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English plurals: a poem

Posted: Sat Jan 26, 2013 6:20 am
by Audiendus
The plurals of most English nouns
Just take an S, like kings and crowns.
Some, to avoid phonetic clashes,
Add an E, as in eyelashes.
Children and oxen are a pair
In which the Saxon N's still there.
A few change vowel sounds, like mice;
Some interpose a letter (dice).
Quite often Y becomes IE,
While F may change (or not) to V.
Scissors and clothes are plural only;
People is unique and lonely.
In the case of sheep and deer,
A plural form does not appear;
Likewise, when humans are disdained,
The singular may be retained:
The Hun, the Turk, the infidel,
Whom hostile tribes desire to quell.
In deference to Latin form,
Cacti and algae are the norm,
Bacteria and referenda,
Magi, radii, corrigenda.
Saints' stigmata are a freak,
Which, like schemata, comes from Greek.
From Hebrew, as in many a hymn,
Are cherubim and seraphim.
Italian endings are profuse
(Not pluralized in English use),
Like macaroni and spaghetti,
Tagliatelle and confetti.
Adjectives may serve as nouns,
And many a foreign learner frowns
Because the dead, the old, the young
Have plurals in his native tongue,
While family names like the Malones
Are singular to Francophones.
No matter: when all's said and done,
These strange anomalies are fun;
Our language has a high degree
Of heterogeneity.

Re: English plurals: a poem

Posted: Sat Jan 26, 2013 11:18 am
by Perry Lassiter
Oh well done, Audiendus! Your verse should be included in every grammar and language text under the plural chapter!

Re: English plurals: a poem

Posted: Tue Feb 12, 2013 9:44 pm
by Philip Hudson
Audiendus: This poetic commentary on English plurals is delightful. Isn't our language amazing!

English plurals a poem

Posted: Tue May 14, 2019 7:14 pm
by byronhic
Hey, I just thought about this.
How about

krteДЌek....in eniglish pronuciation...cur-te-chek

there is an english word...cur, but of course the r isnt rolled

Re: English plurals: a poem

Posted: Sat May 25, 2019 11:25 pm
by Philip Hudson
I do not understand your point, byronhic. Automatic translators tell me that krteДЌek is from Afrikaans. However, it fails to translate into most languages. The example of this word does not elucidate my understanding of English plurals. I am an 81 year old curmudgeon. Perhaps I am too old to comprehend, but please add something for all our edification.

Re: English plurals: a poem

Posted: Mon Aug 12, 2019 1:27 am
by dennifernandez
Mr.Philip Hudson
I suppose that gentleman post a message just to promote the service he is linking to in his signature.

Re: English plurals: a poem

Posted: Thu Oct 17, 2019 11:49 pm
by Audiendus
An additional couplet could be included somewhere in my poem:

Sometimes, to confuse the reader,
German forms are used, like Lieder.