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Singular in English. How to form plurals in English

IN English two numbers of nouns, as in Russian: singular and plural (in some languages it happens differently). At first glance, it may seem that the plural of nouns in English is formed according to some difficult, incomprehensible rules. In fact, everything is simple, since in most cases the plural is formed according to the basic rule, and the remaining cases are quickly memorized with practice.

Rules for forming the plural of nouns in English

1. Basic rule

In most cases, the plural of nouns in English (plural) is formed using the ending -s. Pay attention to how this ending is pronounced:

After vowels and voiced consonants - like [z],
After voiceless consonants - like [s].

However, if you are confused about the pronunciation of -s at the end of a word, you will certainly be understood.

2. Nouns ending in -s, -sh, -ch, -x, -z, -ss

What if the word ends with – s? In this case (for greater euphony and ease of pronunciation) you need to add -es. The same goes for words -ss,-sh, – ch, – x, -z.

End -es helps to pronounce combinations of sounds that would be difficult to pronounce without it. Let me remind you, -es added at the end of words to -s, -ss, -sh, -ch, -x, -z. Imagine what it would be like without -es:

watchs, matches, boxes, buss (!), classes (!!!)

Agree, it’s much easier to pronounce the words:

watches, matches, boxes, buses, classes.

3. Nouns ending with consonant + y

consonant + ending -y, That -y changes to -ies .

If a noun ends in vowel + ending -y, then to -y is added -s. In other words, the plural is formed according to the basic rule.

4. Nouns ending with -o

If a noun ends in -o, you need to add -es.

Exceptions:

photo – photos (photo),
memo – memos (memo).
piano – pianos (piano),

5. Nouns ending in -f, -fe

In nouns ending in -f or - fe, needs to be replaced -f or - fe on -ves.

6. Table: plural nouns in English

This image provides a quick summary of the rules for forming the plural of a noun.

Special cases of plural formation in English

In English there are exceptions to the rules for forming plurals. Most of them concern quite rare words, the most important thing to remember is the cases from the first paragraph (man - men, woman - women, etc.), since they are the most frequent.

1. Main exceptions: the plural is not formed according to general rules

A number of nouns form their plurals in a non-standard way:

Note: the word women is pronounced [ˈwɪmɪn].

2. The plural and singular forms are the same

Some nouns have the same plural and singular forms. These include:

3. Nouns used only in the singular

As in Russian, some nouns in English are used only in singular or plural. These include:

1. Abstract, uncountable nouns

Knowledge - knowledge,
Love - love,
Friendship - friendship,
Information - information,

2. Names of sciences, academic disciplines in -ics

Although they end in -s, these words are used in the singular.

Ecomonics - economics,
Physics - physics,
Aerobics - aerobics,
Classics – classic literature.

3. And others

Money - money,
Hair - hair.

3. Nouns used only in the plural

As in Russian, many names of paired objects do not have a singular number

Pants - trousers,
Scissors - scissors,
Glasses – glasses (for the eyes, not glasses in the game),

Some words, used in English only in the plural, are used in Russian in the plural and singular:

Goods – product, goods.
Clothes - clothes.

Note: clothes is or clothes are?

Often have difficulties with words clothes - clothes. Should we use it as singular or plural? How to write correctly: clothes is or clothes are?

We are accustomed to the fact that “clothes” is a singular number in the Russian language, so we strive to use the English clothes in the Russian manner, as if it were a singular noun, but this is a mistake. In English this word is plural and is used accordingly:

Wrong: Your clothes are so dirty. -Your clothes are so dirty.
Right: Your clothes are so dirty. -Your clothes are so dirty.

4. Plural of compound nouns

Compound nouns consist of more than one word and can be written:

Separately or with a hyphen: mother-in-law(mother-in-law), assistant headmaster(assistant school principal).
Together: postman(postman), schoolboy(schoolboy).

In separate compound nouns, as a rule, the word with the main meaning takes the plural form:

It is, of course, impossible to speak a language without distinguishing between singular and plural. Fortunately, recognizing and using plurals correctly in English is not as difficult as, for example, in French. Let's take a closer look. Ready?

The plural in English is formed according to certain rules which, of course, have their exceptions. It would seem that everything is not so complicated, but when learning a language, beginners often have difficulties, since the rules have their own characteristics. Let's start with something simple.

Plural of nouns

There was a fruit on the plate. /There were some fruit on the plate.

It is also worth considering that there are also uncountable nouns. In this case, we use only the single form of the verb to be.

There is some money in the valley.

Some nouns, on the contrary, can only be used in the plural: scissors, glasses, trousers, tweeters,pajamas etc. For example:

Where are my favorite jeans? They must be on the chair.

