals

  1. teacher in classroom

    What’s The Plural of Syllabus? Syllabuses vs. Syllabi

    You’re back in class and your instructors have just handed out the… course outlines. Should you call them syllabuses? Or syllabi? In this article, we’ll break down the difference between the words syllabuses and syllabi, explain why there’s two options, and even get into why the word syllabus is likely based on a misunderstanding of an earlier word. Is it syllabuses or syllabi? A syllabus …

  2. light blue text on dark blue background: "octopuses or octopi"

    Should You Say “Octopuses” Or “Octopi”?

    It’s the internet’s favorite eight-armed plural debate: octopuses vs. octopi. (And that relative newcomer, octopodes.) Is there a “correct” plural for octopus? And what’s with the -i in octopi? In this article, we’ll wrap our tentacles around these questions, break down the differences between each term, and tell you which terms are acceptable and most commonly used. Like the octopus itself, the English language is, …

  3. text in light teal font on dark teal background: buses or busses

    Do You Spell It “Buses” Or “Busses”?

    The short answer: both buses and busses are acceptable plural forms of bus. However, buses is much more commonly used—almost exclusively—and is often considered the standard form. The explanation: in many cases in English spelling, final consonants like the s in bus are often doubled when an ending such as -es, -ed, or -ing is added to the end of the word. For example, the …

  4. These Uncommon Singular Words Sound So Wrong

    Sometimes we can’t remember the plural form of a word—is it hippopotamuses or hippopotami? (Hint: it can be either). But there are also those times when we’re so used to hearing the plural form of a word that we just can’t think of the singular.  Even if we can remember the correct word, it tends to sound so odd and unfamiliar that we second guess …

  5. “Beeves” And Other Plural Words You Didn’t Know Existed