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Plural of roof

(17 Posts)
Luckygirl Mon 24-Aug-15 16:21:16

I am reading a book where they use rooves - that really sounds weird to me, but OH thinks it is right. What would you use?

Stansgran Mon 24-Aug-15 16:23:34

Hoof hooves
Roof roofs
Dwarf dwarves or dwarfs

nannieroz111 Mon 24-Aug-15 16:24:01

I believe it's roofs.

whitewave Mon 24-Aug-15 16:24:10

I think rooves or is it roofs or roofes - none of them look right confused

Grannyknot Mon 24-Aug-15 16:41:53

Roofs.

thatbags Mon 24-Aug-15 16:43:44

Roofs.

Hoofs is acceptable now too.

Luckygirl Mon 24-Aug-15 16:48:34

That is interesting - I wondered what people's gut reaction would be.

I looked it up on the net and it seems that roofs was correct, but that rooves is gaining acceptance and has become acceptable. It is following the same trajectory as hoofs, which has gradually gone out of fashion and hooves is now the thing. There is even a graph online.

Interestingly my typing of rooves on here has been greeted with a wavy red line!

Alea Mon 24-Aug-15 16:53:09

Roof - Roofs
Dwarf - Dwarfs
But
Hoof - Hooves
Tooth (oh, forget it!grin )

thatbags Mon 24-Aug-15 16:53:25

That's funny. I thought hooves and rooves used to be regarded as correct but are now being replaced by hoofs and roofs.

Alea Mon 24-Aug-15 16:58:26

" It ain't the 'unting on the 'ills
That 'urts the 'orses' 'ooves
But the 'ammer, 'ammer , 'ammer on the 'ard 'igh road."

I have NO idea where that came from, but it is something I remember from my childhood.
So " 'ooves"

Luckygirl Mon 24-Aug-15 17:20:52

Alea - love the tooth!

Granny23 Mon 24-Aug-15 17:33:19

Best just to avoid the plural - 'Santa landed carefully on each roof'.

tanith Mon 24-Aug-15 17:53:10

I've always used rooves and hooves

ninathenana Mon 24-Aug-15 18:09:36

Right or wrong I would write roofs and hooves but I'd say rooves.

Indinana Mon 24-Aug-15 18:22:04

There's never been any confusion for me: roofs and hooves. Crazy language wink

thatbags Mon 24-Aug-15 18:35:42

Like it, alea grin

Welshwife Mon 24-Aug-15 18:53:58

Roofs was the exception which proved the rule - always has been roofs - one of the lovely anomalies of the English language - another one is sheep - that so confused a French boy who always wanted to add an 's' - but he could tell you six or seven meanings of the word flush!-
1) the toilet or flush out with flow of water
2 )Hand in cards
3) with money
4)blush
5) level surface
6)flush out (game birds)