Word "men-of-war" - singular or plural?

English as a Second Language English Vocabulary, Grammar and Idioms
1

Hi,

Men-of-war is a form of jellyfish with poisonous parts that are capable of doing serious harm to swimmers who aren’t taken to a hospital right away and don’t get medical help quickly

=> Which is wrong and why? Should “men-of-war” be understood as kind of jellyfish and therefore be used with singular verbs, or should it be used with plural verbs because of the form “men” (not “man”?

Many thanks
Nessie

2

singular = man-of-war (Portuguese man-of-war)
plural = men-of-war

“This man-of-war has sharp teeth and straight hair.”

“These men-of-war have formed a gang.”

3

Thanks a lot, Prezbucky. :stuck_out_tongue:
By the way, have you any idea why they call those jellyfish “men-of-war”? :P:P

4

Er… are you refering to human or jellyfish, Prezbucky?

5

I was joking about their attributes. hehe

6

But… I still don’t understand, Prezbucky, is your joke about human or jellyfish? :o:O:O