AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |
Back to Blog
Rhinoceros plural1/31/2024 So next time, go easy on the internet stranger in the comments who has just written octopuses-they're not wrong. The word rhinoceros is derived through Latin from the Ancient Greek:, which is composed of - ( rhino-, 'nose') and ( keras, 'horn') with a horn on the nose. ( Octopi is also a valid Scrabble word.) As the dictionary advises, "If you're interested in choosing the word that is most likely to be considered correct and understandable by your audience you would do well to opt for either octopuses or octopi." However, both Merriam-Webster and the Oxford English Dictionary list octopi as an acceptable plural alongside octopuses. In the late 1800s, an article entitled “Octopus Philology” declared, “Some daring spirits with little Latin and less Greek rushed upon octopi as for octopuses, a man would as soon think of swallowing one of the animals thus described as pronounce such a word at a respectable tea-table.” The article went on to recommend the use of octopods, which, fortunately, didn't stick. Indeed, this form is perfectly correct, but some people still cringe when they say it. Most words that enter English are pluralized according to the rules of English, rather than the rules of their “native form,” Merriam-Webster explains. However, using these pretentious plural forms for the sake of grammatical purity would be absurd. Similarly, rhinoceros should become rhinocerotes, and stadium should become stadia. Well, Liddell and Scott seem to authorize rhinocerotes, which is pedantic, but rhinoceroses is not euphonious. Since the word octopus was originally Greek, it seems only logical that its plural form would be octopodes. The spelling of final -os (instead of Latin -us) told me that any -i plural would be a new formation. Latin words, on the other hand, are sometimes made plural with an -i ending-like stimuli and syllabi, for example. Synonyms and related words Synonyms and related words Synonyms and related words Definition and synonyms of rhinoceros from the online English dictionary from Macmillan Education. It lives mainly in southern Asia and Africa. Octopus stems from the Greek word oktopous, and technically, Greek words ending in -pus (like platypus) should be made plural by adding - podes (meaning feet) to the end. UK /rans ()rs/ Word Forms DEFINITIONS 1 1 a large animal with very thick grey skin and one or two horns on its nose. Quartz argues that only one way is grammatically correct-and it’s not octopi. What would you call them? Octopi? Octopuses? Perhaps octopodes? People have been quibbling over the correct plural form of octopus for well over a century, according to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, and it’s still a sore spot among word-lovers. Few people have seen more than one octopus in the same place at the same time-they’re usually solitary creatures, after all-but let’s suppose you did. What do you call multiple rhinoceros A Crash is the group identification name for rhinos, much like a family or how a group of birds is called a flock. noun (1) rhino r- ()n informal : money, cash rhino 2 of 2 noun (2) plural rhinos also rhino : rhinoceros Example Sentences Recent Examples on the Web Noun Long past the Age of Dinosaurs, Earth saw the evolution of impressive birds, snakes, crocodiles, rhinos and more, including the largest animals of all time.
0 Comments
Read More
Leave a Reply. |