![]() ![]() If we decide that the possessive of “artist” is singular in the case of multiple proofs by a single engraver and plural in the case of multiple engravers, we are still left with the unclear case when the number of engravers is not specified, i.e., when just using the term “artist’s proofs.” An analogous situation might arise with a term like “baker’s dozen” but not with normal possessives like “manufacturers’ coupons. I think we would also say “artist’s proofs by the two engravers Combet and Haley” (referring to several proofs by each engraver), because we are using the plural of the term of art or unit “artist’s proof,” which is shorthand for “a proof of an engraving by an artist.” Stated differently, adding an “s” to proofs is sufficient to make the term of art “artist’s proofs” plural, and we don’t need to use the plural of the first term as well when two different engravers are involved, since we are still just referring to multiple examples of the term of art “artist’s proof.” We should distinguish this case from the use of “artist” as a normal possessive and not as part of a term of art, in which case we would need to use the plural of the possessive (artists’) when referring to proofs by several artists, but I don’t think we would say “artists’ proofs by the two engravers Combet and Haley” when using “artist’s proofs” as a term of art. How would you handle the plural of a term of art like “artist’s proof,” which itself contains a possessive as the first word, when referring to proofs of multiple artists? It seems clear that we would say “artist’s proofs by the engraver Combet” to refer to several proofs by the single engraver Combet. Some styles allow it, so it’s a legitimate choice, but Chicago prefers the alternatives shown above (see also CMOS 7.13). ![]() Switching to regular text for the s is analogous to putting the “s” after a closing quotation mark-as in “yeah”s. But don’t put the s in italics (see CMOS 7.12)-and keep the apostrophe in we’s:Ī chorus of got its, yeahs, and way too enthusiastic woos followed. Another option would be to use italics instead of quotation marks. Though apostrophes normally signal possession or contraction, they’re also good at clarifying the occasional plural that might otherwise be hard to read (as with letters: e.g., two w’s). Examples: one child two children one man three men. ![]() Irregular nouns are nouns that completely change the spelling of the word when the word is in plural form. “You’re using a whole lot of ‘we’s’ here.” Definition: Many nouns have irregular plural forms. For that plural, either rephrase or use an apostrophe (as you’ve done in your question): That would work for your last set of examples:Ī chorus of “got its,” “yeahs,” and way too enthusiastic “woos” followed.īut it works less well for “we” (mostly because “wes” looks too much like the name Wes). Often you can form the plural of a word used as a word simply by adding an s. California State Employees Association, 96 Cal. " More importantly, however, the restriction on the agendum at a special meeting is not, as the CSEA contends, a species of the constitutional limitations on initiatives or legislative appropriation that limits them to a single subject." ![]() If a singular is needed for one item of the agenda there seems no escape from the rather cumbrous phrase agendum is pedantic and agend obsolete."įowler's Modern English Usage (Second Ed.) The Court of Appeal, however, has boldly ignored Fowler's charge of pedantry: "Although agenda is a plural word, it is pedantry to object to the common and convenient practice of thus treating it as a singular one. Fowler describes the situation as follows: English speakers, however, have abandoned this singular form even though they continue to use the singular and plural forms of memorandum. What is memorandum of understanding (plural, memoranda) Learn here with Sesli Szlk your source for language knowledge for a multitude of languages in. Is there a neuter singular form of agenda? One certainly exists in Latin - agendum. Similarly, a genda is the neuter plural form of the Latin verb agere (meaning to put into motion). The neuter plural form of memorandum is memorand a. Memorandum is the neuter singular form of the Latin verb memorare (meaning to remember). Perhaps the most famous use of a gerundive is the passive periphrastic phrase Carthago delenda est! (Carthage must be destroyed).Īs with Latin adjectives, gerundives are declined, meaning that their endings change based on number and case. "Memoranda" and "agenda" are both Latin words. ![]()
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