---
title: 〜達 not only for people
---

It is quite commonly known that you can use the 〜たち suffix to pluralize a word. For example:
- 先生たち - teachers

It is also said that the usage of this suffix for inanimate concepts is wrong, however this is not exactly right. You can use this suffix for such concepts.

> Its [-tachi] use is less appropriate when talking about animals; however, the plural marker can be attached to practically any noun if the speaker/writer feels close to whatever is expressed by the noun :cite[dojg-advanced].

I've come across 〜達 used for inanimate things several times with one example being lyrics of a song:

> 何処までも続く溟い海の終わりで  
  奈落への滝が嗤い続け轟く  
  “目指したトコロは此処だったのか？”  
  今は先を急ぐ　**水達**に乗せられたまま  
  :cite[lyrics]

:::bib
@book{dojg-advanced,
  title     = {A dictionary of advanced Japanese grammar},
  author    = {Makino, Seiichi and Tsutsui, Michio},
  isbn      = {9784789012959},
  lccn      = {2017414531},
  year      = {2008},
  publisher = {Japan Times}
}

@misc{lyrics,
  title     = {That Full Moon Over the Haunted Ship},
  year      = {2015},
  url       = {https://en.touhouwiki.net/wiki/Lyrics:_That_Full_Moon_Over_the_Haunted_Ship},
  note      = {[Accessed 09-09-2023]},
}
:::