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Plural nouns
A1 A1 grammar · lesson 4 of 24
When you talk about two or more things, you need a plural noun. Most plurals are easy, but some words change in a special way.
Rule: add -s
A noun is a word for a person, a place, an animal or a thing. One thing is singular. Two or more things are plural. For most nouns, add -s to make the plural.
one book → two books
a car → three cars
an apple → five apples
Spelling rules
| Word ends in | Rule | Example |
|---|---|---|
| -s, -ss, -sh, -ch, -x | add -es | bus → buses, box → boxes |
| consonant + y | y → -ies | city → cities, baby → babies |
| vowel + y | add -s | day → days, boy → boys |
| -f / -fe | often -ves | knife → knives, leaf → leaves |
| some words in -o | add -es | tomato → tomatoes, potato → potatoes |
Irregular plurals
Some common nouns do not add -s. They change in a different way, or they do not change at all. They are very common words, so it is a good idea to learn them by heart.
| Singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| man | men |
| woman | women |
| child | children |
| person | people |
| foot | feet |
| tooth | teeth |
| mouse | mice |
| fish / sheep | fish / sheep (no change) |
There are three women in the shop.
Ali has two children.
The boxes are heavy.
Many people are here today.
Common mistakes
✗ two childs
✓ two children
✗ three citys
✓ three cities
✗ many peoples
✓ many people
✗ two boxs
✓ two boxes