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Plural Nouns
When you refer to more than one noun, you use the plural form of
that noun.
The plural of a noun is usually formed by adding an 's' at the
end of the word. For example: the plural of cat is cats; the plural
of f lower isflowers, and the plural of computer is computers.
If the word ends in s, x, z, ch, or sh, the plural is usually
formed by adding 'es.' This is because when you add an 's' to the
end of these words,
you have to add an extra syllable to the the word in order to
prounounce it. For example: the plural of boss is bosses, the
plural of box isboxes, the plural of buzz is buzzes, the plural of
lunch is lunches, and the plural of brush is brushes.
Not all plurals end in 's' or 'es'. Irregular nouns are those
that do not use the regular plural ending. The following are some
irregular plurals.
Type of NounRule for
Forming thePlural
Examples Exceptions
Word ends ins, x, ch, or sh
Add 'es' to theend
arch/arches, atlas/atlases, ax/axes, bash/bashes,bench/benches,
bias/biases, botch/botches, box/boxes,
brush/brushes, bunch/bunches, bus/buses,
bush/bushes,canvas/canvases, catch/catches,
church/churches,class/classes, compass/compasses,
crash/crashes,
cross/crosses, dais/daises, dish/dishes,
dress/dresses,equinox/equinoxes, etch/etches, fetch/fetches,
fix/fixes,
fox/foxes, gas/gases, grass/grasses, itch/itches,
kiss/kisses,larch/larches, lash/lashes, latch/latches,
mantis/mantises,
march/marches, marsh/marshes, mash/mashes,mass/masses,
match/matches, moss/mosses, mix/mixes,pass/passes, patch/patches,
pox/poxes, radish/radishes,
sash/sashes, sketch/sketches, starch/starches,
stitch/stitches, tax/taxes, touch/touches,
trash/trashes,twitch/twitches, vehicle/vehicles, wish/wishes,
witch/witches,
wrench/wrenches
axis/axes, ox/oxen
Word ends in zAdd 'zes' to the
endbuzz/buzzes, fizz/fizzes, klutz/klutzes, quiz/quizzes,
topaz/topazes, waltz/waltzes
Ending in 'y'preceded by a
vowelAdd an 's'
alley/alleys, attorney/attorneys, essay/essays,
boy/boys,delay/delays, guy/guys, jay/jays, key/keys,
osprey/ospreys,
play/plays, ray/rays, stray/strays, toy/toys,
tray/trays,turkey/turkeys, valley/valleys, way/ways
Ending in 'y'preceded by a
consonant
Change the final'y' to 'ies'
ally/allies, army/armies, baby/babies, beauty/beauties,
berry/berries, cherry/cherries, city/cities,
colony/colonies,country/countries, dictionary/dictionaries,
duty/duties,
enemy/enemies, fairy/fairies, family/families,
ferry/ferries,
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fly/flies, gallery/galleries, history/histories,
injury/injuries,jelly/jellies, kitty/kitties, lady/ladies,
lily/lilies, navy/navies,history/histories, party/parties,
pony/ponies, reply/replies,secretary/secretaries, sky/skies,
spy/spies, story/stories,study/studies, symphony/symphonies,
theory/theories,
trophy/trophies, try/tries,
university/universities,variety/varieties, victory/victories
Ends with 'f' or
'fe' (but not 'ff'or 'ffe')
Change the 'f' or'fe' to 'ves'
calf/calves, elf/elves, half/halves, hoof/hooves,
knife/knives,leaf/leaves, life/lives, loaf/loaves, knife/knives,
loaf/loaves,
scarf/scarves, self/selves, shelf/shelves,
wife/wives,wolf/wolves
belief/beliefs, chef/chefs, chief/chiefs,
dwarf/dwarfs,grief/griefs, gulf/gulfs,
handkerchief/handkerchiefs,
kerchief/kerchiefs, mischief/mischiefs, muff/muffs,
oaf/oafs,proof/proofs, roof/roofs, safe/safes, turf/turfs
Ends with 'o' Add 'es'
buffalo/buffaloes, cargo/cargoes, echo/echoes,embargo/embargoes,
grotto/grottoes, hero/heroes,
mosquito/mosquitoes, motto/mottoes,
potato/potatoes,tomato/tomatoes, torpedo/torpedoes,
veto/vetoes,
volcano/volcanoes, zero/zeroes
albino/albinos, armadillo/armadillos, auto/autos,cameo/cameos,
cello/cellos, combo/combos, duo/duos,
ego/egos, folio/folios, halo/halos,
inferno/infernos,lasso/lassos, memento/mementos, memo/memos,
