How to pronounce plural of "corps"
According to all dictionaries I've seen the plural spelling of "corps" remains "corps". I guess the plural of "corps" is pronounced the same as the singular, meaning:
- (Military) a military formation that comprises two or more divisions and additional support arms
Collins English Dictionary
So in the sentence:
Three of their panzer corps attacked through the Ardennes and drove northwest to the English Channel.
Dunkirk evacuation
Would sound like "Three of their panzer core attacked ..."?
Another example:
On October 14th, Lieut. Gen. A.P. Hill’s corps stumbled upon two corps of the retreating Union army at Bristoe Station and attacked without proper reconnaissance.
Battle of Bristoe Station
I don't suppose that as "one corps" is pronounced "one core", "two/three corps" is pronounced as "cores"?
Solution 1:
Just to clarify, both ‘corps’ and ‘corpse’ are derived ultimately from the Latin ‘corpus’ (plural ‘corpora’) meaning a ‘body’, in both senses of the word. The term ‘corps’ for a particular military unit, spelled and pronounced with a silent final ‘s’, comes from the French, as do several other military terms, such as ‘lieutenant’’ and ‘aide de camp’. In French, single final ‘s’ is generally silent, including the pluralising ‘s’. So ‘un chat’ (one cat), ‘deux’ chats’ (two cats) are both pronounced with a silent final ‘s’. So, in French, ‘un corps’ and ‘deux corps’ are pronounced in the same way. But English the plural final s must be pronounced.