2. Nouns: Number
β’ Nouns: Number β A word which indicates
whether a noun is singular or plural is known
as number.
β’ A noun has two numbers:
a) The Singular Number
b) The Plural Number
3. Kinds of Nouns: Number
β’ A noun that denotes one person or thing,
is said to be in the Singular Number; as,
boy, book, pencil, tree, river, etc.
β’ A noun that denotes more than one
person or thing, is said to be in the Plural
Number; as boys, books, pencils, trees,
rivers, etc.
β’ Thus, there are two numbers in English β
the Singular and the Plural.
4.
5. How are Plurals formed?
β’ Singular denotes βoneβ and Plural denotes
βmore than oneβ.
6. RULE: 1
β’ Nouns ending with βchβ, βshβ, βxβ, βsβ, βssβ form their plurals by
adding βesβ to the singular:
β’ βesβ is pronounced as βizβ
Batch β batches Brush β brushes Box β boxes Glass β glasses
Branch β branches Dish β dishes Tax β taxes Class - Classes
Catch β catches Bush - bushes Fax - faxes Cross - crosses
Inch β inches Church β churches Sandwich β
Sandwiches
Kiss β kisses
Patch β patches Match β matches Beach β beaches Lass - lasses
Torch β torches Peach β Peaches Crash β crashes Guess - guesses
Bench β benches Watch - watches Reflex β reflexes Address -
addresses
Bunch β Bunches Ash - Ashes Virus β viruses Atlas β atlases
7. EXCEPTION TO RULE: 1
β’ Ox β ends in x but we add βenβ to make it Plural.
β’ Ox β Oxen. Stomach β ends in ch but we add βsβ
stomachs.
β’ Other words:
Wax - waxes Fox β foxes Wish β Wishes Bus β Buses
Loss β Losses Pitch β Pitches Gas β Gases Dress - Dresses
21. RULE: 3
β’ Nouns ending in βyβ, preceded by a consonant, form
plural by removing βyβ and adding βiesβ
Lady - Ladies City - Cities Baby - Babies Army β Armies
Story - Stories Pony - Ponies Body - Bodies Country β
Countries
Copy - Copies Cry - Cries Duty - Duties Family β
Families
Diary β Diaries Fairy β fairies Fly - flies Reply β replies
Berry - berries Party - parties Jelly β Jellies Belly β Bellies
Cherry β
cherries
Daisy - daisies Ferry - ferries Remedy β
remedies
22. Exceptions to Rule: 3
Day - days Ray - Rays Monkey β Monkeys
Play β plays Key - Keys Donkey - Donkeys
Boy - boys Delay - delays Toy β toys
Joy - Joys Chimney - Chimneys Valley - Valleys
23. RULE: 4
β’ Nouns which end in βfβ or βfeβ add βvesβ to
make plural:
Leaf β Leaves Wife - Wives Life - Lives Thief β thieves
Loaf - Loaves Half - Halves Calf - Calves Knife β Knives
Self - Selves Wolf - Wolves Shelf - Shelves Elf - Elves
28. Important
β’ Sometimes a word may completely change its
form when a plural is made:
Child - children Man - men Woman β women
Goose - geese Mouse - mice Louse β lice
Tooth - teeth Foot - feet Person β people
Fungi - fungus Datum - data Cactus β Cacti
Radius - radii Formula β
formulae/formulas
Agendum β
agenda
Brother - brethren Medium - Media Syllabus β
Syllabi/syllabuses
29. Some words may same the same in
their Singular and Plural forms:
Deer - Deer Sheep - Sheep Scissors β Scissors
News - News Information - Information Series β Series
Trousers - Trousers Socks - Socks Shorts β Shorts
Goods - Goods Valuable - Valuables Spectacles β Spectacles
Surroundings -
Surroundings
Eatables - Eatables Billiards β Billiards
Wages - Wages Rice - rice Luggage β Luggage
Furniture - Furniture Dozen β dozen Hundred β hundred
Thousand β thousand Water - Water Jeans β Jeans
30. Exercise 1
This - These
β’ This is a box.
β’ These are boxes.
β’ This is a lady.
β’ These are ladies.
β’ This is a story.
β’ These are stories
β’ This is a knife.
β’ These are knives.
That - Those
β’ That is a potato.
β’ Those are potatoes.
β’ That is a pen.
β’ Those are pens.
β’ That is a buffalo.
β’ Those are buffaloes.
β’ That is a leaf.
β’ Those are leaves.
31. Exercise 2
One - Many
β’ One glass β many glasses.
β’ One dish β many dishes.
β’ One tomato β many
tomatoes.
β’ One army β many armies.
β’ One wife β many wives.
β’ One pencil β many pencils.
β’ One mouse β many mice.
β’ One louse β many lice.
One - Some
β’ One school β some schools.
β’ One brush β some brushes.
β’ One watch β some watches.
β’ One mango β some
mangoes.
β’ One hero β some heroes.
β’ One city β some cities.
β’ One match β some matches.
β’ One mosquito β some
mosquitoes.
32. Exercise 3
There is β¦
β’ There is one branch in this
tree.
β’ There is a sharpener on the
table.
β’ There is an eraser in my
bag.
β’ There is a cow in the field.
β’ There is a leaf on the road.
β’ There is a mobile in the
shop.
There are β¦
β’ There are many/few
branches in this tree.
β’ There are many/some
sharpeners on the table.
β’ There are erasers in my bag.
β’ There are cows in the field.
β’ There are leaves on the
road.
β’ There are mobiles in the
shop.
33. Recourses/References
β’ Advanced English Grammar by Wren and Martine
β’ https://www.google.co.in/search?q=images+noun+plural+and+singular&biw
β’ www.google.co.in/search?q=images+noun+plural+and+singular
β’ www.google.co.in/search