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and don't have very many questions, but they do seem to cover the same topics. Is this a valid tag synonym?

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With tags, we generally use the plural form, but in this case I think makes more sense.
I would make a synonym of , and then merge the first tag with the second one, to make all the questions tagged appear as tagged .

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    I personally don't mind either way, but why does dictionary make more sense than dictionaries?
    – waiwai933
    Aug 28, 2011 at 19:25
  • You normally use dictionary in phrases like "let's see what the dictionary says," even if you actually have two dictionaries to consult. I could be wrong, but that is what I think.
    – apaderno
    Aug 28, 2011 at 22:05
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I have, with slight reservations, made the master tag in this merge, for several reasons:

  • has been favored over by a factor of 8.
  • Unlike, say, , there are many dictionaries in the English-speaking world.
  • Existing questions rarely seem to ask about a specific dictionary; rather, they ask about either multiple dictionaries or dictionaries in general.
  • We traditionally favor the plural form of a tag in any case.
  • @kiamlaluno's argument is not extremely persuasive. If I have multiple dictionaries, but I'm not referring to any in particular, I might use the singular. But if I want to consult all of them, I would probably use the plural.

Nonetheless, I'm open to reversing the synonym if there is a good reason.

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  • My point is exactly that: you are not referring to any in particular. Anyway, I don't find any particular difference between using dictionary or dictionaries; I said what I think was the more correct to use. Users can still vote the one they prefer, if they feel the need.
    – apaderno
    Aug 30, 2011 at 14:52
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Why not making always the singular as a synonym of the plural: noun vs nouns, verb vs verbs, etc.
We can't expect from the new users to know which one to use: the singular or the plural.

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  • I think the way synonyms work is that if someone tags a question, say, noun, then it will show up as nouns if they are synonyms. It's more of a grouping mechanism.
    – simchona
    Aug 28, 2011 at 21:58
  • @simchona I think that too. So, is there a problem with my suggestion?
    – Bogdan Lataianu
    Aug 28, 2011 at 22:07
  • Synonym tags are created if there is a need, not just to add a tag because you think that somebody could use the singular when we want to use the plural, or vice versa. If there are users that keep using two different tags with the same meaning, then that is the case of making a tag synonym of the other one.
    – apaderno
    Aug 28, 2011 at 22:08
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    @Bogdan the singular is usually made synonym of the plural, but I shy away from saying "always" in case some other case arises in which the opposite should hold
    – simchona
    Aug 28, 2011 at 22:08
  • @simchona if the singular is always made synonym of the plural, why do you ask this question?
    – Bogdan Lataianu
    Aug 28, 2011 at 22:20
  • @kiamlaluno if the tag-conscious people keep an eye every time a potential singular/plural synonym appears, no problem.
    – Bogdan Lataianu
    Aug 28, 2011 at 22:24
  • To notice also that a synonym tag is not created right after that tag is used in a question; it is normally created when more than a user use the tag for more than one question. Also, you don't make grammar a synonym of grammaticality just because users keep using grammar instead of grammaticality.
    – apaderno
    Aug 28, 2011 at 22:29
  • @bog because I don't have enough rep in the tags to suggest a synonym
    – simchona
    Aug 28, 2011 at 23:58

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