Questions about the use of Latin words and phrases in English.
15
votes
5answers
835 views
Which style of Latin plurals should I use?
Many Latin words in English have both Latin-style plurals and English-style plurals:
referendum – referendums, referenda.
minimum – minimums, minima.
gymnasium – gymnasiums, gymnasia.
...
4
votes
3answers
360 views
Is the word “formulæ” valid English?
Is the word formulæ, written with an æ at the end, valid in English? I stumbled upon this apparently plural form of formula in the Wiktionary.
I had no idea the letter æ could occur in English. Does ...
11
votes
4answers
5k views
What is the origin of the counting prefixes: uni-, bi-/di-, tri-, quad-, etc.?
Many English words use the prefixes uni-, bi-/di-, tri-, quad- and so on to mean one, two, three, and four. For example:
A unicycle has one wheel, a bicycle two, and a tricycle three.
I presume ...
17
votes
5answers
38k views
Should I write “PhD” or “Ph.D.”?
Question pretty self-explanatory. Should the abbreviation of the Latin term philosophiae doctor be written as PhD (no periods) or Ph.D. (with periods)?
17
votes
6answers
16k views
How did “sinister”, the Latin word for “left-handed”, get its current meaning?
Sinister is the Latin word for left-handed. What evolution of meaning turned left-handed into evil and threatening?
116
votes
7answers
9k views
7
votes
3answers
217 views
Latin pronunciation [closed]
(You may well say this doesn't fit into an "English language" site, but the scientific Latin terms could be said to be part of English.)
My young daughter loves snails; I would like her to learn the ...
7
votes
3answers
2k views
Pronunciation of words ending with “‑ae”
For example,
Styracaceae, Suidae, Sulidae, Sylviidae, Symplocaceae, etc.
I don’t know how to pronounce them correctly.
6
votes
2answers
1k views
5
votes
3answers
3k views
Correct spelling/italicization of e.g., i.e.?
Should e.g. and i.e. have periods, e.g. "e.g.", or no periods, eg "eg"? Should they be italicized, e.g. "i.e." or not, eg "i.e"?
0
votes
1answer
103 views
Caesar and caesura
Caesar and caesura are two similar-sounding Latin words which have made their way into English unsullied in terms of their orthography. The same can however not be said of their pronunciations. The ...
18
votes
3answers
5k views
When a sentence starts with “e.g.”, should the e be capitalized?
When a sentence starts with e.g., should the e be capitalized?
Neverminding that it might be better to start with "For example," ... Thinking of SE posts and comments, should the starting e be ...
8
votes
5answers
1k views
Is “et al.” used as a singular or plural subject?
When referring to multiple authors by using the name of the first author and "et al.", is it correct to grammatically treat this as one person or multiple persons?
Gamma et al. are saying in their ...
3
votes
3answers
2k views
Pronunciation and usage of “bona fide”
As I am reading books and articles, I come across this bona fide. How do you pronounce this? How do you use it properly?
I know the definition is in good faith, like if you are welcomed to someone's ...
2
votes
1answer
917 views
Where do “‑ess” and “‑ine” suffixes come from?
English has a lot of words that end in ‑ess or ‑esse, such as actress, hostess, huntress, finesse, duress, prowess, Lyonesse, and Westernesse.
That looks like a suffix that is also used frequently ...
2
votes
4answers
2k views
Can I start a sentence with “i.e.”?
While writing a rhetorical question I ran into a case where it seemed natural to start a sentence with "I.e":
How do we handle the case when the list is empty? I.e., if the filter matched no ...
0
votes
2answers
323 views
Long vs. short vowels in English words of Latin origin
Is there any way to determine if a vowel is short or long in English words of Latin origin? I've noticed that u is usually long in Latin words (e.g., Jupiter) but what about other vowels?
