The Amateur Etymologist

Plural of genius

Here's another odd plural. The plural of genius is... genii. Yes, most people use geniuses but it's more accurate to use genii. (It's pronounced gee-nee-i). Unusual plurals like genii tend to get abandoned over time as people assign more common plural forms to these words. I can understand the desire to make plurals more standaradised. It also makes English easier to learn. But then again, having quirky words like genii makes the language interesting and helps to reveal the history of the word.

Genius has Latin roots and hence the unusual plural. We can tell a word probably has Latin roots when you study their plurals. Other Latin words with unusual plurals include

Stadium (plural: stadia)
Gymnasium (plural: gymnasia)
Formula (plural: formulae)
Antenna (plural: antennae)

The list goes on. You get the idea.

The plural of cannon is...

At dinner with colleagues while on a business trip in Manila, one of them asks, "Do you know what the plural of mongoose is?"

I know the answer. It's mongeese. But I try to be modest about it. "It's mongeese I think," I tell him.

"Really? They're not related to geese you know," he says. "The plural of a moose isn't meese," he adds.

"I'm pretty sure it's mongeese," I say, now not so sure. (Later I check. The plural is either mongoose or mongeese.)

Another colleague pipes up. "Do you know what the plural of cannon is?"

The folks at the table look around at each other. "I don't suppose it's cannons?" someone suggests.

The knowing colleague shakes his head. "This one I know for sure. I got it wrong at a spelling contest. I'll never forget it. The plural of cannon is cannon."

I didn't know that. And Iater I check. He's right. Of course, dictionaries will say the plural can be cannons but really, the plural of cannon is cannon. Wow, the things you learn at the dinner table.

Best English ever!

While on a trip to Jeju, Korea, I came across this sign in the lift of a hotel. I just had a to take a photo of it. I don't even know where to begin to correct this. I guess it would help if I knew what it was trying to say!