plural version of essays

Which Is The Correct Plural Spelling? (It's a Trick Question)

Referenda & Referendums

Definition : a public vote on a particular issue

Latin has given English a sizable portion of its vocabulary, and one of the reasons that so many of our words are descended from that language is that they have entered our tongue at a number of distinct points. Some, such as butter , date back to the Roman invasion of Britain. Others came to us in the middle ages, from the Norman Conquest. Others still did not arrive until the 19th century, often as part of an expanding scientific vocabulary. Referendum is one of those late arrivals, initially used to describe a vote on the Swiss constitution at that time. Both referendums and referenda are correct.

Of course it will all take time—  The population must be reassured,  The boundary must be surveyed,  There'll be royal commissions, referenda…. —Margaretta D’Arcy and John Arden, The Non-Stop Connolly Show: Part Six , 1978 quote here

Syllabuses & Syllabi

Definition : a summary outline of a discourse, treatise, or course of study or of examination requirements

Syllabus comes to English from the Latin sillybus , which actually has nothing to do with buses or silliness ( sillybus refers to a label for a book). Both forms of the plural are acceptable, although people might look askance at you if you use syllabi . 

Gymnasiums & Gymnasia

Definition : a large room used for various indoor sports (such as basketball or boxing) and usually equipped with gymnastic apparatus

Very few people use gymnasia as the plural of gymnasium anymore, but it can come in handy if you want to confuse people. And if you desire still more obscure information about this word, know that it can be traced to a Greek word meaning “to exercise naked” ( gymnazein ). The naked aspect of this word’s history has been largely set aside in English, although Nathan Bailey, in his 1727 Universal Etymological English Dictionary , defined the word gymnologize as “to dispute naked, or like an Indian Philosopher.”

"Had you rather witness the sports of the gymnasia than the works of artists?" inquired Plato. —Lydia Maria Francis Child, Philothea , 1836

Miasmas & Miasmata & Miasms

Definition : a vaporous exhalation formerly believed to cause disease

Most words have a single plural form, while others feel the need to have two. Others are more gluttonous still (such as octopus , the plural of which may be octopi , octopuses , or octopodes ), and require three different ways of pluralizing. Miasma is one of those triplets. So if you have more than one of these vaporous exhalations (and we hope you never do), they may be described as miasmas , miasmata , or miasms . 

Not a whit, fair sir—a cordial cup of sack, impregnated with wormwood is the best anti-pestilential draught; and, to speak the truth, the pestilential miasmata are now very rife in the atmosphere. —Anon., Mary of Scotland, or The Heir of Avenel , 1821

Terminuses & termini

Definition : either end of a transportation line or travel route

Given that the above two words are obscure variant plurals of a somewhat obscure singular form ( terminus ), it is quite unlikely that you will have need of distinguishing between them. But seeing as how the joy of unexpected knowledge is not regulated by need, we have included them anyway. You may use either terminuses or termini (but not terminusses ) with ferocious and joyful impunity.

Home from a world of late-liberal distraction  To rain and tenfoots clogged with leaves,  To the life's work of boredom and waiting,  The bus-station's just-closing teabar,  The icy, unpromising platforms of regional termini…. —Sean O’Brien, After Laforgue (from HMS Glasshouse), 1991

Memorandums & Memoranda

Definition : an informal record: also, a written reminder

Many usage guides have taken pains to warn their readers of a potential problem with the plural of memorandum . This is not whether or not to use memorandums or memoranda (either is fine), but rather to avoid using memorandas . Some words with similar Latinate endings in English will allow an a ending to take an s (such as agendas ), but memorandas is not among them.

But what does our proud Ign'rance Learning call,  We odly Plato 's Paradox make good,  Our Knowledge is but mere Remembrance all,  Remembrance is our Treasure and our Food;  Nature's fair Table-book our tender Souls  We scrawl all o'er with old and empty Rules,  Stale Memorandums of the Schools…. —Jonathan Swift, Ode to the Honorable Sir William Temple , c1689

Virtuosos & Virtuosi

Definition : one who excels in the technique of an art

Both virtuosos and virtuosi may be found as the plural form of virtuouso , although the former is more common than the latter. Virtuosi is also viewed by a number of usage guides as being overly pedantic, and many will recommend virtuosos instead. So if your desideratum (which is only pluralized as desiderata ) is to use the sort of words that usage guides think of as overly pedantic, well, then virtuosi is the word for you.

Those virtuosi who expend their amiable propensities in transfixing butterflies and impaling gnats would here find ample employment from May till November. —Caroline M. Kirkland, Forest Life , 1850

Appendices & Appendixes

Definition : supplementary material usually attached at the end of a piece of writing

Some people are of the opinion that when giving the plural of appendix one form is appropriate for certain contexts and not for others (stating, for instance, that appendices should be when referring to texts, and appendixes for non-textual things). We have a considerable body of written evidence indicating that these plurals are used interchangeably, so decide which one you are more comfortable with, and use it at will.

Modest Attire, and Meekness, signify  A Mind compos'd of Native Purity.  Needs no Appendices so to set forth  A Jewel of a more admired worth. —Mary Mollineux, Of Modesty (from Fruits of Retirement), 1702

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Parenthetical pluralization of words ending in '-y' [duplicate]

Sentences constructed with a word written in the singular and parenthetically in the plural are straightforward when that word does not end in -y , e.g.:

List all applicable employee(s) .

How does one handle words ending in -y ? Is this correct:

I will attend the party(ies) .

