Analysis of information sources in references of the Wikipedia article "Octopus" in English language version.
In Latin plurals there are some traps for non-Latinists; the termination of the singular is no sure guide to that of the plural. Most Latin words in -us have plural in -i, but not all, & so zeal not according to knowledge issues in such oddities as...octopi...; as caution the following list may be useful:...octopus, -podes
The marauding rascal had occasionally issued from the water in his tank, and clambered up the rocks, and over the wall into the next one; there he had helped himself to a young lump-fish, and, having devoured it, returned demurely to his own quarters by the same route, with well-filled stomach and contented mind.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of July 2025 (link)The only correct plural in English is octopuses. The Greek original is ὀκτώπους, -ποδ- (which would lead to a pedantic English pl. form octopodes). The pl. form octopi, which is occasionally heard (mostly in jocular use), though based on modL octopus, is misconceived
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of July 2025 (link)The marauding rascal had occasionally issued from the water in his tank, and clambered up the rocks, and over the wall into the next one; there he had helped himself to a young lump-fish, and, having devoured it, returned demurely to his own quarters by the same route, with well-filled stomach and contented mind.