Comment on Academic writing
GiveMemes@jlai.lu 5 days agoAll English words that don’t have a specific pluralization (eg mouse, mice) can be pluralized with either an s or an es. It’s also a Latin and Greek root, so it can be pluralized as you did, in the Latin way, or the Greek way (Thesauroi), or alternatively with the s/es ending, all of which are correct!
otter@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 days ago
Unlike “octopuses”. 🙇🏽♂️
GiveMemes@jlai.lu 4 days ago
Nope! Octopuses, octopuses, and octopi are all correct afaik
otter@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 days ago
Wrong, sorry. Októpus is a Greek word that translates to “eight foot,” and pluralizing it via Latin has no etymological basis. “Acceptable/widely used” is in no way synonymous to “correct”, let’s not forget.
m0darn@lemmy.ca 4 days ago
Not who you’re responding to but I must vehemently disagree. In English, which doesn’t have a centralized governing body, the correct way of pronouncing/spelling something depends on your intention and expected audience. If your intended audience is English speakers then the correct spelling is probably octopi or octopuses, whichever you believe will cause the least confusion/distraction (surely it varies regionally).
However, usually my intention is to portray my unfathomably superior knowledge and intellect, so the correct spelling/pronunciation in this case is: octopodes (which I think he had listed but ironically got ‘corrected’ to ‘octopuses’).
GiveMemes@jlai.lu 4 days ago
As with many modern scientific creature-names, it was coined in Modern Latin from Greek elements, so it might be allowed to partake of Latin grammar in forming the plural
Literally from the link you provided. It was coined initially in the language of modern latin, from Greek roots, certainly, but the word objectively and literally comes from modern latin.