Singular Nouns:
Definition: Singular nouns refer to one person, one place, one object or one idea. For examples:
- girl
- doll
- park
- thought
- tower
- town
Plural Nouns:
Definition: Plural nouns refer to more than one person, place, object or idea. For examples:
- girls
- dolls
- parks
- thoughts
- towers
- towns
Regular Nouns:
Rule 1: Most singular nouns make the plural by adding 's'. For examples:
Singular | Plural |
---|---|
mat | mats |
rat | rats |
river | rivers |
house | houses |
Rule 2: When a singular noun ends in s, x, z, ch, sh, its plural form is made by adding es. For examples:
Singular | Plural |
---|---|
bus | buses |
wish | wishes |
box | boxes |
pitch | pitches |
Rule 3: When a singular noun ends in y then y changes in to ies. For examples:
Singular | Plural |
---|---|
city | cities |
spy | spies |
baby | babies |
penny | pennies |
Rule 4: When a singular noun ends in vowel+y then its plural form is made by adding s. For examples:
Singular | Plural |
---|---|
key | keys |
donkey | donkeys |
boy | boys |
day | days |
Irregular Plural Nouns:
There are some nouns which do not follow the rules described above. They are called irregular plural nouns. For examples:
Singular | Plural |
---|---|
foot | feet |
tooth | teeth |
woman | women |
man | men |
mouse | mice |
goose | geese |
Rule 5: For singular nouns ending in f or fe the plural form is made by replacing the f or fe with a v and adding es. For example:
Singular | Plural |
---|---|
elf | elves |
wife | wives |
leaf | leaves |
life | lives |
Rule 6: Some nouns remain the same in singular and plural forms. For example:
Singular | Plural |
---|---|
sheep | sheep |
fish | fish |
deer | deer |
species | species |
Rule 7: Some singular nouns ending in is make plural form by replacing is with es. For examples:
Singular | Plural |
---|---|
analysis | analyses |
thesis | theses |
basis | bases |
crisis | crises |
diagnosis | diagnoses |
Rule 8: Some singular nouns ending in ix, make plural form by replacing ix with ices. For example:
Singular | Plural |
---|---|
matrix | matrices |
helix | helices |
appendix | appendices |
Rule 9: Some singular noun ending in o make plural form by adding es. For example:
Singular | Plural |
---|---|
hero | heroes |
potato | potatoes |
tomato | tomatoes |
echo | echoes |
buffalo | buffaloes |
Exceptions:
Singular | Plural |
---|---|
memo | memos |
piano | pianos |
photo | photos |
Rule 10: When a singular noun ends in vowel+o then its plural form is made by adding s. For example:
Singular | Plural |
---|---|
video | videos |
radio | radios |
zoo | zoos |
kangaroo | kangaroos |
Some nouns are used only in plural form. For example:
- glasses
- scissors
- headphones
- tweezers
- jeans
- pants