PLURALS
Nouns are found in the singular or plural form.
1. Most words simply take –S
bedrooms
kitchens
gardens
swimming pools
houses
tennis courts
2. If the word ends in ch,
boxes
dishes
buses
gases
churches
glasses
boys
holidays
donkeys
keys
guys
monkeys
baby – babies
sky - skies
country – countries
try - tries
party - parties
calf – calves
shelf – shelves
knife – knives
thief – thieves
loaf – loaves
wolf – wolves
chief - chiefs
cliff - cliffs
roof – roofs
echoes
tomatoes
heroes
tornadoes
potatoes
volcanoes
banjos
photos
kilos
radios
pianos
tobaccos
igloos
zoos
sh, s, ss
or x then add es
3. If the word ends with a vowel
+
-y, then add an –s
4. If the word ends with a
consonant + -y, then drop the
-y and add –ies.
5. If the word ends with –f or –fe,
then drop the –f and add –ves.
BUT:
6. If the word ends with an –o, then
add –es.
7. SOME words ending with an –o;
simply add –s.
8. If the word ends in –oo, simply add cuckoos
–s.
9. If the word ends in –eau, then add
an –s or –x.
plateaus
plateaux
tableaus
tableaux
es or replace the –us with an –i.
cactus
cactuses
cacti
syllabus
syllabuses
syllabi
thesaurus
thesauruses
thesauri
11. Some words, usually names of
animals, keep the same form in the
singular and plural form.
aircraft
fish
series
buck
moose
sheep
deer
reindeer
12. Some nouns always take a singular
form because they are uncountable.
advice
coffee
information
parking
baggage
gold
knowledge
tea
bread
Hair
paper
weather
13. Some words appear only in plural
form.
clothes
goods
measles
pants
police
scissors
trousers
earnings
information
mumps
pliers
riches
stairs
tweezers
earrings
mathematics
news
politics
savings
thanks
14. Some words change in the plural
form.
child - children
goose - geese
mouse - mice
woman – women
die - dice
louse - lice
ox - oxen
foot - feet
man - men
tooth - teeth
15. In compound nouns, the last word is
usually given the plural.
boy-friends
break-ins
Travel-agents
16. In compound nouns, the last word is
usually given the plural.
brothers-in-law
lookers-on
hangers-on
runners-up
ladies-in-waiting
sisters-in-law
17. Abbreviations and initials are made
MPs
pgs
VIPs
10. If a word ends in –us, add either –
plural by adding –s.