The humble octopus has been in the news of late, as dozens of the things came ashore, freaking out a good portion of the internet.
In the news reports, some reporters called the octopuses “octopuses” while others called them “octopi”. So what is the plural of octopus?!
In this video, Kory Stamper, an associate editor at Merriam-Webster, explains the origin of the word, and reveals what word you should use to describe more than one octopus.
It turns out the correct plural is “octopodes,” because octopus is a Greek word, and that’s how the Greeks do plurals. However, octopuses and octopi are also perfectly valid, so use whatever you want.
