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Correct plural of FAQ

English Language & Usage Asked on November 6, 2021

FAQ stands for ‘Frequently asked questions’, with the plural being implicit in the acronym FAQ. But it is common to see the word ‘FAQs’ being used, which treat the word FAQ as an object in itself, and an s being added to its end in order to pluralize it.

Which one is the correct usage for FAQ ?

4 Answers

IMHO "FAQs" is more natural. Consider if a page referred you to their FAQ. You (I) might think "What? Only one FAQ?". So adding the "s" makes sense to me.

Also, being pedantic, FAQ is not an acronym: It is an initialism. Acronyms are pronounceable words comprised of a set of initial letters, such as the word "laser".

G

Answered by Greg on November 6, 2021

A FAQ is a collection of Frequently Asked Question(s) for a specific topic.

FAQs are a collection of multiple lists of FAQ.

“I looked up a Fallout4 FAQ on GameFAQs”

Answered by Michael Simpson on November 6, 2021

I disagree that FAQ always stands for Frequently Asked Questions; a single question that is frequently asked is also a frequently asked question, or FAQ. Thus, a list of such questions is a list of FAQs.

Answered by Marthaª on November 6, 2021

While the acronym does indeed stand for Frequently Asked Questions, in many cases, there is an implied list of (or perhaps document containing) in the acronym's usage, which is why it's treated as a singular object. For example, I could have a FAQ that covers home buying and a separate one that has questions regarding home purchasing. In this case, I might suggest that you check out the FAQs, meaning The lists of frequently asked questions.

In this case, I see nothing wrong with adding an s to pluralize the implied list (making it clear there there are multiple sets).

However, I would suggest that if you have a single list, and the s merely refers to the fact that multiple questions exist, the s is not needed.

Answered by Dusty on November 6, 2021

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