How is Prius pronounced?

guyweathersby · 03-04-2005, 12:01 PM

Actually I'm not even sure which plural Toyota prefers. The head of the San Diego Prius Club says that Toyota says Prius is the preferred plural.

jimofdg · 03-04-2005, 12:15 PM

I pronounce it "Toyota hybrid." Makes the plural easy too, at least until there is more than one Toyota hybrid.

I'm thinking of pronouncing it "price," just to annoy people in a passive-aggressive way.

Too bad we can't agree on how to pronounce the binding force of atoms or the names of other countries.

I'm not saying everybody should pronounce everything the same way. This is why people visit (and leave) London and Boston and even Alabama.

**Danny** · 03-04-2005, 12:36 PM

I got Priuses from this press release when they donated some Prii to Yellowstone:

"This past summer, Toyota donated four 2004 Priuses with Hybrid Synergy Drive to Yellowstone National Park Foundation."

john1701a · 03-04-2005, 01:31 PM

Talk to our favorite Toyota exec, the one responsible for overseeing Prius. He says the plural for "Prius" is "Prius". I like that. We can hide our numbers that way, stealth like.

And the pronounciation for Prius is PREE-US. Working on the upcoming DVD for Prius, I listened to several Toyota commericials for our favorite car. All of them pronounced that name that way. FREE-US from imported oil & pollution with PREE-US.

karmavore · 03-04-2005, 02:08 PM

Quote:

He says the plural for "Prius" is "Prius". I like that. We can hide our numbers that way, stealth like.

Myself, I'm not so sure. It makes us seem too much like "sheep".

Brad :mrgreen:

t'rants · 03-04-2005, 02:15 PM

Quote:

Talk to our favorite Toyota exec, the one responsible for overseeing Prius. He says the plural for "Prius" is "Prius". I like that. We can hide our numbers that way, stealth like.

I'm with that idea, that "Prius" is non-plurable much like "aircraft". Not that it's a Japanese word, I believe that's how Japanese nouns work, too.

hdrygas · 03-04-2005, 03:46 PM

Quote:

Ok if that's the case, how do you pronounce the plural, Prii?

My brother in law a classics major in college says you pronounce both i s.

Potential Buyer · 03-04-2005, 04:55 PM

Prius is a Latin word, so there is one and only one way to pronounce it -- PREE-us. Anyone who calls it "Pry-us" or, worse, "Pry-oos", is dumb.

The plural technically should be Priuses, but singular Latin words that end in -us have the plural -i, pronounced 'eye'. Examples are radius => radii (RAID - EEE - EYE), cactus => cacti, etc. So calling them Prii (PREE-EYE) is basically a joke. According to Google, "prius" means "first" in Latin. It's not a noun, which means that when it's used as a noun anyway, such as Toyota Prius, the plural would just be Priuses.

karmavore · 03-04-2005, 05:03 PM

OK, that's all well and good, but what about the possessive?

Is it...
"My Prius's mpg is better than your Hummer's."
or
"My Prius' mpg quintuples your Hummer's"?

And what about the possessive plural?
"Our five Priuses' roomy interiors got us to the energy fair using less gas than your one Hummer."
or
"Our five Prii's roomy interiors got us to the energy fair using less gas than your one Hummer."
or
"Our five Prius' roomy interiors got us the energy fair using less gas than your one Hummer."
or
"Why in Jesus' name did you drive a Hummer to the energy fair?"

Which leads me to a related question...
Do multiple nativity scenes then incorporate Jesi?

My questions must be answered!!! :wink:

Brad

wdfoto · 03-04-2005, 05:43 PM

Now that we all know how to say it, what does it mean?

03-04-2005, 12:01 PM	#11
guyweathersby Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Poway CA (near San Diego) Posts: 34 My Car: Package: Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 0	Re: How is Prius pronounced? Actually I'm not even sure which plural Toyota prefers. The head of the San Diego Prius Club says that Toyota says Prius is the preferred plural.

03-04-2005, 12:15 PM	#12
jimofdg Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: DG, IL, US Posts: 533 My Car: Package: Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 0	Re: How is Prius pronounced? I pronounce it "Toyota hybrid." Makes the plural easy too, at least until there is more than one Toyota hybrid. I'm thinking of pronouncing it "price," just to annoy people in a passive-aggressive way. Too bad we can't agree on how to pronounce the binding force of atoms or the names of other countries. I'm not saying everybody should pronounce everything the same way. This is why people visit (and leave) London and Boston and even Alabama.

03-04-2005, 12:36 PM	#13
Danny Admin/Founder Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Columbia, SC Posts: 4,592 My Car: 2006 Prius Package: #8 Nominated 26 Times in 8 Posts TOTM Awards: 1 Friends: 25	I got Priuses from this press release when they donated some Prii to Yellowstone: "This past summer, Toyota donated four 2004 Priuses with Hybrid Synergy Drive to Yellowstone National Park Foundation." __________________ PriusChat Offers Discounts on: Extended Warranty - $990 : Pre-Paid Maintenance - $875 : HeatShield SunShades : BT Tech Stiffening Plate : All other Prius Accessories

03-04-2005, 04:55 PM	#18
Potential Buyer Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: San Diego, CA Posts: 290 My Car: Package: Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 0	Re: How is Prius pronounced? Prius is a Latin word, so there is one and only one way to pronounce it -- PREE-us. Anyone who calls it "Pry-us" or, worse, "Pry-oos", is dumb. The plural technically should be Priuses, but singular Latin words that end in -us have the plural -i, pronounced 'eye'. Examples are radius => radii (RAID - EEE - EYE), cactus => cacti, etc. So calling them Prii (PREE-EYE) is basically a joke. According to Google, "prius" means "first" in Latin. It's not a noun, which means that when it's used as a noun anyway, such as Toyota Prius, the plural would just be Priuses.

03-04-2005, 05:03 PM	#19
karmavore Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Madison, WI Posts: 61 My Car: Package: Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 0	Re: How is Prius pronounced? OK, that's all well and good, but what about the possessive? Is it... "My Prius's mpg is better than your Hummer's." or "My Prius' mpg quintuples your Hummer's"? And what about the possessive plural? "Our five Priuses' roomy interiors got us to the energy fair using less gas than your one Hummer." or "Our five Prii's roomy interiors got us to the energy fair using less gas than your one Hummer." or "Our five Prius' roomy interiors got us the energy fair using less gas than your one Hummer." or "Why in Jesus' name did you drive a Hummer to the energy fair?" Which leads me to a related question... Do multiple nativity scenes then incorporate Jesi? My questions must be answered!!! :wink: Brad

03-04-2005, 01:31 PM	#14
john1701a Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Minnesota Posts: 2,717 My Car: 2004 Prius Package: Pioneer #3 Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 3	Talk to our favorite Toyota exec, the one responsible for overseeing Prius. He says the plural for "Prius" is "Prius". I like that. We can hide our numbers that way, stealth like. And the pronounciation for Prius is PREE-US. Working on the upcoming DVD for Prius, I listened to several Toyota commericials for our favorite car. All of them pronounced that name that way. FREE-US from imported oil & pollution with PREE-US.

03-04-2005, 05:43 PM	#20
wdfoto Junior Member Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Jonesboro, Arkansas Posts: 29 My Car: Package: Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 0	Re: How is Prius pronounced? Now that we all know how to say it, what does it mean?