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Tutor Zach McLaughlin 's Column

Quick tips: fish vs. fishes

Mar 16, 2024

Should you say “two fish” or “two fishes”? Well, it depends! Typically, “fish” (without “-es”) is the plural form of “fish” (e.g. I have a few fish in a tank at home), one of several irregular plural animal nouns, including sheep, deer, moose, etc. However, “fishes” can also be used, particularly when referring to multiple species of fish (e.g. We saw many different fishes and lots of coral). This is more common in scientific contexts. When “fish” refers to the meat of fish (e.g. How much fish did you eat?), it’s an uncountable noun, like beef, pork, chicken, etc., so you don’t need to worry about “-es” in that case!


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