'octopuses' is unobjectionable, albeit subliterate; 'octopi' instead
of 'octopodes' is not.
Ah, I feel the need to re-offend*!
Warning to Travellers ..
__________________________________________
For those in Peril near the Sea:
Beware the blue-ringed octopii,
They're timid, and, I've 'eard, quite shy,
But yer a gonna, and you'll soon succumb,
If ya let 'em nibble on yer thumb.
__________________________________________
Graeme (grinning!)
*first was 9th June 2006 with an (affectionate) illumination by J G
on the same day!
At 02:41 PM 16/01/2013, you wrote:
Shmuel wrote:
| De mortui
which is perhaps a botched reference to the Latin tag
De mortuis nil nisi bonum [dicendum est].
Latin dropouts would do better to refrain from pretention that betrays
them into the ridiculous. In other words, get it right or avoid it:
'octopuses' is unobjectionable, albeit subliterate; 'octopi' instead
of 'octopodes' is not.
John Gilmore, Ashland, MA 01721 - USA
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