h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

The English language may have some pretty complicated verb forms and tenses (or so I'm told - it all seems pretty normal to a native speaker like me), but nouns are pretty simple - none of those silly genders to learn.

Plurals are simple too - we just stick a letter "s" on the end. Usually.

So what could be simpler than a plurals quiz? What are the plurals of these English nouns? For the ones which have alternative forms, I'm looking for the preferred plural, according to Fowlers Modern English Usage:

Post your 20 answers below. I'll score it and award my coveted smiley prizes tomorrow.

Finally, if you have to look them up, that's fine - just don't share your search results here until after I've scored it.

Good luck!

* * *

1. ghetto
2. embargo
3. abacus
4. syllabus
5. typo
6. discus
7. ladleful
8. genius
9. still life
10. moratorium
11. adieu
12. papyrus
13. genus
14. yes
15. mongoose
16. trade union
17. gallows
18. lay-by
19. virtuoso
20. Cyclops

* * *

Ha! and here's me thinking that today I might figure your devilish questions out a bit. Blimey some of those are hard, and I tend to fudge in real written stuff, or just google for the correct form.

oh well, here goes the blindfolded test, no googled answers.

1. ghettoes
2. embargos
3. abacuses
4. syllabuses
5. typos
6. discuses
7. ladlesful
8. geniuses
9. still lifes
10. moratoriums
11. adieus
12. papyruses
13. genii (this one has stumped me)
14. yeses
15. mongooses
16. trades union
17. gallows
18. lay-byes
19. virtuosoes
20. Cyclops

Oh well in for some pennies in for a few pounds.

1. ghettos
2. embargoes
3. abacuses
4. syllabi
5. typos
6. discus
7. ladlesful
8. genii
9. still lifes
10. moratoria
11. adieus
12. papyri
13. genus
14. yesses
15. mongooses
16. trade unions
17. gallows
18. lay-byes
19. virtuosi
20. BiCyclops

*BiCyclops*

I love that BiCyclops!

1. ghettoes
2. embargoes
3. abaci
4. syllabuses
5. typos
6. discuses
7. ladlesful
8. genii
9. still lifes
10. moratoria
11. adieux
12. papyri
13. genuses
14. yesses
15. mongooses
16. trades union
17. gallows
18. lay-bys
19. virtuosi
20. Cyclopes

Changed my mind on number 6

6. disci

Oh well - might as well:


1. ghetto - ghettoes
2. embargo - embargos
3. abacus - abacusses
4. syllabus - syllabusses
5. typo - typos
6. discus - discusses
7. ladleful - ladlesful
8. genius - geniuses
9. still life - still lifes
10. moratorium - moratoria
11. adieu - adieux
12. papyrus - papyri
13. genus - genii
14. yes - yesses
15. mongoose - mongoose
16. trade union - trade unions
17. gallows - gallows
18. lay-by - lay-byes
19. virtuoso - virtuosi
20. Cyclops - There is/was only one. Any plural of this would probably be based on the Greek. Cyclopes?

Have fun working out the winner!

OK, here goes. Please don't laugh at me.

1. ghettoes
2. embargoes
3. abaci
4. syllabum
5. typoes
6. discus
7. ladlesful
8. genii
9. still lifes
10. moratoria
11. adieus
12. papyri
13. genus
14. yeses
15. mongeese
16. trade unions
17. gallows
18. lay-bys
19. virtuosi
20. cyclopses

And I'm the speller of the family too.

Deb

I'm going for a score of 0...


