ok.. so this has become a question that no one can answer for me.. i work at a call center.. so i was in my cubicle on my computer.. a co worker said that her mouse to her computer was no working properly.. (fill in the blank with the correct word)- i then replied "hey brooke.. i have two _____ over here.. you can have one.." is the word supposed to be mice, mouses, or mouse? PLEASE HELP .. haha this is kinda funny but i'm stumped. it's probably really simple. thanx ahead for all answers
2007-05-01 15:29:52 · 10 answers · asked by Brit 2 in Education & Reference ➔ Words & Wordplay
Haha thats everyones response.. i could have said it differently but if i wanted to say it like that.. how would it go? :)
2007-05-01 15:37:44 · update #1
Mouse, in terms of a piece of computer hardware is a reasonably (as these things are measured) new innovation and if there was a plural thought of for it when it was developed as a word, it is probably known (for sure) by relatively few people. As such, it's becoming the most common usage which gets to choose what the plural is. From a brief google search it seems that "mice" is winning this battle with "mouses" with 372,000 hits compared to 67,600. So it looks like "mice" will likely win out in the long term.
2007-05-01 23:38:43 · answer #1 · answered by Ghede 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Haha! That is a good question.
Technically, it should probably be mice, because the word mouse is no longer limited to the furry little rodents that run around chasing cats. Or is it the other way around.
I'm sure someone is going to tell you it's mouses, because mouse is a piece of equipment, like computers, or chairs, or cars etc.
Why don't you just say, "I have an extra mouse here? You're welcome to use it."
2007-05-01 22:35:51 · answer #2 · answered by old lady 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Tiny bit of information:
MOUSE is an acronym, and is short for Manually-Operated User-Selection Equipment so technically MOUSE is already the plural .
For common use there does not yet seem to be a definitive answer: neither mouses nor mice is correct, but neither of them is incorrect.
Use whatever is comfortable.
2007-05-01 22:54:42 · answer #3 · answered by Ef Ervescence 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Yeah, that really is a stumper! And apparently, from what I found out googling the question a while back, when I was wondering, too, it appears that either 'mouses' or 'mice'
is acceptable and both are used by computer companies!
So, I guess we can take our pick, although it's hard to say either one with a straight face, isn't it!
2007-05-01 22:40:26 · answer #4 · answered by ? 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
it's not mouse because it sounds wrong. mice is probably the proper wording and I'm pretty sure it is mice. mouses is possible but i doubt it.
2007-05-01 22:44:06 · answer #5 · answered by pinkpaw_cutie 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
mice Your mouse is named mouse because it looks like a mouse. So, it was mice .
2007-05-01 22:40:33 · answer #6 · answered by Kandice F 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋
i think 1 of them is mouse and to of them are mouses and 2 or more is mice but i have know idea?
2007-05-01 22:39:51 · answer #7 · answered by guess what? 3 · 0⤊ 2⤋
you should have said "I have an extra mouse over here"
2007-05-01 22:38:57 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
That is like the joke about the man who wanted to start a mongoose farm.
He wrote his contact in India:
Dear Sir, Please send me two mongeese ......
He thought that didn't sound right so he started over:
Dear Sir, Please send me two mongooses ......
He didn't like that either so what he actually wrote was:
Dear Sir, Please send me a mongoose. And while you're at it, please send me another one.
.
2007-05-01 22:52:46 · answer #9 · answered by BlueFeather 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
its mouses but dont qoute me im a redneck.
2007-05-01 22:47:17 · answer #10 · answered by william w 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