1st Year Grammar

Noun Plurals

-Singular means one of something.

-Plural means more than one.
1- The plural of most nouns can be made by just adding –s:
one tree - four trees
one boat – a river full of boats
2- If the noun ends with -s, -ch, -sh, -x, or -z, o, add -es to make it plural.
witness–witnesses church – churches
dish– dishes fox - foxes
buzz – buzzes potato-potatoes
*There are some exceptions with nouns ending in –o like: pianos, stereos, discos, videos…
3- If the noun ends with -y and the letter before the -y is a vowel, just add -s to make the
noun plural.
boy–boys
key – keys
4- If the noun ends with -y and the letter before the -y is a consonant, change the -y to -i and
add -es to make the noun plural.
army – armies
supply - supplies
sky - skies
5- Nouns ending in -ff become plural by adding -s
-tariff - tariffs
-sheriff - sheriffs
6- Some nouns that end in –f or -fe form their plural by replacing the -f to -v and adding -s
or -es
knife - knives
wife - wives
half - halves
leaf - leaves
N.B. Other nouns ending in -f or -fe become plural by only adding -s
belief - beliefs
proof - proofs
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chief - chiefs
7-Some nouns are usually plural: belongings, clothes, congratulations, earnings, goods,
outskirts, particulars (information), premises (buildings), riches, savings, stairs, surroundings,
thanks. The nouns police, people, and staff are always plural.
8- Some nouns always end with –s and look as if they are plural, but they are used with a
singular verb: news, means, economics, linguistics, mathematics, phonetics, politics, statistics,
physics (academic subjects), gymnastics, athletics (sports), diabetes, measles, rabies, (diseases).
9-Some nouns have the same singular and plural forms: aircraft, deer, salmon, trout, sheep.
10- Other nouns form the plural irregularly

List of 106 Irregular Nouns

Singular Plural Singular Plural

A addendum addenda L loaf loaves

alga algae louse lice
alumna alumnae  M man men
alumnus alumni matrix matrices
analysis analyses means means
antenna antennas,antennae medium media
apparatus apparatuses memorandum memoranda
appendix appendices,appendixes millennium millenniums,milennia
axis axes moose moose
 B bacillus bacilli mosquito mosquitoes
bacterium bacteria mouse mice
basis bases  N nebula nebulae,nebulas
beau beaux neurosis neuroses
bison bison nucleus nuclei
buffalo buffalos,buffaloes O oasis oases
bureau bureaus octopus octopi,octopuses
bus busses,buses ovum ova
 C cactus cactuses,cacti ox oxen
calf calves P paralysis paralyses
corps corps parenthesis parentheses
corpus corpora,corpuses person people
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crisis crises phenomenon phenomena

criterion criteria potato potatoes
curriculum curricula R radius radii,radiuses
D datum data S scarf scarfs,scarves
deer deer self selves
die dice series series
dwarf dwarfs,dwarves sheep sheep
diagnosis diagnoses scissors scissors
 E echo echoes species species
elf elves stimulus stimuli
ellipsis ellipses stratum strata
embargo embargoes syllabus syllabi,syllabuses
emphasis emphases symposium symposia,symposiums
erratum errata synthesis syntheses
 F fireman firemen synopsis synopses
fish fish,fishes  T tableau tableaux
focus focuses that those
formula formulas thesis theses
fungus fungi,funguses thief thieves
G genus genera tooth teeth
goose geese torpedo torpedoes
H half halves  V vertebra vertebrae
hippopotamus hippopotami,hippopota veto vetoes
muses
hoof hoofs,hooves vita vitae
hypothesis hypotheses W watch watches
I index indices,indexes wife wives
K knife knives wolf wolves
L leaf leaves  Z zero zeros,zeroes