Because it’s the short form of “mathematics”
Although typically I’ve seen the UK call it maths and North Americans call it math.
Comment on Maths
slurpinderpin@lemmy.world 5 months ago
Why do people in the UK and US say “maths” vs “math”?
Doubleohdonut@lemmy.ca 5 months ago
RandomWalker@lemmy.world 5 months ago
Is the ending s kept on abbreviations of other singular words ending in s? Or is that unique to maths?
wewbull@feddit.uk 5 months ago
I would say we disagree with the premise of the question. Mathematics is not a singular noun. It’s a plural. It’s the field of all mathematics. Therefore you preserve the “s” because you abbreviate the singular and re-pluralise it.
So somebody in the UK might (not commonally) say “it’s a math(matic) concept”, but more likely to say “it’s a concept from math(ematic)s” or “it’s a mathematical concept”.
RandomWalker@lemmy.world 5 months ago
That’s interesting. What about talking about it as a subject? Would you say maths are my favorite subject in school?
Doubleohdonut@lemmy.ca 5 months ago
To the best of my understanding, mathematics isn’t referencing a singular object but is used as an encompassing term to refer to content from multiple schools of mathematics e.g. geometry, statistics, calculus, algebra etc. Or in other words, all the subjects covered in math/maths class! 😊
mranachi@aussie.zone 5 months ago
I prefer mafs
Tomato666@lemmy.sdf.org 5 months ago
Maphs could be used here too…
nonfuinoncuro@lemm.ee 5 months ago
fossilesque@mander.xyz 5 months ago
There’s more than one type of math. Would you say physic?
PrimeErective@startrek.website 5 months ago
Or sport?
then_three_more@lemmy.world 5 months ago
C m8 they’res only 1 kinda reel sport nd thats footie.
onion@feddit.de 5 months ago
Germans do
slurpinderpin@lemmy.world 5 months ago
Yeah I get it, but I’m more curious why it’s said differently?
fossilesque@mander.xyz 5 months ago
You should be asking yourself that. ;)
nyctre@lemmy.world 5 months ago
There’s usually a long explanation for these types of things which most of the time boils down to “because that’s how people have been saying it and it’s become the norm.”
Many linguistical mistakes have been overused to the point of them changing their meaning. Take “decimation”. It used to mean to kill 1 in every 10. Because it sounds cool and has been used in a lot of media, it now mainly means to kill or destroy a large part of something.
NigelFrobisher@aussie.zone 5 months ago
The meaning of “siege” has gone from sitting outside a castle or town until everyone starves to just about any kind of military action involving a building. Probably partly because the Iran embassy Siege off the 80s was endlessly represented on TV by footage of the SAS breaking the siege by abseiling through the windows.
I_Has_A_Hat@lemmy.world 5 months ago
Do you guys also say Geographies? Or Histories? Do you take Arts classes? You take Physics, do you also have Chemistries and Biologies?
d00ery@lemmy.world 5 months ago
Let me go count all my Lego.
JackFrostNCola@lemmy.world 5 months ago
Lego is the only correct version though, it is defined by the company that created it so its not ‘open to interpretation’ imo.
d00ery@lemmy.world 5 months ago
I agree with you. A sheep and some sheep are the same to me 😂
criticon@lemmy.ca 5 months ago
Image
felbane@lemmy.world 5 months ago
There should be a trail of
Us that have fallen off the ship.criticon@lemmy.ca 5 months ago
Image
Source: www.instagram.com/nathanwpylestrangeplanet?igsh=M…
Dicska@lemmy.world 5 months ago
The rightmost one? The last of Us.
fossilesque@mander.xyz 5 months ago
What about Z and S??
snooggums@midwest.social 5 months ago
colour> color
spourts > sports