Is Prii a Gramatically Correct Word?

I thought Prius is neutral from prior, so in plural it should be priora:

	Column 1
0	Number Singular Singular Plural Plural
1	Case\Gender M.F. N. MM.FF. NN.
2	nominative prior prius priōrēs priōra
3	genitive priōris priōris priōrum priōrum
4	dative priōrī priōrī priōribus priōribus
5	accusative priōrem prius priōrēs priōra
6	ablative priōre priōre priōribus priōribus
7	vocative prior prius priōrēs priōra

 

Plural of Prius, Prii? Not According to Latin Experts - KickingTires

Nick Young, a Latin and classical studies instructor at the University of Detroit Mercy, told the Detroit Free Press that the plural of “Prius” is actually "Priora" or "Priores."

Ben Zimmer, a columnist for the New York Times, counters that either “Priora” or “Prii” are correct answers, but he told the Free Press that adding Latin plurals to “Prius” seems a bit forced. “We're not speaking Latin. We might as well form the word the way English plurals are formed," Zimmer said.

In that case, the plural really should be “Priuses,” even if it sounds a bit silly.

 

Sometimes, grammatically correct is just plain awkward. 'Pree-eye' is a perfect example, and 'Priusses' isn't a whole lot better. Prius as both singular and plural seems the simplest and most elegant.

 

There is also the Canadian form: "Prius-A".

Tom

 

This is why I think it is silly to treat a word derived from Latin or Greek as though we were speaking those languages. We are not. We are speaking (or writing) English. I treat "Prius" as though it were a made-up name, and I use "Priuses" as the plural, though I accept "Prius" as some English words are their own plural. Similarly I speak of forums rather than fora. OTOH, sometimes common usage is otherwise: If we have more than one datum it becomes data.

What I think is really silly is that I've seen people here on Prius Chat use "Prii" as the singular!

 

This is the general rule followed by most copy editors. Once a word becomes common in English it is treated as an English word, with normal English rules.

Tom

 

I don't care for the word at all. Priuses was fine.

 

Said in your best Sylvester the cat voice.

Tom

 

Being silly is good enough reason to use it. If it bugs Latinos (or whatever you call those long dead Latins), so much the better.

 

This controversy is over. Toyota had Prius owners vote and the decision was "Prii". Let's just get along.

JeffD

 

Look, there's a Prius. Hey, there's another one.

 

The pronunciation is close, but your spelling gives you away. If it's any consolation, I hunch we'll be in agreement with the Prius C.

 

I personally eschew the PREE-EYE thing. It doesn't bother me, I just don't look to a car manufacturer's poll for guidance on how I refer to a group, gaggle, or bunch of their products.

I'm not trying to be a buzz-kill or anything, but the fact is I own a Harley, and as fanatical as that group of folks tend to be, I also avoid the leather and tassels look as well. No.....I don't have a tat either...and I'm a sailor!

I've never been much of a follower I guess.....

 

Yes, that was a clever campaign. Toyota could have made the whole thing much easier by saying "Prius IS plural", but that would have taken all the fun out of it.