Just so you know

[caddyman]

The plural of octopus is not octopi, which would suggest the word was rooted in Latin. In fact the word comes from the Greek, so the correct plural is octopuses or even octopodes.

Tentacular.

Comments

[spasmsproject.livejournal.com]

Not so fast, Gentleman Adventurer.

According to my trusty 1950 Webster's *and* my 1998 American Heritage Dictionary, the word was derived from the original Greek via Latin. We didn't inherit the word from the Greeks, we got it from the Romans, who Latinized (Latinified?) the ending. Both dictionaries, as well as the New York Times Crossword Puzzle Dictionary, cite "octopi" as an acceptable plural, although "-podes" is preferred in both the traditional dictionaries.

Thus proving my grammar geekdom, quod erat demonstratum.

Eureka!

[crazedgiggles.livejournal.com]

I was always taught that octopi was wrong and octopods was correct.

[spasmsproject.livejournal.com]

I was taught both, but for some reason "-pi" was preferred in my school. Crazy midwestern school.

[keresaspa.livejournal.com]

Can't beat Ceefax and its "Ten Things We Didn't Know a Week Ago" can you?!

[caddyman.livejournal.com]

Hah. Caught...

At Ms Mollpeartree's Request

[muckefuck.livejournal.com]

From an article in the Straight Dope Archive (http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mplurals.html):

Octopus is another of these third declension nouns in Latin, borrowed from Greek. The Latin plural is octopodes, which is acceptable in English, but octopuses (or even octopus) seems more at home in English. The form octopi is quite common in English, but it is pseudo-Latin. It is based on the mistaken belief that octopus was a second-declension noun like fungus. It has made its way into many English dictionaries, but I would not recommend getting tangled up with octopi. It is true that many standard English words have entered the language through mistakes (an apron from a napron, pea from pease, etc.), so octopi may not be totally indefensible. But people who know Latin, admittedly not a large group, will think less of you for using it.

Re: At Ms Mollpeartree's Request

[caddyman.livejournal.com]

Of all the fora we could have chosen for this debate....