Noun refers to a person, place, thing, or idea. The first page of a grammar book usually tells you the names. Nouns give the names of concrete or abstract things in our life.
When children learn "mom", "dad" or "milk" their first word, names should be the first topic when studying a foreign language.
Convert singular noun to plural
In this lesson, we will explain the rules for converting singular noun to plural.
1. Regular nouns plural, add ‑s to the end
Most of the singular nouns become plural by adding an -s:
- Boat – Boats
- house – houses
- cat – cats
- river – rivers
2. Nouns ending in -s, -x, -z, -ch, -sh, -ss, -is can add -es
A: Singular nouns ending in -s, -x, -z, -ch, -sh, -ss, -is become plural by adding -es:
- bus – buses
- box – boxes
- blitz – blitzes
- church – churches
- wish – wishes
- truss – trusses
- analysis – analyses
B: If the -ch ending is pronounced with a -k sound, you add -s rather than -es:
- stomach – stomachs
- epoch – epochs
C: In some cases, singular nouns ending in -s or -z, require that you double the -s or -z prior to adding the -es for pluralization:
- fez – fezzes
- gas – gasses
3. Nouns ending in -y can add -ies
Singular nouns that end in a consonant and then -Y becomes plural by removing the letter -Y and adding -ies:
- penny – pennies
- spy – spies
- baby – babies
- city – cities
- berry – berries
- activity – activities
- daisy – daisies
4. Nouns ending in -f or -fe can add either -ves or -s
A: With nouns that end in a consonant or a single vowel plus -f or -fe, change to -ves:
- knife – knives
- half – halves
- scarf – scarves
B: Nouns which end in two vowels plus -f usually form plurals in the normal way, with just an -s:
- chief – chiefs
- spoof – spoofs
5. Nouns ending in -o can add either -s or -es
A: Nouns ending in -o can add either -s or -es in the plural, and some can be spelled either way. Those which have a vowel before the final -o always just add -s:
- solo – solos
- zero – zeros
- avocado – avocados
- studio – studios
- zoo – zoos
- embryo – embryos
B: The most common nouns ending in -o that are always spelled with -es in the plural:
- buffalo – buffaloes
- domino – dominoes
- echo – echoes
- embargo – embargoes
- hero – heroes
- mosquito – mosquitoes
- potato – potatoes
- tomato – tomatoes
- torpedo – torpedoes
- veto – vetoes
C: Here are some of the common nouns ending in -o that can be spelled with either -s or -es in the plural:
- banjo – banjos or banjoes
- cargo – cargos or cargoes
- flamingo – flamingos or flamingoes
- fresco – frescos or frescoes
- ghetto – ghettos or ghettoes
- halo – halos or haloes
- mango – mangos or mangoes
- memento – mementos or mementoes
- motto – mottos or mottoes
- tornado – tornados or tornadoes
- tuxedo – tuxedos or tuxedoes
- volcano – volcanos or volcanoes
6. Nouns ending in -us can add -i
If the singular noun ends in -us, the plural ending is frequently -i:
- cactus – cacti
- focus – foci
7. Nouns ending in -on can add -a
If the singular noun ends in -on, the plural ending is ‑a:
- phenomenon – phenomena
- criterion – criteria
8. Some nouns have the same form in the singular and the plural
Some nouns don't change at all when they're pluralized:
- sheep – sheep
- series – series
- species – species
- deer –deer
9. Irregular nouns
There are some irregular noun plurals:
- child – children
- goose – geese
- man – men
- woman – women
- tooth – teeth
- foot – feet
- mouse – mice
- person – people