Plural of abstraction

The plural of abstraction, or plurale abstractum (Latin for "abstract plural"), is the linguistic phenomenon of using a plural form to turn a concrete idea into an abstract state or quality. The logic of the phenomenon can be described as the plural manifesting the various concrete manifestations of a quality or of a state, to refer to the quality or state in its generality: for example, the Hebrew verb נִשָּׂא (nissa) denotes the individual act "to become married", and the derived plural form נִשּׂוּאִין (nissuin) manifests the specific instances together to refer to the institution of marriage.

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