Words in the singular

Uncountable nouns are used only in the singular. Pronouns each, either, neither, another and all compound words with the component - one, -body or - thing, always refer to the only one number.

Everybody was surprised when they saw him.

There is a lot of debate about the plural form of words ending in - us. Historically, words ending in -us are of Latin origin. In the plural they take on the ending - i instead of -us. However, not all such words are of Latin origin, hence the controversy. For example:

The plural of virus is viruses, not viri.

Some Latin borrowings take the regular English ending - es: campus - campus es; bonus - bonus es.

Some Latin borrowings take the ending -i: radius - radii, stimulus - stimuli.

Plural rules in English

To sum up, we can safely say that in order to have a good understanding of singular and plural nouns in the English language, it is necessary first of all to study the main exceptions. There are not many such words. You can use everyone’s favorite method with stickers - stick them with a list of words in the most eye-catching places, and return to repetition from time to time. The table will also help you study the plural in English.

After examining the exceptions, return to the rules on which everything is built. There aren't many of them. The main thing is to feel it, and you will be able to apply them intuitively in the subconscious, as if English were yours native language. If you doubt that you can handle it on your own, you can always contact a teacher who will advise and test you. Nothing is difficult or impossible, the main thing is faith and desire.

Conclusion

The formation of the plural in English is the basics, which we begin with at school, so this topic is worth paying attention to special attention. No matter how old you are, this topic should always be among the initial topics to learn. If you use structured, high-quality educational materials to learn English, or study individually with a teacher, you will definitely be pointed in the right direction. If you study on your own, be sure to take care not to ignore this topic.

Have a nice and productive learning experience!

Big and friendly family EnglishDom

In general, the plural of nouns in English is formed according to strict and simple rules. However, there are some nuances and exceptions here that will be useful for you to know.

Basic rules for forming plurals

The plural of most nouns is formed by adding the ending - s. For example:

cup - cup s
pen - pen s
page - page s
daughter - daughter s

However, if the word ends with -ch, -x, -s, -sh, the ending is added to it -es.

ben ch—bench es
fo x—fox es
cla ss— class es
bru sh—brush es

Most nouns ending in a consonant +o, also form the plural using the ending -es.

he ro- hero es
pota to- potato es
toma to-tomato es

However, in words of Spanish or Italian origin that end in -o, is simply added -s.

phot o— photo s
pian o- piano s
tang o— tango s
studio o— studio s

To nouns that end in -z, is added -zes.

In nouns that end in a consonant + y, discarded y and is added -ies. For example:

co py— cop ies
hob by—hobb ies
s ky—sk ies

Most nouns of Latin origin that end in -is, discarded -is and is added -es. For example:

bas is- bas es
cris is- Chris es
oas is- oas es

Most nouns that end in -f or -fe, discarded f and is added -ves. For example:

wi fe—wi ves
shel f— shel ves
lea f—lea ves

But this is not a strict rule:

belief - beliefs (believes is a verb)
chief - chiefs
reef - reefs
proof - proofs
cliff - cliffs
safe - safes (saves is a verb)

Exceptions to the rules

There are many common nouns that have an irregular plural form: the plural of such nouns is formed in an unusual way.

These include most nouns denoting people. For example:

woman - women
child - children
brother - brethren (meaning “brothers”)

Other exception nouns:

foot - feet
tooth - teeth
goose - geese
mouse - mice

Some nouns have the same singular and plural forms. For example:

sheep - sheep
fruit - fruit
aircraft - aircraft
series - series

In the plural they require the appropriate form of the verb (are/were):

There is a fruit in the vase. —There are some fruit in the vase.
There was a sheep in the field. —There were a lot of sheep in the field.

In turn, uncountable nouns (money, news, advice, information) do not have a plural form and agree with a singular verb ( is/was):

There is a lot of news in your letter.
There there was some money on the table.

Some nouns (scissors, glasses, trousers, tweezers, pyjamas, etc.) have only a plural form and require the corresponding verb form ( are/were). For example:

Where are my new trousers? They were on the chair.

Nouns that come from obsolete forms English words or have foreign origin, often have a non-standard plural form:

ox - oxen
index - indices or indexes

In compound nouns, the plural ending is usually added to the main component. For example:

mother-in-law s-in-law
hotel-keeper - hotel-keeper s

Words ending with -us

Linguists can argue for hours about the plural of nouns that end in -us. Many of these words are borrowed from Latin and retain the Latin plural form, where the ending -us is replaced by -i (pronounced [-ʌɪ] or [-iː]). However, not all such words are of Latin origin, and not all latin words end in -i in the plural, hence the controversy. For example: