AMA Manual of Style - Stacy L. Christiansen, Cheryl Iverson 2020
False Singulars
Plurals
Some nouns, because they end in a “plural” form, are mistaken for plurals, even though they should be treated as singular and take a singular verb.
Measles is a deadly disease.
Mathematics has always been her passion.
Genetics is a rapidly changing field of study.
A few nouns are usually used in the plural form; however, the distinction between plural and singular should be retained where appropriate (Table 9.9-1) (see 7.5.3, False Plurals).
Table 9.9-1. False Singulars
Plural |
Singular |
dataa |
datum |
criteria |
criterion |
mediaa |
medium |
phenomena |
phenomenon |
a Exception: when referring to social media, news media, or the media, use a singular verb. The same applies when referring to big data as a term for extremely large, often unstructured data sets that can be mined for business or social uses.
Principal Author: Brenda Gregoline, ELS
Acknowledgment
I thank Barbara Gastel, MD, MPH, Texas A&M University, for review and comments.