Unfamiliar Plurals, Singulars and Gender Endings

Unfamiliar Plurals, Singulars and Gender Endings

Many times, I hear some people say “datas” and “criterias”. Sometimes, I’m itching to tell them that it’s not right to say that, but I just try to ignore it, so that they won’t get embarrassed. However, in this post, I would like to show you some nouns which have unfamiliar singulars, plurals and gender endings, for you to avoid making the same mistakes.

The singular form of the word “bacteria” is “bacterium”. The singular for “data” is “datum” and the singular for “dice” is “die”.

“Alumna” is singular and “alumnae” is its plural form. They both refer to females. “Alumnus” is singular and “alumni” is plural. Both refer to males. The plural form of the word “analysis” is “analyses”. “Crisis” is singular and “crises” is its plural form. “Strata” is the plural form of “stratum”.

An “aviator” refers to a guy, and an “aviatrix” is his female counterpart. A “gander” is male and a “goose” is a female. A “stag” is a male deer. An “abbot” is the male version of an “abbess”.