Name: A brief history of plural word...s
Uploaded: 2019-03-22T18:24:17Z
Duration: 4 min 12 s
Description: All it takes is a simple S to make most English words plural. But it hasn't always worked that way (and there are, of course, exceptions). John McWhorter looks back to the good old days when English was newly split from German -- and books, names and eggs were beek, namen and eggru! [Directed by Lippy, narrated by John McWhorter].

All it takes is a simple S to make most English words plural. But it hasn't always worked that way (and there are, of course, exceptions). John McWhorter looks back to the good old days when English was newly split from German -- and books, names and eggs were beek, namen and eggru! [Directed by Lippy, narrated by John McWhorter].

John McWhorter: A brief history of plural word...s

A brief history of plural word...s

Exploring the whims of English pluralization, from 'geese' not 'gooses', to historical shifts simplifying language complexity.

English's evolution from gendered nouns and varied plurals to a more uniform structure reveals language's adaptability to social changes.

Old English had complex plurals like 'eggru' and 'namen'; thanks to the Vikings, modern English simplifies to adding 's'.