Contents
Plural nouns are an important aspect of language that allow you to talk about more than one person, place, or thing. The rules for forming plural nouns can be confusing, especially for non-native speakers. In this reference, you will explore what plural nouns are, how to form them, and see examples to help better understand their usage.
You will also learn about common mistakes to avoid, such as adding “s” to irregular nouns, using incorrect plural forms of loanwords, confusing plural and possessive forms, and forgetting to pluralize countable nouns.
Singular and Plural Nouns
What Is a Singular Noun?
A singular noun represents a single person, place, thing, or idea. Here are some examples:
People:
- Grandfather
- Father
- Grandmother
Places:
- Park
- City
- Ocean
Things:
- Computer
- Train
- Ruler
Ideas:
- Pride
- Love
- Thought
If you see one object and name it, that’s a singular noun. For instance, one book on a table or one pen on a chair.
What Is a Plural Noun?
Plural nouns represent more than one person, place, thing, or idea. Normally, to make a singular noun plural, you add an –s at the end. Look at these examples:
- Rat ➡️ Rats
- Girl ➡️ Girls
- Boy ➡️ Boys
- Book ➡️ Books
- Town ➡️ Towns
- Dream ➡️ Dreams
There are different rules for pluralization based on what letter the noun ends with, and some nouns are irregular, meaning they don’t follow standard rules. These irregular nouns often need to be looked up or learned by practice.
Plural Nouns
General Rules to Form Plural Nouns
Most singular nouns become plural by adding -s at the end.
Examples include:
- car – cars
- bag – bags
- table – tables
- house – houses
- dog – dogs
Special Rules to Form Plural Nouns
For nouns ending in a sibilant sound, such as /s/, /z/, /ʃ/, /ʒ/, /tʃ/, or /dʒ/, you usually add -es.
Examples:
- kiss – kisses – /ˈkɪsɨz/
- dish – dishes – /ˈdɪʃɨz/
- witch – witches – /ˈwɪtʃɨz/
- judge – judges – /ˈdʒʌdʒɨz/
For nouns ending in ‘f’ or ‘fe’, change the ending to -ves.
Examples:
- half – halves
- hoof – hooves
- calf – calves
- wolf – wolves
- life – lives
- knife – knives
Exceptions include:
- cuff – cuffs
- chef – chefs
- roof – roofs
For nouns ending in ‘o’ preceded by a consonant, add -es.
Examples:
- potato – potatoes
- tomato – tomatoes
- hero – heroes
- echo – echoes
Exceptions to this rule include:
- piano – pianos
- photo – photos
For nouns ending in ‘o’ preceded by a vowel, simply add -s.
Examples:
- radio – radios
- video – videos
When a noun ends in ‘y’ following a consonant, change ‘y’ to ‘i’ and add -es.
Examples:
- city – cities
- country – countries
- puppy – puppies
For nouns ending in ‘y’ following a vowel, add -s.
Examples:
- day – days
- toy – toys
- key – keys
Plural Noun Rules for Irregular Nouns
Irregular plural nouns do not follow standard rules. You have to memorize these forms or look them up in a dictionary.
Common examples include:
- child – children
- tooth – teeth
- foot – feet
- mouse – mice
These irregular forms require special attention to avoid mistakes.
Common Mistakes and How to Avoid Them
Adding “s” to irregular nouns
Irregular nouns have unique plural forms. For example:
- Child: children
- Mouse: mice
- Tooth: teeth
Learn the plural forms of irregular nouns to avoid mistakes.
Using incorrect plural forms of loanwords
Loanwords can have unique plural forms. For example, the plural of “taco” is “tacos,” not “tacoes.” Be sure to know the correct plural forms of loanwords.
Confusing plural and possessive forms
Plural and possessive nouns can be confusing.
- Plural nouns do not use an apostrophe.
- Example: “The cats play with toys.”
- Possessive nouns use an apostrophe.
- Example: “The cat’s toys.”
Use the correct form to avoid errors.
Forgetting to pluralize countable nouns
Countable nouns can be counted, like “book” or “car.” Remember to pluralize countable nouns when referring to more than one.
- Correct: “I have two books.”
- Incorrect: “I have two book.”
Singular and Plural Nouns Video
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