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Grammatically Correct: The writer's essential guide to punctuation ...

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GRAMMATICALLY CORRECT<br />

alga<br />

vertebra<br />

persona<br />

antenna<br />

algae<br />

vertebrae or vertebras<br />

personae or personas<br />

antennae or antennas<br />

Use antennas for TV and radio aerials, but antennae for insects.<br />

Use personas for the demeanors put on for others (she assumes<br />

different personas for different occasions), but perscmae for fictional<br />

characters (as in dramatis personae). In cases where both forms are<br />

legitimate, the Latin plural is preferred in scientific and academic<br />

writing.<br />

LATIN-DERIVED WORDS ENDING IN X<br />

EITHER CHANGE TO ICES OR ADD ES<br />

appendix<br />

appendices or appendixes<br />

index<br />

indices or indexes<br />

matrix<br />

matrices or matrixes<br />

cortex<br />

cortices or cortexes<br />

It is usual <strong>to</strong> use indices if referring <strong>to</strong> indica<strong>to</strong>rs (several indices<br />

are used <strong>to</strong> measure economic progress). For all these words, always<br />

use the Latin plurals in scientific and academic writing.<br />

GREEK WORDS ENDING IN ON CHANGE TO A<br />

criterion<br />

phenomenon<br />

criteria<br />

phenomena<br />

If phenomenon is being used <strong>to</strong> mean a remarkable person, rather<br />

than an observable event, it is pluralized with an s (those young<br />

musicians are phenomenons).<br />

MANY FRENCH WORDS THAT END IN EAU<br />

MAY ADD EITHERXORS<br />

beau<br />

beaux or beaus<br />

chateau<br />

chateaux or chateaus<br />

milieu<br />

milieux or milieus<br />

46<br />

Use the French plurals in more formal writing.

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