The English Language!?!

[Stubby]

OK, here's one for all you intellectuals:

 

What is the plural of 'octopus'?

 

Some octopus ......

[muttley9050]

The plural is octopuses or octopi according to oed

Edited October 26, 2013 by muttley9050

[Daniël Bos]

Nope.

 

Erm, actually it is! (Well, sort of anyway...)

 

As a guest in this country the language fascinates me, and I take great pride in being "not that bad" at it...

 

Wikipedia:

 

"The usual plural in English is "octopuses" (pronounced /ˈɒktəpʊsɪz/), but the Greek plural form "octopodes" (pronounced /ɒkˈtɒpədiːz/) is sometimes used, though less frequently than in the past.[47] The form "octopi", as if the word were a Latin second-declension noun, is generally considered incorrect,[42][47][48][49][50][51] but is in fact used, so that it is registered by the descriptivist Merriam-Webster 11th Collegiate Dictionary, which lists "octopuses" and "octopi", in that order, and Webster's New World College Dictionary, which lists plurals in the order: "octopuses", "octopi", and "octopodes". The Oxford English Dictionary (2008 Draft Revision)[52] also lists "octopuses", "octopi", and "octopodes", in that order, labelling "octopodes" as rare and noting that "octopi" derives from the misapprehension that octōpus is a second-declension Latin noun and stating that, if the word were native to Latin, it would be third declension octōpēs (plural: octōpedes) after the pattern of pēs ("foot", plural pedēs).[53]

"

[PeteB]

Another odd phrase....

 

"Halfway up, down the next aisle"

[Beardie]

 

"The usual plural in English is "octopuses" (pronounced /ˈɒktəpʊsɪz/), but the Greek plural form "octopodes" (pronounced /ɒkˈtɒpədiːz/) is sometimes used, though less frequently than in the past.[47] The form "octopi", as if the word were a Latin second-declension noun, is generally considered incorrect,[42][47][48][49][50][51] but is in fact used, so that it is registered by the descriptivist Merriam-Webster 11th Collegiate Dictionary, which lists "octopuses" and "octopi", in that order, and Webster's New World College Dictionary, which lists plurals in the order: "octopuses", "octopi", and "octopodes". The Oxford English Dictionary (2008 Draft Revision)[52] also lists "octopuses", "octopi", and "octopodes", in that order, labelling "octopodes" as rare and noting that "octopi" derives from the misapprehension that octōpus is a second-declension Latin noun and stating that, if the word were native to Latin, it would be third declension octōpēs (plural: octōpedes) after the pattern of pēs ("foot", plural pedēs).[53]

"

 

Er, yeah...what he said.

 

That's a more comprehensive answer than I'd bargained for.