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• orthography
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• silent-letters
• parenthetical-plural

• 6 I wouldn't get too hung up allowing for the possibility of only one - if you need to allow for more than one anyway, just use the plural. Otherwise it'll do your head in when you consider the grammaticality of your first "instruction" if it were to only be in the singular. "List all applicable employee" is simply nonsense, and I don't see how adding (s) gets you out of that. –  FumbleFingers Commented Dec 7, 2011 at 0:46
• 1 There are no rules for these things and I am no better placed to devise a method than you are! –  WS2 Commented May 24, 2014 at 7:14
• It is possible that there is no convention in this case. Perhaps: Will the responsible party/parties please come forward. –  anongoodnurse Commented May 24, 2014 at 7:33
• 1 @medica That is exactly how I would write it. Depending on the context, either party/parties or party (parties) . Similarly, man/men or man (men) . –  Janus Bahs Jacquet Commented May 24, 2014 at 7:40
• @tchrist I would not approve of the 'accepted answer' on that post. Party(ies) is fine and very (much more?) common. –  Kris Commented May 24, 2014 at 12:47

5 Answers 5

An alternative to the use of parentheses to provide both singular and plural forms is to separate them with a slash:

party/parties

This would be preferred in this and other similarly awkward formations such as wife/wives , and in special cases such as mouse/mice .

• 2 If you're writing something that you may be judged on (whether for a grade, or for business in terms of your competence, or simply by other grammar Nazis that you want to impress) then I would go with this. But I think this is hardly more concise than fully writing out " or " instead of using a slash. For 99% of the writing I do, I would just go with the parenthetical (ies). –  BVernon Commented Mar 16, 2016 at 2:35
• 1 "Would be preferred" by whom, exactly? Not by me. –  Colin Fine Commented Apr 10, 2020 at 9:36
• For short words (under three syllables / ten letters or so) like this, listing both number possibilities looks as good or better than the 'short-hand' approach, since the relative space savings for the alternative is smaller than with longer nouns. –  11qq00 Commented Oct 5, 2021 at 20:31

"Party(ies)" is certainly used in official contexts.

https://www.google.com.au/search?q=%22party%28ies%29%22+site:.gov

I think the following may also be an acceptable way of dealing with an uncertain plural ending in "y":

part(y/ies)

An example of this can be found at https://www.lawinsider.com/dictionary/third-party-ies :

Third Part(y/ies) means any Person(s) other than Wyeth or Trubion.

A safe, formal alternative is of course to use the singular and the plural with or , e.g.

When we can't continue a word in brackets to show the options, we must show both(all) words.

Thus in your case you need to write:

• 3 You(s) ? That’s eye dialect (and only works for IrE, ScE, and some dialects of AmE to boot), so hardly appropriate for any kind of even semi-formal writing. –  Janus Bahs Jacquet Commented May 24, 2014 at 15:26
• Do you mean You (singular) by 'You(s)'? –  Edwin Ashworth Commented Apr 29 at 14:52

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged grammatical-number orthography writing-style silent-letters parenthetical-plural .

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• English Grammar ›

100 Irregular Plural Nouns in English

Not all English nouns form their plural by adding "s" or "es."

• An Introduction to Punctuation
• Ph.D., Rhetoric and English, University of Georgia
• M.A., Modern English and American Literature, University of Leicester
• B.A., English, State University of New York

Most English nouns form their plural by adding either -s (book s , band s , bell s ) or -es (box es , bunch es , batch es ). These plural forms are said to follow a regular pattern.

However, English, being the wonderfully complex language it is, doesn't always adhere strictly to rules. A subset of nouns deviate from this pattern, forming their plurals in unconventional ways.

For instance, some nouns undergo a vowel change, like "man" becoming "men" or "foot" changing to "feet."

Others add an "-en" suffix, such as "child" becoming "children" or "ox" transforming into "oxen."

Additionally, there are irregular nouns that maintain their singular form in plural, like "deer" and "sheep."

Understanding these irregular plural forms adds depth to English language learning, showcasing its richness and diversity.

Irregular Plural Nouns

"The Penguin Writer's Manual"

"There are no easy rules, unfortunately, for irregular plurals in English. They simply have to be learnt and remembered."

Not all nouns conform to the standard pattern. In fact, some of the most common English nouns have irregular plural forms, such as woman/wom en and child/child ren . In addition, several nouns have alternative plurals, one regular and the other irregular.

In regard to these alternative forms, there are no strict rules to guide our use of them.

"The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language"

"People have to learn which form to use as they meet the words for the first time, and must become aware of variations in usage . When there is a choice, the classical [irregular] plural is usually the more technical, learned, or formal, as in the case of formulas vs. formulae or curriculums vs. curricula. Sometimes, alternative plurals have even developed different senses, as in the cases of (spirit) mediums vs. (mass) media, or appendixes (in bodies or books) vs. appendices (only in books)."

As you'll see in the list that follows, many words with irregular plurals are loanwords that have kept their foreign plural forms (or at least held on to those forms as alternatives to regular English plurals).

100 Irregular Plural Nouns List

In the list below, you'll find singular noun forms in the left column and the corresponding plural forms in the right column. When a noun has more than one plural form, the irregular one appears first, though that doesn't necessarily mean that the irregular form is more widely accepted than the regular form.

• Crystal, David. "The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language." 3rd Edition, Cambridge University Press, January 24, 2019.
• Manser, Martin. "Penguin Writers Manual." Penguin Reference Books, Stephen Curtis, Paperback, International Edition, UK ed. edition, Penguin UK, August 24, 2004.
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• 2.1 Pronunciation

Pronunciation

• IPA ( key ) : /ˈɛseɪz/

• IPA ( key ) : /ɛˈseɪz/
• Rhymes: -eɪz
• Hyphenation: es‧says
• plural of essay
• third-person singular simple present indicative of essay
• Sesays , Sessay

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