Quote:

Even though Jackie hates it ( ), "orientate" -- as far as I know -- is the preferred form in the UK.

Anyway, PT, since you asked: one of my pet peeves is "phenomena" used as a singular.


YES.
That is a big one. As a matter of fact, there are many of those Latin singular/plural terms in our language that cause difficulty.
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That reminds me of a story.
A film director needed to have a pair of mongoose(s) for a scene. He wrote to a local zoo asking for two of these animals, but was not certain of the correct plural for mongoose.

Is it "mongooses" or is it "mongeese"?

In order to avoid embarrassment, he phrased his request thusly:
Dear sir,
Please send me a mongoose. And, while you are at it, send me another one!

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Did you ever wonder...?

"I am certain there is too much certainty in the world" -Michael Crichton