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Singular and Plural Nouns

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What Is a Noun?

Every word is a part of speech and has a role in our language. The biggest "star" of the English language is noun because it names things.
A noun names person, place, thing, feeling, idea, or any concept.

For example:

Shopkeeper
Bedroom
Bicycle
Love
Safety
Freedom

Are all nouns the same?

No! There are different types or classes of nouns.

Proper Nouns
Common Nouns
Abstract Nouns
Count and Noncount Nouns
Compound Nouns
Gerund Nouns
Collective Nouns

Forms of Nouns

There are different forms of nouns. Let's see what they are.

Singular Nouns

Singular means one.
A singular noun refers to only one person, place, or thing.

For example:

Mother
Doctor
Supermarket
School
Pencil
Basketball

Plural Nouns

Plural means two or more than two.
A plural noun refers to more than one person, place, or thing.

For example:

Mothers
Doctors
Supermarkets
Schools
Pencils
Basketballs

Changing Singular Nouns into Plural Nouns

Singular nouns can be changed into plural nouns using different rules.

Most plural nouns in English are regular. That means you can simply add -s or -es to make them plural.

To form regular plurals, follow these rules.

→ For most nouns, just add -s to make them plural.

For example:

window → windows
plate → plates
cat → cats
lamp → lamps

→ If a noun ends in s, z, x, sh, or ch, add -es to make them plural.

→ This is because it is difficult to pronounce an s after these letters since they have a similar sound.

For example:

boss → bosses
buzz → buzzes
box → boxes
wish → wishes
bunch → bunches

→ If a noun ends in a consonant (all letters except a, e, i, o, and u) followed by y, then change "y" to "i" and add -es to make them plural.

For example:

berry → berries
baby → babies
sky → skies

Irregular Plural Nouns

However some plural nouns are irregular. They do not follow the simple rules of adding -s or -es. They follow different rules or they do not follow any rules at all, so you need to remember each of them.

→ If a noun ends in a vowel followed by y, add -s to make them plural.

For example:

toy → toys
day → days
essay → essays

→ If a noun ends in a consonant followed by o, add -es to make them plural.

For example:

hero → heroes
tomato → tomatoes
volcano → volcanoes

Note: There are some exceptions to this rule:

solo → solos
piano → pianos
memento → mementos
halo → halos

→ If a noun ends in a vowel followed by o, add -s to make them plural.

For example:

studio → studios
cameo → cameos
portfolio → portfolios

→ For nouns ending in f and fe, change "f/fe" to "v" and add -es to make them plural.

For example:

shelf → shelves
half → halves
knife → knives

Note: There are some exceptions to this rule:

For example:

roof → roofs
safe → safes
grief → griefs
kerchief → kerchiefs
chef → chefs

→ For nouns ending in us, change "us" to "i" to make them plural.

For example:

syllabus → syllabi
fungus → fungi

→ Some nouns change a few letters or complete spelling. You have to memorize these nouns.

For example:

man → men
woman → women
child → children
person → people

→ Some nouns are the same in both singular and plural from.

For example:

deer → deer
sheep → sheep
fish → fish
series → series

→ Some nouns are always singular. They have no plural form.

→ Often, that is because these nouns are uncountable, so the singular form is used to refer to the entire quantity rather than one, two, or more countable items.

For example:

gold
silver
flour
sugar

→ Some nouns have no singular form. These nouns are always plural.

For example:

scissors
trousers
pants
glasses

→ Some nouns are used with modifiers. If that is the case, change the noun, not the modifiers.

For example:

daughter-in-law → daughters-in-law
brother-in-law → brothers-in-law
guest of honor → guests of honor
minister of education → ministers of education

Summary

A noun names person, place, thing, feeling, idea, or any concept.
There are different types or classes of nouns.
- Proper Nouns
- Common Nouns
- Concrete Nouns
- Abstract Nouns
- Count and Noncount Nouns
- Compound Nouns
- Gerund Nouns
A singular noun refers to only one person, place, or thing.
A plural noun refers to more than one person, place, or thing.
Most plural nouns in English are regular. That means you can simply add -s or -es to make them plural.
The table below shows all rules to form regular plural nouns.

Rule	Singular Noun	Plural Noun
For most nouns, just add -s	window	windows
If a noun ends in s, z, x, sh, or ch, add -es	boss buzz box wish bunch	bosses buzzes boxes wishes bunches
If a noun ends in a consonant (all letters except a, e, i, o, and u) followed by y, then change "y" to "i" and add -es	berry	berries

However some plural nouns are irregular. They do not follow the simple rules of adding -s or -es. They follow different rules or they do not follow any rules at all, so you need to remember each of them.
The table below shows all rules to form irregular plural nouns.

Rule	Singular Noun	Plural Noun	Exceptions
If a noun ends in a vowel followed by y, add -s	toy	toys	N.A.
If a noun ends in a consonant followed by o, add -es	hero	heroes	There are some exceptions to this rule: piano → pianos memento → mementos halo → halos
If a noun ends in a vowel followed by o, add -s	studio	studios	N.A.
For nouns ending in f and fe, change "f/fe" to "v" and add -es	shelf knife	shelves knives	There are some exceptions to this rule: roof → roofs safe → safes grief → griefs kerchief → kerchiefs chef → chefs
For nouns ending in us, change "us" to "i"	syllabus	syllabi	N.A.
Some nouns change a few letters or complete spelling. You have to memorize these nouns.	man	men	N.A.
Some nouns are the same in both singular and plural from.	sheep	sheep	N.A.
Some nouns are always singular. They have no plural form.	gold	no plural form	N.A.
Some nouns have no singular form. These nouns are always plural.	no singular form	scissors	N.A.
Some nouns are used with modifiers. If that is the case, change the noun, not the modifiers.	daughter-in-law	daughters-in-law	N.A.