Formation of plural

• Regular plural:

  • /s/ is added to most nouns
  • /es/ is added to

  => Nouns ending in sibilant sound

  -> E.g. Buses, brushes, phases, roses, ...

  => Nouns enidng /o/, except when followed by vowel, ethnic names, and abbreviations

  -> E.g. Echoes, heroes, potatoes, ...

  -> E.g. Embryos, radios, Filipinos, demos, ...

  • Ending in /y/ with (consonant sound) have /ies/

  -> E.g. Enemies, spies, babies, ...
• Regular plural:

  • Few nouns double final consonant

  -> E.g. Quizzes, fezzes, ...

  • /'s/ is used afters letters

  -> E.g. H's, i's, ...

  • Numerals and abbreviations are spelled without apostrophe

  -> E.g. 1960s, MPs, ...
• Irregular plurar:

  • Nouns with voiceless fricative, voice the fricative in plural

  (/f/->/v/, /th/->/th/, /s/->/z/)

  -> E.g. Elves, shelves, wolves, baths, mouths, houses, ...

  • 3 words have plural in -en => Oxen, children, and brethren
  • Vowel change

  -> E.g. Teeth, geese, mice, women, ...
• Irregular plural:

  • Zero plural

  => Animal names in collective sense

  -> E.g. Bison, carp, deer, salmon, moose, ...

  => Nationality names in /ese/

  -> E.g. Chinese, Vietnamese, Japanese, ...

  => Tribal and ethnic names

  -> E.g. Apache, Bantu, Hopi, ...

  => Some nouns ending in /s/ or /z/

  -> E.g. Barracks, means, species, ...

  => Other cases such as offspring and craft
• Irregular plural:

  • Nouns from Latin and Greek

  => Ending in /us/ take /i/

  -> E.g. Radii, stimuli, fungi, cacti, ...

  => Ending in /a/ take /ae/

  -> E.g. Larvae, algae, ...

  => Ending in /um/ take /a/

  -> E.g. Errata, bacteria, aquaria, ...

  => Ending in /ex/ or /ix/ take /es/ or /ices/

  -> E.g. Apexes, helices, apendices, vertexes, ...

  => Ending in /is/ take /es/

  -> E.g. Analyses, bases, ...

  => Ending in /on/ take /a/

  -> E.g. Phenomena, criteria, ...
• Plural of compound words:

  • Most cases plural added to last element

  -> E.g. Gin-and-tonics, baby-sitters, close-ups, take-offs, ...

  • First element takes plural when noun is followed my postmod or adverbial particle

  => Noun + prepo + noun

  -> E.g. Mothers-in-law, men-of-war, commanders-in-chief, ...

  => Noun + adjective

  -> E.g. Poets laureate, attorneys general, courts material, ...

  => Noun + adverbial particle

  -> Passers-by, goings-on, ...

  • Both take plural wshen first is "(wo)man"

  -> E.g. Menservants, women doctors, ...