grammatical number - How to write a parenthetical plural when the noun pluralizes irregularly?


What happens if you have a written phrase like



We were looking at the same poster(s).



but with a noun that has an irregular plural? E.g. with baby/babies, would this be the correct form?



We were looking at the same baby(ies).



Or, as a more exotic case:



We were looking at the same matrix(???). (plural is matrices)



Is there a rule or guideline for this?



Answer



It's not pretty, but the most common way I've encountered is to list both words, without the parentheses, with either a slash or the word "or" between them:



We were looking at the same baby/babies.




We were looking at the same matrix or matrices.



You can also try "baby (babies)", or reword in some way that avoids the question, or if the context permits, just use the plural.


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