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Principal vs. Principle

If you decide to take the free Grammar Mastery Quiz, you’ll eventually come to #40, which has turned out to be confusing for many.

Question 40: The department’s principal/principle concern is the safety of all employees.

First, let’s figure out what part of speech the word is in the sentence above. Since it describes concern, which is a noun, it must be an adjective. The word principle is used only as a noun. Principal may be either a noun or an adjective. When it is an adjective, principal means “first or highest in rank, importance, value, etc.; chief; foremost”

Let’s double check. Can we substitute any or all of these definitions for principal in the sentence?

The department’s first/chief/foremost concern is the safety of all employees.

Obviously the answer is yes, so the correct answer is, “The department’s principal concern is the safety of all employees.

Posted on Monday, April 21st, 2008 at 9:06 pm

Pleaded vs. Pled

For the past tense of to plead, you may use either pleaded or pled.

Example: He will plead not guilty to the charges.
Example: He pleaded not guilty before his trial.
Example: He pled not guilty before his trial.

Note: In the strict legal sense, one cannot plead innocent.

Word of the Week

Avuncular: Having to do with an uncle, especially in kindness or tolerance.

Example: He showed her avuncular affection.


Posted on Tuesday, April 8th, 2008 at 2:54 am

Irregular Plurals

Many nouns in English have a plural form either with an s/es ending or without. For example, when is it correct to use youth vs. youths, fish vs. fishes, or hair vs. hairs?

Use youths and hairs when countable.
Example: Three youths were given awards for community service.

If youth is being used collectively, do not add the s.

Example: The youth of today watch less TV but spend more time on the computer.

When youth is used as a collective noun, you may follow it with either a singular or plural verb. I chose the plural verbs watch and spend because I felt that we were using youth in a plural manner here.

Examples: The hairs on her chin were long.
Her hair is long.

The words fish and fishes are interchangeable although some references say to use fishes when referring to two or more species.

Examples: This fish is huge.
These barracuda fish are huge.
All the barracuda fish in the reef are enormous.
The fishes in the reef are colorful. (indicating two or more species)

Some nouns do not change at all in their plural form.

Examples: sheep, deer, offspring, series, species

Other nouns have plural forms that do not involve adding an s.

Examples: alumnus/alumni, radius/radii, child/children, woman/women, foot/feet, goose/geese, tooth/teeth, vertebra/vertebrae, mouse/mice

To confuse us even more, some nouns change their is ending in the singular to an es ending in the plural.

Examples: parenthesis/parentheses, paralysis/paralyses, diagnosis/diagnoses

Is there a simple way to know the plural of a noun? Only if you’re psychic. The rest of us are stuck with having to rely on the dictionary.


Posted on Saturday, April 5th, 2008 at 12:32 am