Black Sneakers and foot

The Plural of Foot: Untangling this Oddity

Byletslearnenglishtogether.com

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Feet, foots, or foot? What gives with this weird word? If you’ve ever wondered why the plural of foot doesn’t follow normal grammar rules, you’re not alone. I’ll help you finally make sense of this confusing irregular plural.

Plural of foot

What is the Plural of Foot?

The plural of foot is feet (pronounced fiːt).

So one foot, two feet, three feet, etc. Strange, right?

When used as a unit of measurement the rules for pluralization are slightly different.

When foot is used as part of a compound adjective before a noun it typically stays singular e.g., a 12-foot pole.

However, if “foot” is used as a measurement after a verb or in a standalone context, it is usually pluralized e.g., 12 feet long.

This pattern is consistent with other units of measurement in English. For example:

  • “a five-pound bag” vs. “The bag weighs five pounds”
  • “a ten-mile journey” vs. “The journey is ten miles long”

Note: Compounds often retain “foot” in the plural (e.g., “bigfoot/bigfoots”, “flatfoot/flatfoots”).

Why So Much Confusion Over the Plural Form?

There are several reasons the plural of foot creates confusion:

  • Irregular plurals like feet are tricky to master. It’s much easier to just add an “s” and call it a day. But alas, English has its quirks.
  • People will mistakenly refer to multiple feet as “foots.” Understandable faux pas (French for “false steps” – how fitting!), but not grammatically accurate.
  • Words with similar endings like book/books and cat/cats follow standard plural rules. Foot stands defiantly alone in its weirdness.

Is Foot Countable or Uncountable?

Foot is 100% a countable noun, meaning:

  • Individual feet can be counted. For example: “This centipede has so many feet I lost count!”
  • It’s not a mass noun like “furniture” or “traffic.”
  • You would never say “look at all this foot over here.” Sounds bizarre, right?

The Definition and Origin of Foot

Let’s examine this rebel word more closely:

  • The Old English form was “fōt” (plural “fēt”).
  • It refers to the terminal appendage of the vertebrate leg. Yes, this includes your toes too!
  • Foot can also refer to a unit of measurement that’s equal to 12 inches.

So Why is it Feet Instead of Foots?

Over centuries of linguistic evolution:

  • Certain English words began forming plurals by changing vowels instead of relying on “s” endings.
  • Feet belongs to this camp, keeping company with other mutation plurals like goose/geese and mouse/mice.
  • The origins behind exactly why are murky, but these irregulars persist as dusty relics in modern English.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Steer clear of these foot/feet fumbles:

  • Referring to multiple feet as “foots”
  • Using “feets” as the plural form
  • Saying “foot” when you mean multiple feet
  • Treating foot as a mass noun instead of a countable

Other plurals:

In Conclusion…Stand Your Ground!

The plural of foot is the irregular plural feet. It’s slipped through the cracks of history to arrive oddly unchanged to the present day. May its eccentricity live on! When referring to more than one foot, stand your ground against mistakes. Conquer this confusion once and for all!

Quick Reference Guide

  • One foot
  • Two feet
  • Five feet

I hope this explanation helped you step confidently through the odd plural of foot.

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