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What’s the Plural of Genus?

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What’s the plural of “genus”?

Genus refers to the kinds or classes of things, specifically used in the biological sense of scientific names given to organisms. A genus is the name that “animals, plants, etc. that have similar characteristics are divided, [genera/genuses] are smaller than a family and larger than a species”. An example is the genus Canis (which is Latin for “dog”). The genus Canis includes “multiple species, such as wolvesdogscoyotes, and golden jackals“.

👍🏼Usage Note

This genus includes several different species. (Singular ‘genus’ used correctly)
The study identified many different genera within the family. (Latin plural ‘genera’ used correctly)
These genus are difficult to distinguish. (Using singular ‘genus’ as a plural)
A new genera was recently discovered. (Using plural ‘genera’ as a singular)

The plural of genus can be genuses or genera. If this sounds confusing, don’t be so easily deceived. The reason why the noun genus has two accepted plurals is quite simple: genus comes from the Latin word of the same form, (meaning “race, stock, kind; family, birth, descent, origin”) and genera is its original Latin plural.

This is the standard Latin suffix for plural nouns (that end in -us as a singular, e.g., alumnus, stimulus etc.). Genuses as a plural would have evolved eventually, which it has. That’s it. That’s the story on why genuses is also a correct and commonly used plural today (it’s just not the original).

‍What’s the singular of genus?

Genus is singular. Genera and genuses are plural.

What does the word genus mean?

According to Britannica, the word genus is understood as,

A biological classification ranking between family and species, consisting of structurally or phylogenetically related species or a single isolated species exhibiting unusual differentiation (monotypic genus).”

Other Latin nouns in English

singular plural
genus genera or genuses
criterion criteria
bacterion bacteria
medium media
datum data
spectrum spectra or spectrums

💡Study Tip

Practice using the verb in different tenses with example sentences to memorize the correct forms.

Examples of the word genus used in sentences

1. The genus is associated with one long extinct in Europe.

2. By early writers the word was generally given as an equivalent of the Linnaean Loxia, but that genus has been found to include many forms not now placed in the same family.

3. One cast, genus unknown, perhaps a Cardium

4. Because it represents the group, the genus is the first part of an animal’s scientific name. ·

5. Flavivirus is a genus of the family Flaviviridae.

Examples of genera/genuses used in application

1. It is made up of three genera.

2. All 9 genera and 14 species have been reported from non-serranids.

3. The family comprises two genera.

4. He easily won the substantial cash prize by naming correctly all the genera of whitespored mushrooms.

5. The abundance of members of the different genera differed markedly.

Origin of the word genus

From etymology online on genus (n.):

(Latin plural genera), 1550s as a term of logic, “kind or class of things” (biological sense dates from c. 1600), from Latin genus (genitive generis) “race, stock, kind; family, birth, descent, origin”.

Read more about nouns

Types of nouns What’s the plural of …?
plural-only nouns …moose?
mass nouns …octopus?
collective nouns …cactus?
abstract nouns vs. concrete nouns …analysis?
possessive nouns …curriculum?
regular and irregular nouns …crisis?

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Frequently Asked Questions

What are literary devices?
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Techniques writers use to enhance their writing and convey messages effectively.

How do literary devices differ from rhetorical devices?
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Literary devices are specific to creative writing, while rhetorical devices are broader.

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Practice identifying them in texts you read regularly.

Sources

  1. Definition of genus.
  2. Sentences using genus.
  3. Origin of genus.
  4. Genus, Oxford Learner’s Dictionary, accessed on Oct 17, 2023.
  5. Wikipedia contributors. “Canis.” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 12 Oct. 2023. Web. 17 Oct. 2023.

Grammar Expert. "Whats The Plural Of Genus." GrammarFlex, Jun 1, 2025, https://www.grammarflex.com/whats-the-plural-of-genus/.

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