PLURAL OF NOUNS

A) The plural of nouns is generally formed by adding "S" to the singular. SINGULAR book girl hand table PLURAL books girls hands tables

B) Add "ES" to nouns ending in ch,s,sh,ss,x and z. SINGULAR church bus brush kiss box buzz Exceptions: SINGULAR ox PLURAL oxen PLURAL churches buses brushes kisses boxes buzzes

Add "S" to nouns ending in ch which have the sound of k. SINGULAR epoch monarch stomach PLURAL epochs monarchs stomachs

C) Nouns ending in "y" preceded by a consonant change the "y" into "IES", but if the "y" is preceded by a vowel, only "S" is added. SINGULAR lady country boy day PLURAL ladies countries boys days

D) Most nouns ending in "o" preceded by a consonant take "ES" in the plural. SINGULAR echo hero potato Exceptions: SINGULAR dynamo halo photo piano solo PLURAL dynamos halos photos pianos solos PLURAL echoes heroes potatoes

E) All nouns ending in "o" preceded by a vowel take "S" in the plural. SINGULAR cuckoo portfolio PLURAL cuckoos portfolios

F) Nouns ending in "f" or "fe" drop the "f" or "fe" and add "VES". SINGULAR calf half knife leaf life loaf self sheaf shelf thief wife wolf PLURAL calves halves knives leaves lives loaves selves sheaves shelves thieves wives wolves

Exceptions: SINGULAR cliff handkerchief roof PLURAL cliffs handkerchiefs roofs

G) Nouns which retain their original Greek or Latin forms make their plurals according to the rules of Greek or Latin. SINGULAR alumnus crisis datum erratum oasis phenomenon stimulus terminus PLURAL alumni crises data errata oases phenomena stimuli termini

H) Irregular Plurals SINGULAR child die foot goose louse man mouse tooth woman I) Compound Nouns 1. Normally, the last word is made plural in compound nouns. SINGULAR armchair bookcase mailman PLURAL armchairs bookcases mailmen PLURAL children dice feet geese lice men mice teeth women

2. Where man or woman come first, both parts are made plural. SINGULAR manservant woman-teacher PLURAL menservants women-teachers

3. Compound nouns formed with prepositions or adverbs make only the first word plural. SINGULAR looker-on sister-in-law 4. Compounds finishing in "ful" take "S". SINGULAR handful spoonful PLURAL handfuls spoonfuls PLURAL lookers-on sisters-in-law

J) Some nouns in English are used only in the singular form and so the verb remains in singular. accommodation advice furniture information knowledge news progress K) Some nouns have the same form for both plural and singular. deer fish series sheep species

L) The names of many sciences ending in "ics" are singular. The verb remains in the singular form. Ethics Physics Mathematics (Math) Statistics Phonetics Genetics

M) The following nouns are always plural and are followed by verbs in the plural: alms customs pants spectacles trousers bowels fireworks scissors stairs wages contents goods shears thanks wares

IMPORTANT REMARKS: The plural forms "hundreds", "dozens", "thousands", etc. are used if some indefinite number is implied, as: Hundreds of miles Dozens of eggs Thousands of buildings But they remain uninflected after numerals, as: Five hundred miles Three dozen eggs Four thousand buildings Note also that is this case the preposition of is placed after "hundreds", "dozens", "thousands", etc. A definite number is never followed by of.