This handout is meant to be a quick reference guide for common Latin plurals as properly used in English. Since we are using each of these as English words in English sentences, one can never go wrong to use the -s or -es English plurals in cases of uncertainty. However, some words simply sound better with their Latin plural (e.g., nuclei is much better sounding than nucleuses). Warning: many of these plurals have several variants, one of which may be more common or acceptable in certain usages. If you are unsure of something, always ask your professor or instructor if he/she has a preferred way. Below is a list of common plurals of Latin words ending in –um. Plurals in –a addenda | labia | quanta | vexilla | agenda | menstrua | sacraria | viatica | bacteria | minima | scholia | vivaria | continua | momenta | scuta | | corrigenda | opercula | septa | | curricula | opuscula | simulacra | | data | ova | solaria | | desiderata | palladia | strata | | effuvia | phyla | triclinia | | errata | pudenda | triforia | | fraena | puncta | vela | |
Plurals in –ums albums | Elusiums | museums | quorums | antirrhinums | factotums | nasturtiums | Targums | asylums | forums | nostrums | vade-mecums | begums | harmoniums | panjandrums | variorums | conundrums | laburnums | pendulums | vellums | delphiniums | lyceums | premiums | |
Words with both plurals: Preferences in [brackets] atrium* | gymnasium [–ums] | rostrum [–a] | aquarium [–a] | honorarium [–a] | sanatorium [–ums] | candelabrum [–a] | interregnum [-ums] | scriptorium [–a] | compendium [–a] | lustrum [–a] | sensorium [–a] | consortium [–a] | mausoleum [–ums] | serum [–a] | cranium [–a] | medium* | spectrum [–a] | dictum [–a] | memorandum [–a] | speculum [–a] | emporium [–a] | millennium [–a] | stadium* | encomium [–ums] | moratorium [–ums] | sternum [–a] | equilibrium [–ums] | planetarium [–ums] | symposium [–a] | exordium [–ums] | plectrum [–a] | trapezium [–a] | florilegium [–a] | podium [–a] | tympanum [–a] | frustum [–a] | proscenium [–ums] | ultimatum [–ums] | fulcrum [–a] | referendum [–ums] | vacuum [–ums] |
*No definitive preference is indicated by authoritative sources. Below is a list of common plurals of Latin words ending in -us. Words in italics are commonly accepted plurals, while those in [brackets] are acceptable variants depending on usage Preferred Plurals: –us to –i
bacillus, pl. bacilli | narcissus, pl. narcissi [narcissuses] | bronchus, pl. bronchi | nucleus, pl. nuclei [nucleuses] | cirrus, pl. cirri | polypus, pl. polypi [polypuses] | fungus, pl. fungi [funguses] | stimulus, pl. stimuli | gladiolus, pl. gladioli | uterus, pl. uteri | locus, pl. loci | |
Preferred Plurals: –us to –us afflatus, pl. afflatus | apparatus, pl. apparatus, [apparatuses] | census, pl. census [censuses] | coitus, pl. coitus | hiatus, pl. hiatus [hiatuses] | lapsus, pl. lapsus |
Preferred Plurals: –us to –uses cactus, pl. cactuses [cacti] | nexus, pl. nexuses [nexus] | callus, pl. calluses | octopus, pl. octopuses [octopodes] | conspectus, pl. conspectuses | platypus, pl. platypuses | discus, pl. discuses | plexus, pl. plexuses [plexus] | focus, pl. focuses [foci] | prospectus, pl. prospectuses [prospectus] | hippopotamus, pl. hippopotamuses | sinus, pl. sinuses [sinus] | ignoramus, pl. ignoramuses | status, pl. statuses | impetus, pl. impetuses | virus, pl. viruses | isthmus, pl. isthmuses [isthmi] | |
Preferred Plurals: –us to –a corpus, pl. corpora | genus, pl. genera | opus, pl. opera |
Below is a list of common plurals of Latin words ending in -a. Words in italics are commonly accepted plurals.
Preferred Plurals: –a to –ae alga, pl. algae | larva, pl. larvae | vertebra, pl. vertebrae |
Preferred Plurals: –a to –as area, pl. areas | idea, pl. ideas | villa, pl. villas |
Preferred Plurals: –a to –ae or –as antenna, pl. antennae or antennas | formula, pl. formulae or formulas | lacuna, pl. lacunae or lacunas | nebula, pl. nebulae or nebulas |
Compiled from Fowler’s Modern English Usage, The Oxford English Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, New American Heritage Dictionary, and alt.usage.english.
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