piano/pianos, photo/photos, portfolio/portfolios,
pro/pros,silo/silos, solo/solos, stereo/stereos,
studio/studios,
taco/tacos, tattoo/tattoos, tuxedo/tuxedos,
typo/typos,veto/vetoes, video/videos, yo/yos, zoo/zoos
Irregular Variablechild/children, die/dice, foot/feet,
goose/geese, louse/lice,
man/men, mouse/mice, ox/oxen, person/people,
that/those,this/these, tooth/teeth, woman/women
Ends with 'is'(from a Greek
root)
Change final 'is'to 'es'
analysis/analyses, axis/axes, basis/bases,
crisis/crises,ellipsis/ellipses, hypotheses/hypothesis,
neurosis/neuroses,oasis/oases, paralysis/paralyses,
parenthesis/parentheses,
synopsis/synopses, synthesis/syntheses, thesis/theses
Ends with 'us'(if the word isfrom the Latin)
Change final'us' to 'i'
alumnus/alumni, bacillus/bacilli, cactus/cacti,
focus/foci,fungus/fungi, locus/loci, nucleus/nuclei,
radius/radii,
stimulus/stimuli, syllabus/syllabi, terminus/termini,
torus/tori
abacus/abacuses, crocus/crocuses, genus/genera,octopus/octopuses
(not octopi, since octopus is from theGreek language),
rhombus/rhombuses, walrus/walruses
Ends with 'um' Change final'um' to 'a'
bacterium/bacteria, curriculum/curricula,
datum/data,erratum/errata, gymnasium/gymnasia,
medium/media,memorandum/memoranda, ovum/ova, stratum/strata
album/albums, stadium/stadiums
Ends with 'a'but not 'ia'
(from a Latinroot)
Change final 'a'to 'ae'
alga/algae, alumna/alumnae, antenna/antennae,larva/larvae,
nebula/nebulae, pupa/pupae (or pupas),
vertebra/vertebrae, vita/vitae
agenda/agendas, alfalfa/alfalfas, aurora/auroras,banana/bananas,
barracuda/barracudas, cornea/corneas,
nova/novas, phobia/phobias
Ends with 'on'(from a Greek
root -- not'tion')
Change final'on' to 'a'
automaton/automata, criterion/criteria,phenomenon/phenomena,
polyhedron/polyhedra
balloon/balloons, carton/cartons and many, many others
Ends with 'ex'Change final'ex' to 'ices'
vertex/vertices, vortex/vorticesannex/annexes,
complex/complexes, duplex/duplexes,
hex/hexes, index/indexes or indices
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UnchangingSingular andplural are the
same
advice, aircraft, bison, corn, deer, equipment , evidence,fish
(sometimes), gold, information, jewelry, kin, legislation,luck,
luggage, moose, music, offspring, sheep, silver, swine,
trousers, trout, wheat
Only the pluralexists
Unchanging
barracks, bellows, cattle, congratulations, deer,
dregs,eyeglasses, gallows, headquarters, mathematics, means,
measles, mumps, news, oats, pants, pliers, pajamas,scissors,
series, shears, shorts, species, tongs, tweezers,
vespers
Compoundnouns
The pluralending is
usually added tothe main noun
attorney general/attorneys general, bill of fare/bills of
fare,chief of staff/chiefs of staff,
court-martial/courts-martial,
daughter-in-law/daughters-in-law, father-in-law/fathers-in-law,
full moon/full moons, he-man/he-men,
journeyman/journeymen,
lady-in-waiting/ladies-in-waiting,lieutenant colonel/lieutenant
colonels, maid-of-honor,
maids-of-honor, master-at-arms/masters-at-arms,
middleclass/middle classes, mother-in-law/mothers-in-law,
postoffice/post offices, secretary of state/secretaries of
state,sergeant major/sergeants major, son-in-law/sons-in-law,
passer-by/passers-by,
she-wolf/she-wolves,stepsister/stepsisters,
ten-year-old/ten-year-olds
Note: Collective nouns are words for a group of items or beings.
For example, a group of cows is called a herd, a group of baseball
players iscalled a team, and a group of ants is called a colony.
Forsome collective nouns for groups of animals, click here.
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/animals/Animalbabies.shtmlhttp://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/animals/Animalbabies.shtmlhttp://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/animals/Animalbabies.shtmlhttp://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/animals/Animalbabies.shtml
