referenda
Sayref-uh-REN-duh/ˌɹɛfəˈɹɛndə/
- 1Plural of referendum.
The government scheduled three referenda for the fall.
Critics argue that frequent referenda can exhaust and confuse voters.
Note
This is the Latinate plural, and it belongs to formal and academic prose, where it sits alongside the anglicized referendums. Both are correct, so the choice is one of tone: referenda sounds learned and official, referendums plainer and more everyday. Whichever you choose, keep to it within one piece of writing, and treat the form as plural: these referenda were held, never a referenda.
referenda is a form of referendum
referendum, noun: A direct vote by the public on a proposed law or constitutional amendment. Full entry
- Forms
- referendumreferenda pluralreferendums plural
- Spelling
- referendum → referenda: irregular plural (no -s)
Use it in a sentence
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