Word
abaci
Definition
n. the plural form of abacus. These are old tools with beads on wires that people use for counting and math.
n. the plural form of abacus, referring to manual calculating devices consisting of beads or stones moved along rods or grooves. This Latinate plural is less common in modern usage than the regularised 'abacuses'.
Examples
“The students practiced their math skills using wooden abaci.”
“The museum display featured several ancient abaci used by merchants across different centuries and cultures.”
“While digital calculators have rendered manual tools obsolete in most classrooms, some traditional schools still teach the manipulation of abaci to help children visualize the base-ten number system.”
Examples
simple
“The students practiced their math skills using wooden abaci.”
contextual
“The museum display featured several ancient abaci used by merchants across different centuries and cultures.”
complex
“While digital calculators have rendered manual tools obsolete in most classrooms, some traditional schools still teach the manipulation of abaci to help children visualize the base-ten number system.”
Usage
The plural form of 'abacus'. While 'abaci' follows Latin morphology, 'abacuses' is more frequent in contemporary English.
Pitfall
one abaci
one abacus
'Abaci' is the plural form; the singular form is 'abacus'.
Etymology
From Latin abacī.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.