Every spring, when the crocuses pop up, a question pops up: How do you form the plural of “crocus”? Is it “crocuses” or “croci”? Most dictionaries endorse both forms. “Crocuses” is the most common ...

Editor’s Note: This article previously appeared in a different format as part of The Atlantic’s Notes section, retired in 2021. This afternoon, a reader emailed to say that he believed I was muddling ...