Recent One Big Happy, with Joe bedeviled by irregular plurals in English, especially in the sg /u/, pl /i/ pattern in goose – geese and tooth – teeth:
The morphophonological alternation has an interesting history, but from the point of view of modern speakers, it just is. One booth, two booths (not beeth), but one tooth, two teeth; one noose, two nooses (not neese), but one goose, two geese. And one Ruthie, two Ruthies (not Reethie).
April 27, 2016 at 6:45 am |
Not to mention one moose, two moose.
I have a vague recollection of a comedy routine from my high-school days (I think I only heard it quoted by classmates) that included such plurals as geef and sheriffim.