Is "macrames" a correct plural form of "macrame" in English? I am seeing "macrame" being used in various places, but if I want to give two items to my friend, am I giving them "two macrame" or "two macrames"?
1 Answer
According to the Cambridge Dictionary
macramé noun [ U ]
the art of joining pieces of string together in knots to form a decorative pattern, or something made this way
The [U] stands for uncountable
Uncountable or singular noun: a noun that has no plural.
So if you want to give your friend two items, I think that the correct way of saying it is: two pieces of macramé.
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Thank you for your response. I also found the following definition: Macramé is a form of textile produced using knotting (rather than weaving or knitting) techniques. Wiktionary presents it as a countable and uncountable noun (en.wiktionary.org/wiki/macrame). Oct 22, 2018 at 12:45
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@WojtekZeglin Oxford Dictionary classifies it as a mass noun (uncountable) too. It depends on what reference you trust most.– RubioRicOct 22, 2018 at 12:50
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@WojtekZeglin - It's not uncommon to find a word that's listed as
countablein one dictionary, butcountable and uncountablein another, especially when a random plural form is rarely used. (See, e.g., the entry for equipment in Macmillan and Wiktionary.) As a footnote, research like what you wrote here belongs in your question, not in comments beneath the answers to your question.– J.R. ♦Oct 22, 2018 at 15:37 -
2macrame refers to the manner of creation like "knitting" or "tie-dye". She showed him a piece of macrame her mother had done.– TimROct 22, 2018 at 15:47
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1Art forms per se are not typically pluralized. We wouldn't say "She showed them her knittings" but "... her knitting" or "her pieces of knitting".– TimROct 22, 2018 at 16:20