Page 26 - English Grammar - 6

When a noun refers to more than one person or thing, it is said to be plural.

For example: ants, trees, tables, cows

Formation of Plural Nouns

Generally, we form plurals by adding -s to singular forms.
dog — dogs flower — flowers bed — beds
book — books cow — cows house — houses
train — trains door — doors kite — kites

The nouns ending in -ch, -sh, -s, -ss, -o, -x, and -z form their plurals by adding -es.
branch — branches dish — dishes bus — buses

box — boxes ass — asses watch — watches
mango — mangoes buzz — buzzes potato — potatoes
Some nouns ending in -o do not take -es, but -s to form their plurals.
piano — pianos radio — radios bamboo — bamboos
stereo — stereos photo — photos dynamo — dynamos

If a singular noun ends in a vowel + -y, its plural is formed by simply adding -s.
boy — boys ray — rays key — keys

donkey — donkeys toy — toys joy — joys
If a singular noun ends in a consonant + -y, the -y is changed into -i before adding -es to it.
Nouns: Gender, Number, and Case
lily — lilies city — cities lady — ladies
diary — diaries family — families baby — babies
fly — flies fairy — fairies story — stories

The nouns ending in -f or -fe form their plurals by changing -f and -fe into -ves.
knife — knives thief — thieves shelf — shelves
calf — calves life — lives leaf — leaves

half — halves wife — wives wolf — wolves
Some nouns ending in -f form their plurals by adding -s at the end.
hoof — hoofs proof — proofs belief — beliefs
dwarf — dwarfs chief — chiefs cliff — cliffs

roof — roofs gulf — gulfs proof — proofs
Some nouns form their plurals by completely changing the word.
child — children louse — lice criterion — criteria

ox — oxen mouse — mice phenomenon — phenomena
Some nouns form their plurals by changing their inside vowels.
man — men woman — women foot — feet

tooth — teeth goose — geese basis — bases
Some nouns remain the same in their singular and plural forms.

deer — deer sheep — sheep dozen — dozen
fruit — fruit fish — fish aircraft—aircraft

24