ELC BLOG

We are all pretty familiar with the simple rules of making a noun plural because we use nouns so frequently in writing and everyday speech. Let’s go through the rules again:

1. If it’s a regular singular noun, you simply add an {-s} to the end — such as cat > cats
2. If the noun ends in {-s}, {-ss}, {-sh}, {-ch}, {-x}, or {-z}, then you add an {-es} to the end instead — such as bus > buses or lunch > lunches
3. For some words ending with a {-s} or {-z}, you would have to double that same letter before adding the {-es}
4. Nouns ending in {-f} or {-fe} change to {-ves} to indicate a plural — such as wife > wives or shelf > shelves — but there are, of course, exceptions to this rule, such as belief > beliefs
5. A singular noun that ends in {consonant + y} becomes {-ies} — such as city > cities
6. But what if that noun ends in {vowel + y}? Just add an {-s} — such as boy > boys
7. Finally, words ending in {-o} take on an extra {-es} — such as potato > potatoes. Not always, though, because you also have piano > pianos

These are the most basic and common rules, but we all know English isn’t as “simple” as it seems, don’t we? Here are a few rules that might be causing you problems as your vocabulary grows:

1. Nouns ending in {-us} commonly change into an {-i} — such as cactus > cacti
2. A singular noun with an {-is} would turn into an {-es} — such as analysis > analyses
3. Words ending in {-on} shorten to just an {-a} — such as criterion > criteria
4. Some words don’t change at all, like sheep > sheep or deer > deer
5. Then the only thing you have to remember next are the irregular nouns that are in a class of their own! These follow no rules and just have to be memorized:
   • child > children
   • goose > geese
   • woman > women or man > men
   • person > people
   • foot > feet

And there you have it! The above examples cover most of situations you’ll run into when turning a singular noun into a plural noun, but don’t forget: there are always exceptions to the rule.

Stay tuned because next month we will talk about some very fancy and unusual plural forms!