The only ones I know of:
Octopus : Octopi
Crisis : Crises
Are there any other unusual cases?
Octopus : Octopi
Crisis : Crises
Are there any other unusual cases?
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Ununsual plural forms in English
The only ones I know of:
Octopus : Octopi Crisis : Crises Are there any other unusual cases?
scissors you cannot say scissor , I have no idea why.
hair but not hairs.
people people peoples
fish fish fishes axis axes matrix matrices rubrik rubrika forum forums fora
I'm so sorry, but could you tell hairs? Damian of Edinburgh? Where is your good sence of humour?
Little explanation for those who doesn't speak my native language. In my language we have plural for hair. Example: Tia ima chudesni zlatisti kosi. (Translation: She has wonderful gold hairs) (kosi - plural). Tia ima rusa kosa. (She has blond hair). Nikoi ne moje da gali kosite ti , kakto men. Nobody can touch your hairs as me.
For example we have the same problem with scissors: edna nojica (one scissor), dve nojici (two scissors). In english you accept that scissors is a pair, but in my own language it's not.
"Brother: Brethren "
This is wrong. Brothers is plural of brother. Brethren is a mass noun, a somewhat old-fashioned term referring to one's ideological peers. Hair as a mass noun has no plural. But if you're referring to a single strand of hair, then hair can be a counting noun. "Hairs" then would refer to multiple strands of hairs. Hairs is used, particularly by the medical profession.
"This is wrong. Brothers is plural of brother. Brethren is a mass noun, a somewhat old-fashioned term referring to one's ideological peers. "
From etymonline: Alternate pl. brethren was predominant c.1200-1600s, but survived only in religious usage. |