# How do I pluralize this phrase? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 2, 2011, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-pluralize-this-phrase/598386 "2011-10-02T23:27:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Ellen\_Cherry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellen_cherry/32/3600_2.png) [@Ellen\_Cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellen_Cherry)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2011, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-pluralize-this-phrase/598386/21 "2011-10-03T14:54:45Z")
It doesn’t even make sense, but I got a fit of the giggles at the thought of “an _anus_ of assholes.” 😃 I can’t even begin to explain how big their assholes are. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2011, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-pluralize-this-phrase/598386/22 "2011-10-03T15:12:52Z")
> [@Ellen\_Cherry](#): > > It doesn’t even make sense, but I got a fit of the giggles at the thought of “an _anus_ of assholes.” 😃 > > I can’t even begin to explain how big their assholes are. :eek: _Anus_ is just Latin for “ring.” “A ring of assholes.” ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2011, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-pluralize-this-phrase/598386/23 "2011-10-03T15:16:35Z")
“What a bunch of assholes” ---
**Author:** ![Cryptic\_C62](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3e96dc/32.png) [@Cryptic\_C62](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cryptic_C62)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2011, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-pluralize-this-phrase/598386/24 "2011-10-03T15:46:52Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > “I can’t even explain how much of an asshole each one of them is.” This gets my vote! It’s perfect for when you start a sentence with “I can’t even explain how…” but then suddenly realize that you’re referring to a gaggle of assholes rather than just a singular asshole. This is a much better solution than awkwardly backpedaling and constructing a new sentence. ---
**Author:** ![Lukeinva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lukeinva/32/17872_2.png) [@Lukeinva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lukeinva)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2011, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-pluralize-this-phrase/598386/25 "2011-10-03T16:46:44Z")
pfft… assholes. ---
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2011, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-pluralize-this-phrase/598386/26 "2011-10-03T17:11:59Z")
* * * > [@Cryptic\_C62](#): > > “I can’t even explain how much of an asshole he is.” Pluralizing has to give you “assholes” and “they are”. “I can’t even explain how much” is an idiom. It’s an intensifying preamble. It doesn’t mean that you couldn’t explain. Just as “What do you think you’re doing?” really means “You’re doing something incredibly stupid and I’m about to tell you how wrong you are.” You can bump it up by adding a “begin” - “I can’t even begin to explain how . . .” If using “how much” as an intensifyer doesn’t seem to fit with “assholes they are”, you just need to find another intensifyer. If it’s a situation where you can’t say “I can’t even begin to explain what fuckting assholes they are,” then **FloatyGimpy** nailed it with "I can’t even [begin to] explain what a bunch of assholes they are. " You can get creative with synonyms for “bunch”, too. “Steaming cluster” is a possibility. “Fetid, festering clutch” has a certain ring to it. **Sunspace’s** “I can’t even explain how much of an asshole each one of them is” also works, and can be intensified with “each and every one. . .” ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2011, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-pluralize-this-phrase/598386/27 "2011-10-03T18:01:09Z")
“So there I was, at an anus convention…” ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2011, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-pluralize-this-phrase/598386/28 "2011-10-03T23:03:58Z")
I can’t explain what assholes they are. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-pluralize-this-phrase/598386/29 "2011-10-04T03:56:47Z")
I can’t even begin to explain why the word “asshole” has lost all meaning to me. ---
**Author:** ![Peanuthead](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peanuthead/32/360_2.png) [@Peanuthead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peanuthead)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-pluralize-this-phrase/598386/30 "2011-10-04T04:10:14Z")
> [@Dr.Drake](#): > > _Anus_ is just Latin for “ring.” With this anus I thee wed. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-pluralize-this-phrase/598386/31 "2011-10-04T04:21:48Z")
> [@Dr.Drake](#): > > _Anus_ is just Latin for “ring.” “A ring of assholes.” > [@Peanuthead](#): > > With this anus I thee wed. :eek: One anus to rule them all. ---
**Author:** ![armedmonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@armedmonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/armedmonkey)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-pluralize-this-phrase/598386/32 "2011-10-04T04:23:10Z")
> [@Dr.Drake](#): > > _Anus_ is just Latin for “ring.” You have to be careful using those interchangeably, however. It can make jewelry shopping a bit awkward. “Excuse me ma’am, you seem to have about the same anus size as my girlfriend…” ---
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-pluralize-this-phrase/598386/33 "2011-10-04T17:29:45Z")
> [@sandra\_nz](#): > > This. > > Although what is really needed is a collective noun for a bunch of assholes. > > I’d like to suggest _an odour of assholes_. singular: One asshole. plural: 10 asswholes. ---
**Author:** ![SiXSwordS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/49beb7/32.png) [@SiXSwordS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SiXSwordS)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-pluralize-this-phrase/598386/34 "2011-10-04T17:34:34Z")
I can now easily explain what an asshole he is by comparing him to the assholes with whom he is currently assholing with. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-pluralize-this-phrase/598386/35 "2011-10-04T17:39:40Z")
I can’t even explain how very assholey they all are. You know, those assholier than thou types. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-pluralize-this-phrase/598386/36 "2011-10-04T17:44:29Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > “What a bunch of assholes” Pretty much says it. The SDMB - where overthinking extends to diagramming sentences about assholes™… ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-pluralize-this-phrase/598386/37 "2011-10-04T18:02:08Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > Pretty much says it. > > The SDMB - where overthinking extends to diagramming sentences about assholes™… It’s taking longer than we thought. ---
**Author:** ![Chessic\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7c8e57/32.png) [@Chessic\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chessic_Sense)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2011, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-pluralize-this-phrase/598386/38 "2011-10-04T18:26:14Z")
I think it’s necessary to maintain the integrity of the “explain how much” clause. Forget about assholes for a second. What if you just wanted to explain how all the objects in a collective are very much characteristic of something? What if you wanted to say that Iberians are very genetically German (or whatever)? You couldn’t say they were a bunch of Germans, as that would imply some sort of collective property. You want to single out each person individually. Thus: I wonder how German each Iberian is. “Each” is the key here. It splits everyone out individually while still saying that they have the same property. So if we apply this structure to the sentence in question, we get: I can’t explain how much of an asshole each one of them is. Now you don’t have the problem of implying that they all bunch up and become assholes together. I mean, you _could_ say that, but it’s a different connotation than what the OP asked for, I think. ---
**Author:** ![Toucanna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3bc359/32.png) [@Toucanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Toucanna)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2011, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-pluralize-this-phrase/598386/39 "2011-10-05T18:47:59Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > It’s taking longer than we thought. :D!!! This board _really_ needs a “Like” button. ---
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [October 5, 2011, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-pluralize-this-phrase/598386/40 "2011-10-05T20:11:03Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > . . . The SDMB - where overthinking extends to diagramming sentences about assholes™… > [@Leaffan](#): > > It’s taking longer than we thought. So many assholes, so little time. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-pluralize-this-phrase/598386.md?page=1)