1. ghetto - ghetti
2. embargo - embarges
3. abacus - abacopodes
4. syllabus - syllatrains
5. typo - typoose
6. discus - discuss
7. ladleful - ladlefuller
8. genius - genii
9. still life - still lives
10. moratorium - evenmoratorium
11. adieu - manydieu
12. papyrus - papyreese
13. genus - genopodes
14. yes - yeseses
15. mongoose - polygoose
16. trade union - trade unii
17. gallows - galslows
18. lay-by - lay-tri
19. virtuoso - virtuoses
20. Cyclops - cyclopi


Of course, this reminds me of one of my favorite videos, the plural of octopus: http://www.merriam-webster.com/video/0015-octopus.htm

It's always controversial whether we should foreign plurals for foreign words which have been adopted into English. I say we shouldn't, so I'm going to go with English plurals all the way:

ghettos
embargoes
abacuses
syllabuses
typos
discuses
ladlesful
geniuses
still lifes
moratoriums
adieus
papyruses
genuses
yesses
mongooses
trade unions
gallows
lay-bys
virtuosos
Cyclopses

I believe there was more than one Cyclops, and the plural in Greek would be Cyclopes.

I think I would have to look several of these up, but for now, I didn't. So these are guesses on fun puzzles.

I kept thinking: which of these are different for US/British usage? Which ones did the 'experts' opt to go Latin or Greek with? Interesting!

Personally, I'd prefer the 'bicyclops'. Maybe Willem will draw us one.

Here are some guesses from me:

1. ghettos
2. embargoes
3. abaci
4. syllabi
5. typos
6. discoi?
7. ladlefuls, like spoonfuls? I suppose it could be ladlesful, because in my dialect, it's spoonsful.
8. genii
9. still lives
10. moratoria
11. adieux
12. papyri
13. genera
14. yesses
15. mongooses
16. trade unions (at least, in the US)
17. gallows
18. lay-bys
19. virtuosi
20. cycloptes? I'm guessing, I didn't know they came in pairs.

All of those fancy plurals remind me of a Latin student I had once. The whole class wanted her to read aloud, because she pronounced the ancient tongue in a broad western Carolina accent. Imagine how 'patrii et filii' sounded when she got through with it. (A+ student, by the way.)

Not one of my strong points, like Lanza I'd check the interwebs if I was unsure, but here goes.

1. ghettos
2. embargos
3. abacuses
4. syllabuses
5. typos
6. discuses
7. ladlesful
8. geniuses
9. still lifes
10. moratoria
11. adieus
12. papyruses
13. genuses
14. yeses
15. mongooses
16. trade unions
17. gallows
18. lay-bys
19. virtuosos
20. Cyclopses

I'll read other people's answers after I post this.

1. ghettos
2. embargoes
3. abaci
4. syllabuses
5. typos
6. discussions
7. ladlefuls
8. geniuses
9. still lifes
10. moratoria
11. adieux
12. papyrus
13. genus
14. yeses
15. mongoose
16. trade unions
17. gallows
18. lays-by
19. virtuosi
20. Cyclops

[Amy P]

I would argue with Baron Grim that the plural of abacus is actually abacondas. I'm not spelling the others because I made the mistake of reading subsequent posts, and have not recovered from bicyclops.

I like.

Steadfastly skipping over earlier replies:
1. ghettoes
2. embargoes
3. abacuses
4. syllabuses
5. typos
6. disci
7. ladlefuls
8. geniuses
9. still lifes
10. moratoriums
11. adieux
12. papyri
13. genuses
14. yeses
15. mongooses
16. trade union -- properly called trades union, plural trades unions
17. gallows
18. lay-bys
19. virtuosos
20. Cyclopes

Time to put you all out of your misery. For the record, the answers are:

1. ghettos
2. embargoes
3. abacuses
4. syllabuses
5. typos
6. discuses
7. ladlefuls
8. geniuses
9. still lifes
10. moratoriums
11. adieux
12. papyri
13. genera
14. yeses
15. mongooses
16. trade unions
17. gallowses
18. lay-bys
19. virtuosi
20. Cyclopes

Today's winner is Recumbentman, with an impressive 14/20. the full list of prizes is:

Recumbentman
Gnomon
Dmitri, Magwitch, SF
SashaQ
Lanzababy, pebblederook
TC
deb
Baron Grim

Congratulations to all

Now let the arguments begin!