Poll

Weekly survey: Is “vinyls” an acceptable plural version of “vinyl?”

Look, I get that the English language is an ever-evolving thing. If you had a time machine that took you back to England in the 1600s, you’d be completely lost when it came to conversing to people with that era. But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t police this evolution every once and a while.

Take vinyl records, for example. In recent years, it’s become increasingly common to hear people new to the world of vinyl (usually younger folk, too) brag about how many “vinyls” they have. Not records. Vinyls.

Enter that into Word and you’ll get a squiggly red line under it. And I agree with Microsoft.

“Vinyl” is like deer. More than one deer and you have a herd of deer, not a bunch of “deers.” (Again, the squiggly red line appeared under that word as I typed it.)

Let me throw this open to you. Is “vinyls” an acceptable plural for “vinyl?” You know where I stand.

Alan Cross

is an internationally known broadcaster, interviewer, writer, consultant, blogger and speaker. In his 40+ years in the music business, Alan has interviewed the biggest names in rock, from David Bowie and U2 to Pearl Jam and the Foo Fighters. He’s also known as a musicologist and documentarian through programs like The Ongoing History of New Music.

Alan Cross has 38040 posts and counting. See all posts by Alan Cross

2 thoughts on “Weekly survey: Is “vinyls” an acceptable plural version of “vinyl?”

    • Well ultimately I think I’ll always prefer “records” but I’ll admit the times they are a-changin’! Case in point the other day my 19 year old son asked me if I used to own a vinyl player!

      Reply

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