Why is the plural oxen? Is it acceptable to use oxes? Welcome John H The system has flagged your answer as "low-quality because of its length and content " An answer on EL U is expected to be authoritative, detailed, and explain why it is correct
How did oxen (plural of ox) survive as the only plural form with . . . plural of ox, it is the only true continuous survival in Modern English of the Old English weak plural (see -en (1)) OED reports oxes occurs 14c -16c , "but has not survived " The usage of the plural form oxes can be seen as far as the year 1905 per the latest citation in OED with a plural form of ox 1905 Hitch my oxes To de plow
grammatical number - English Language Usage Stack Exchange But the plural of ox is oxens, not oxes One fowl is a goose, and two are called geese, Yet the plural of moose is never called meese You may find a lone mouse or a house full of mice; But the plural of house is houses, and not hice The plural of man is always men, But the plural of pan is never pen If I speak of a foot, and you show me two
How did borrowings from Latin and French affect verb conjugation in . . . Noun inflections: yes, for example some plurals (oxen -> oxes), but the case system disappeared nearly completely, so it is probably hard to distinguish which changes were influenced by French Verb inflections not so much –
grammar - English Language Usage Stack Exchange If you're used to hearing a single die referred to as "a die", you get exactly the same surprising, jarring sensation when you hear "a dice" Or "some oxes", which frankly sounds illiterate, and even upsets my spellchecker
grammatical number - Etymology of certain words ending in -en . . . ox oxen (particularly when referring to a team of draft animals, sometimes oxes in nonstandard American English) Plural of ox, it is the only true continuous survival in Modern English of the Old English weak plural OED reports oxes occurs 14c -16c , "but has not survived "