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Page 1 of 5 1 2 3 4 5 > Topic Options #5614 - 08/24/00 04:25 AM Max Quordlepleen Carpal Tunnel Registered: 08/12/00 Posts: 3409 Top #5615 - 08/24/00 05:43 AM Re: Virii - why not? RhubarbCommando Pooh-Bah Registered: 08/23/00 Posts: 2204 Virii ?? why two "i"s ? (apart from hackneyed jokes about being able to see better) Surely the plural of "virus" should be "viri": it could only be virii if the singular were virius (c.f. radius/radii) It is the sort of question that bugs you, is it not? Top #5616 - 08/24/00 06:08 AM Max Quordlepleen Carpal Tunnel Registered: 08/12/00 Posts: 3409 Top #5617 - 08/24/00 07:22 AM Re: Virii - why not? RhubarbCommando Pooh-Bah Registered: 08/23/00 Posts: 2204 This is what is vulgarly referred to as "a cop out." "Beauty is truth," you say; "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder," is an aphorism also well accredited. Put them together and you can deduce that truth is in the eye of the beholder. Which gives "viruses" an equal claim, I aver. Top #5618 - 08/24/00 08:06 AM Re: Virii - why not? TEd Remington Carpal Tunnel Registered: 07/17/00 Posts: 3467 Loc: Marion NC The plural is viri in Latin but viruses in English. I have seen it as viri in medical journals, but not anywhere else that I recall. I suspect the reason for this apparent discrepancy is that viruses trips off the tongue better than do radiuses and hippopotamuses. The accented syllable (vir) is too close to the -i to be sonorous (at least in English). Along those lines, most dictionaries show octopuses or octopi as the plural of octopus. In my view the latter is incorrect since octopus is not from Latin, but from Greek okto (eight) plus pous (foot). _________________________ TEd Top #5619 - 08/24/00 11:06 AM Re: Virii - why not? tsuwm Carpal Tunnel Registered: 04/03/00 Posts: 10472 Loc: this too shall pass >Along those lines, most dictionaries show octopuses or octopi as the plural of octopus. In my view the latter is incorrect since octopus is not from Latin, but from Greek okto (eight) plus pous (foot). well, maybe we should compromise with octopodes then... Top #5620 - 08/24/00 02:47 PM Max Quordlepleen Carpal Tunnel Registered: 08/12/00 Posts: 3409 Top #5621 - 08/24/00 06:33 PM Re: Virii - why not? lusy member Registered: 03/16/00 Posts: 140 Loc: Melbourne, Australia well, maybe we should compromise with octopodes then... Thanks yet again, tsuwm, for setting us all straight. My beloved Chambers even agrees with you!! It gives "octpuses" as archaic, "octopi" as wrong, and "octopodes" as correct. And I have seen this form used often, can't remember specifically where or when. Rgds, lusy Top #5622 - 08/24/00 06:48 PM Max Quordlepleen Carpal Tunnel Registered: 08/12/00 Posts: 3409 Top #5623 - 08/25/00 04:11 AM Re: Virii - why not? Bridget addict Registered: 06/27/00 Posts: 444 Loc: Sydney Australia >, maybe we should compromise with octopodes then< Can I infer from this that now I have moved to Australia I am living in an Antipus? Shame, I always rather liked cats..... Top Page 1 of 5 1 2 3 4 5 > Previous Topic Index Next Topic Preview Hop to: General Topics ------   Information and announcements   Q&A about words   Wordplay and fun   Words and languages in schools   Miscellany   Weekly Themes   Looking for (writers, speakers, ...) (Old) Weekly themes. (have been consolidated into a single forum above) ------   Words from medicine   Beheading words   Meta-words   Words from classical mythology   Animal Safari   Words with unusual etymologies   Eponyms or words derived from people's names.   Loanwords from German   English as a global language Moderator:  Jackie  Print Topic Switch to Threaded Mode View profile Send a PM Add to your Watched Users View posts View profile Send a PM Add to your Watched Users View posts View profile Send a PM Add to your Watched Users View posts View profile Send a PM Add to your Watched Users View posts View profile Send a PM Add to your Watched Users View posts View profile Send a PM View homepage Add to your Watched Users View posts View profile Send a PM Add to your Watched Users View posts View profile Send a PM Add to your Watched Users View posts View profile Send a PM Add to your Watched Users View posts View profile Send a PM Add to your Watched Users View posts Forum Stats 8453 Members 16 Forums 13692 Topics 210094 Posts Max Online: 3341 @ 12/09/11 02:15 PM Newest Members dene13, MariaAnastasia, MNPrasad, Krysto4, rsvalley 8452 Registered Users Who's Online 1 registered (zhangzhen), 44 Guests and 1 Spider online. Key: Admin, Global Mod, Mod Top Posters (30 Days) LukeJavan8 100 endymion6 70 wofahulicodoc 70 jenny jenny 61 teepee 23 Rhubarb Commando 22 Faldage 13 tsuwm 10 anddrewlee 6 Jackie 4 June Su M Tu W Th F Sa 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30

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