As Wiktionary puts it:
The word data is more often used as an uncountable noun with a singular verb than as a plural noun with singular datum.
It’s like “hair”. You can hold a single ‘hair’, you can also hold three hairs. But if you’re looking at an entire mane, you ain’t counting, so it’s referred to as “hair” again.
And the word “data” is only one word, so “data is plural”
Maybe I’m whooshed, but you understand the concept of uncountable nouns, right?
The noun I’m referring to is the word “data” not the data themselves. “Data data” is 2 words, “data” is one word. The word (singular) “data” is plural
In Latin, sure. But the word “datum” isn’t a part of English, so we have instead the uncountable noun “data” which is derived from the Latin.
Datum is indeed a word in English. Singular point of information.
Ok… Data are a character on Star Trek.
Wouldn’t that be a correct thing to say if Data uses singular they/them pronouns?
Three whole hours and the descriptivists haven’t come by to tell us there are no rules to language. This might be a record.
I’m kinda getting the urge to lick between this guy’s front teeth just to see what it feels/tastes like.
This is just an datum point
Anyone asked data how they identify themselves?
Data is as data does.
