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Know Your Plurals Trivia Quiz

Plurals are fascinating yet sometimes frustrating things. Take a shot at this quiz to see if you really know your plurals!

A multiple-choice quiz by timence. Estimated time: 4 mins.

Author
timence

Time
4 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
148,751

Updated
Dec 03 21

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Average

Avg Score
7 / 10

Plays
15835

Awards
Top 20% Quiz

Last 3 plays: brm50diboll (10/10), lrp1963 (8/10), reedy (10/10).

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 10

1. Is it true that you can turn any singular word into a plural by simply adding an 's'?

Yes

NEXT>

Question 2 of 10

2. Which of the following is a correct plural word for octopus (according to many dictionaries)? Hint

octopii

octopi

octopie

octopets

NEXT>

Question 3 of 10

3. What is the plural word for 'sheep'?

Answer: (By the strict dictionary definition)

NEXT>

Question 4 of 10

4. When is it acceptable to use an apostrophe as part of a non-shortened plural word? Hint

Always

Never (with a few specific exceptions)

When pluralising an acronym (eg. DVD's)

When pluralising words ending in a vowel (eg. tomato's)

NEXT>

Question 5 of 10

5. On to a FunTrivia favourite. Which of the following is an accepted plural of 'court-martial'? Hint

Court-martial

None of these

Courts-martial

Courts-martials

NEXT>

Question 6 of 10

6. Fill in the missing words according to traditional usage of the words in correct order. Some board games use a single ____, whilst others use two or more _____. Hint

die, die

die, dice

dice, dice

dice, die

NEXT>

Question 7 of 10

7. Which of these sentences uses the plural correctly? Hint

"The datum were interesting"

"The data were interesting"

"The roads is long"

"The road are long"

NEXT>

Question 8 of 10

8. What is the plural of 'ox' (the animal)? Hint

none of these

oxen

oxy

NEXT>

Question 9 of 10

9. Do the words 'people' and 'peoples' mean exactly the same thing?

Yes

NEXT>

Question 10 of 10

10. The word 'opera' originates from the plural of the word 'opus'.

True

False

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Is it true that you can turn any singular word into a plural by simply adding an 's'?

Answer: No

There are many words for which this is true, however there are also many exceptions.

2. Which of the following is a correct plural word for octopus (according to many dictionaries)?

Answer: octopi

While many dictionaries accept octopi, the word is Greek in origin and the plural form should technically be octopuses. I added 'according to many dictionaries' to the question, as some do not list 'octopi', for example the Chambers English Dictionary. Thanks to JeremyB for this info. Some dictionaries also list octopodes as a plural form, based on the Greek origins of the word.

3. What is the plural word for 'sheep'?

Answer: sheep

One of the several words which has the same singular and plural. Another example is 'fish' (although 'fishes' is also acceptable).

4. When is it acceptable to use an apostrophe as part of a non-shortened plural word?

Answer: Never (with a few specific exceptions)

This gets me every time I go to the fruit market...tomato's, potato's, even watermelon's! Not even with an acronym should an apostrophe be used. Pluralising numbers (eg. 6's and 7's) are technically OK, as are some ownership uses.

5. On to a FunTrivia favourite. Which of the following is an accepted plural of 'court-martial'?

Answer: Courts-martial

An interesting example of the pluralization happening before the end of the hyphenated word. This is due to the fact that the noun, court, is followed by an adjective, martial. Some dictionaries also state that 'court-martials' is a correct alternative.

6. Fill in the missing words according to traditional usage of the words in correct order. Some board games use a single ____, whilst others use two or more _____.

Answer: die, dice

Dice is the plural and die the singular. 'Dice' is becoming more common as the singular, but has traditionally been the plural.

7. Which of these sentences uses the plural correctly?

Answer: "The data were interesting"

Data is the plural of the much-less heard singular word 'datum'. However, the singular use of 'data' to mean information has recently become widely accepted.

8. What is the plural of 'ox' (the animal)?

Answer: oxen

An example of plurals ending in -en. Another more frequently used one is children.

9. Do the words 'people' and 'peoples' mean exactly the same thing?

Answer: No

'People' is a plural of 'person', whilst 'peoples' (the plural of people) refers to a body of persons sharing something in common (e.g. religion, culture).

10. The word 'opera' originates from the plural of the word 'opus'.

Answer: True

Although used in singular form nowadays, 'opera' originally meant more than one 'opus'. Thanks for playing, let me know if you liked it.

Source: Author timence

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor agony before going online.
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