*NikkiBell*
Livin’ that DVC & AP life!
- Joined
- Jun 27, 2005
- Messages
- 13,552
I just listened to the team rag on Julie and Sea World for how they pluralized the word "octopus." This is always a fun topic in my reading/language arts class and I thought I'd share.
Either "octopuses" OR "octopi" is correct! This has been a great debate for a very long time. It has to do with the word origin. Many Latin or Greek words have a specific plural form. However, over time one form may become more acceptable than another. This is pretty much what happened with octopus and in modern English either term is grammatically correct.
Bottom line...octopuses and octopi are both okay ways to make this word plural. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, octopodes is also acceptable. Here are a few snippets of info on this great debate in grammar history!
From the Grammar Girl Website (My Fav!)
Octopi Versus Octopuses
Hi, Grammar Girl. I am a college student, and I recently questioned if octopi is the correct way to say the plural form of octopus, and I got different answers from two different professors. I know it has something to do with the derivative and if it's Latin or Greek, so I was wondering if you could address the plural forms of octopus or pegasus and any other words you can think of. Thanks. Bye.
You're right that foreign words sometimes keep their foreign plural, especially when they aren't commonly used words. Fungus comes from Latin and the proper plural is fungi, for example. But most words that came into English through Latin or Greek take the standard -es to make them plural. The proper English plurals are octopuses, hippopotamuses, Pegasuses, cactuses, and so on*. There are varying forms of acceptance for forms like octopi, hippopotami, and cacti -- for example, cacti is more common among people who work with plants -- but it's usually safest to go with the -es for plurals (4).
Wikpedia's Blurb (I hate quoting this site, but it's cut and dry)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Octopus
Either "octopuses" OR "octopi" is correct! This has been a great debate for a very long time. It has to do with the word origin. Many Latin or Greek words have a specific plural form. However, over time one form may become more acceptable than another. This is pretty much what happened with octopus and in modern English either term is grammatically correct.
Bottom line...octopuses and octopi are both okay ways to make this word plural. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, octopodes is also acceptable. Here are a few snippets of info on this great debate in grammar history!
From the Grammar Girl Website (My Fav!)
Octopi Versus Octopuses
Hi, Grammar Girl. I am a college student, and I recently questioned if octopi is the correct way to say the plural form of octopus, and I got different answers from two different professors. I know it has something to do with the derivative and if it's Latin or Greek, so I was wondering if you could address the plural forms of octopus or pegasus and any other words you can think of. Thanks. Bye.
You're right that foreign words sometimes keep their foreign plural, especially when they aren't commonly used words. Fungus comes from Latin and the proper plural is fungi, for example. But most words that came into English through Latin or Greek take the standard -es to make them plural. The proper English plurals are octopuses, hippopotamuses, Pegasuses, cactuses, and so on*. There are varying forms of acceptance for forms like octopi, hippopotami, and cacti -- for example, cacti is more common among people who work with plants -- but it's usually safest to go with the -es for plurals (4).
Wikpedia's Blurb (I hate quoting this site, but it's cut and dry)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Octopus
Thanks for the rest of the story.
