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Reduplicated plural

Reduplicated plural is a mathematics topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Reduplicated plural rather than just read about it. In short: A reduplicated plural is a grammatical form achieved by the superfluous use of a second plural ending. In English the plural is usually formed with the addition of 's': e.g. one cat, two cats; one chair, two chairs.

Key takeaways

  • Reduplicated plural belongs to mathematics; place it in that map before memorising details.
  • Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
  • Connect Reduplicated plural to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
  • Reproduce the core statement of Reduplicated plural from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

A reduplicated plural is a grammatical form achieved by the superfluous use of a second plural ending. In English the plural is usually formed with the addition of 's': e.g. one cat, two cats; one chair, two chairs. In the Sussex dialect, however, until relatively recently there existed a reduplicated plural: e.g. one ghost, two ghostes/ghostesses; one post, two postes/postesses (note that here the Sussex pluralisation instead of adding just 's' after 'st', adds either 'es' as its usual plural, or a reduplicated 'esses'. Reduplicated plural forms, or similar forms, can also appear in African American Vernacular English, New York Latino English, and in some other rarer forms of American English, often in specific lexical items, such as testes rather than tests . Donald Mackenzie suggests that in Kipling's in Puck of Pook's Hill the word 'pharisees' apparently used by Shoesmith for fairies was formed as a Sussex reduplicated plural. In The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, the character Gollum speaks with reduplicated plurals, often complaining about "sneaky little hobbitses".

References

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Reduplicated plural

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Reduplicated plural claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In mathematics, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Reduplicated plural before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Reduplicated plural ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Reduplicated plural

In research
Reduplicated plural appears in mathematics research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry
Engineering practice reuses Reduplicated plural in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom
Reduplicated plural is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Grammar stubs, Grammatical number, Sussex, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life
Look for Reduplicated plural outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.
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How to study Reduplicated plural in 20 minutes

  1. Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
  2. Close the page and write down what Reduplicated plural means in your own words.
  3. Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
  4. Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
  5. Explain Reduplicated plural out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Reduplicated plural in simple terms?

A reduplicated plural is a grammatical form achieved by the superfluous use of a second plural ending. In English the plural is usually formed with the addition of 's': e.g. one cat, two cats; one chair, two chairs.

Why does Reduplicated plural matter?

Because it connects several mathematics ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Reduplicated plural?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Reduplicated plural.

Tags

  • Grammar stubs
  • Grammatical number
  • Sussex

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