This document discusses noun numbers (singular and plural) and rules for forming plurals in English. It covers 5 main rules: 1. Nouns ending in ch, sh, x, s, ss add "es" to form the plural (boxes, dishes). 2. Nouns ending in o add "es" (tomatoes, volcanoes). 3. Nouns ending in y preceded by a consonant remove y and add "ies" (ladies, babies). 4. Nouns ending in f or fe add "ves" (wives, lives). 5. Some nouns completely change their form in the plural (children, geese). There

1. Nouns: NUMBER
Course – B.Tech
Subject – English Communication and Life Skills
Unit – 1

2. Nouns: Number
• Nouns: Number – A word which indicates
whether a noun is singular or plural is known
as number.
• A noun has two numbers:
a) The Singular Number
b) The Plural Number

3. Kinds of Nouns: Number
• A noun that denotes one person or thing,
is said to be in the Singular Number; as,
boy, book, pencil, tree, river, etc.
• 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.
• Thus, there are two numbers in English –
the Singular and the Plural.

5. How are Plurals formed?
• Singular denotes ‘one’ and Plural denotes
‘more than one’.

6. RULE: 1
• Nouns ending with ‘ch’, ‘sh’, ‘x’, ‘s’, ‘ss’ form their plurals by
adding “es” to the singular:
• “es” is pronounced as ‘iz’
Batch – batches Brush – brushes Box – boxes Glass – glasses
Branch – branches Dish – dishes Tax – taxes Class - Classes
Catch – catches Bush - bushes Fax - faxes Cross - crosses
Inch – inches Church – churches Sandwich –
Sandwiches
Kiss – kisses
Patch – patches Match – matches Beach – beaches Lass - lasses
Torch – torches Peach – Peaches Crash – crashes Guess - guesses
Bench – benches Watch - watches Reflex – reflexes Address -
addresses
Bunch – Bunches Ash - Ashes Virus – viruses Atlas – atlases

7. EXCEPTION TO RULE: 1
• Ox – ends in x but we add “en” to make it Plural.
• Ox – Oxen. Stomach – ends in ch but we add “s”
stomachs.
• Other words:
Wax - waxes Fox – foxes Wish – Wishes Bus – Buses
Loss – Losses Pitch – Pitches Gas – Gases Dress - Dresses

8. RULE: 2
• Nouns ending in “o” add “es” to make Plural.
Tomato – tomatoes Volcano – volcanoes
Potato – potatoes Motto – mottoes
Cargo – cargoes Avocado – avocadoes
Hero – heroes Domino – dominoes
Echo – echoes Dingo – dingoes
Buffalo – buffaloes Veto – vetoes
Mango – mangoes Embargo - embargoes
Mosquito - mosquitoes Negro - negroes

9. Cargo - Cargoes

10. Dingo - Dingoes

11. Domino - Dominoes Volcano - Volcanoes

12. Negro - Negroes

13. Avocado – Avocados/Avocadoes

14. Exceptions to Rule: 2
Canto – Cantos Memento –
Mementos
Commando -
Commandos
Kilo – Kilos Logo – Logos Bamboo – bamboos
Solo – Solos Ratio - Ratios Eskimo - Eskimos
Piano – Pianos Radio - Radios Kangaroo –
Kangaroos
Photo – Photos Stereo – Stereos Video - Videos

15. Continued – Exceptions to Rule 2
Zoo – zoos Patio – Patios Taco – Tacos
Casino – Casinos Zero – Zeros Sombrero -
Sombreros

16. Sombrero - Sombreros

17. Taco - Tacos

18. Kangaroo - Kangaroos

19. Patio - Patios

20. Eskimo - Eskimos

21. RULE: 3
• Nouns ending in ‘y’, preceded by a consonant, form
plural by removing ‘y’ and adding “ies”
Lady - Ladies City - Cities Baby - Babies Army – Armies
Story - Stories Pony - Ponies Body - Bodies Country –
Countries
Copy - Copies Cry - Cries Duty - Duties Family –
Families
Diary – Diaries Fairy – fairies Fly - flies Reply – replies
Berry - berries Party - parties Jelly – Jellies Belly – Bellies
Cherry –
cherries
Daisy - daisies Ferry - ferries Remedy –
remedies

22. Exceptions to Rule: 3
Day - days Ray - Rays Monkey – Monkeys
Play – plays Key - Keys Donkey - Donkeys
Boy - boys Delay - delays Toy – toys
Joy - Joys Chimney - Chimneys Valley - Valleys

23. RULE: 4
• Nouns which end in ‘f’ or ‘fe’ add “ves” to
make plural:
Leaf – Leaves Wife - Wives Life - Lives Thief – thieves
Loaf - Loaves Half - Halves Calf - Calves Knife – Knives
Self - Selves Wolf - Wolves Shelf - Shelves Elf - Elves

24. EXCEPTION TO RULE: 4
Chief - Chiefs Handkerchief -
handkerchiefs
Dwarf – dwarfs
Belief - beliefs Roof - roofs Proof – proofs
Cliff - Cliffs Gulf - gulfs Safe – Safes
Cuff – cuffs Giraffe – Giraffes Reef – reefs
Hoof – hoofs Earmuff - earmuffs Dandruff –
dandruffs

25. Cliff - Cliffs Reef - Reefs

26. Gulf - Gulfs Earmuff - Earmuffs

27. Dandruff - Dandruffs Hoof - Hoofs

28. Important
• Sometimes a word may completely change its
form when a plural is made:
Child - children Man - men Woman – women
Goose - geese Mouse - mice Louse – lice
Tooth - teeth Foot - feet Person – people
Fungi - fungus Datum - data Cactus – Cacti
Radius - radii Formula –
formulae/formulas
Agendum –
agenda
Brother - brethren Medium - Media Syllabus –
Syllabi/syllabuses

29. Some words may same the same in
their Singular and Plural forms:
Deer - Deer Sheep - Sheep Scissors – Scissors
News - News Information - Information Series – Series
Trousers - Trousers Socks - Socks Shorts – Shorts
Goods - Goods Valuable - Valuables Spectacles – Spectacles
Surroundings -
Surroundings
Eatables - Eatables Billiards – Billiards
Wages - Wages Rice - rice Luggage – Luggage
Furniture - Furniture Dozen – dozen Hundred – hundred
Thousand – thousand Water - Water Jeans – Jeans

30. Exercise 1
This - These
• This is a box.
• These are boxes.
• This is a lady.
• These are ladies.
• This is a story.
• These are stories
• This is a knife.
• These are knives.
That - Those
• That is a potato.
• Those are potatoes.
• That is a pen.
• Those are pens.
• That is a buffalo.
• Those are buffaloes.
• That is a leaf.
• Those are leaves.

31. Exercise 2
One - Many
• One glass – many glasses.
• One dish – many dishes.
• One tomato – many
tomatoes.
• One army – many armies.
• One wife – many wives.
• One pencil – many pencils.
• One mouse – many mice.
• One louse – many lice.
One - Some
• One school – some schools.
• One brush – some brushes.
• One watch – some watches.
• One mango – some
mangoes.
• One hero – some heroes.
• One city – some cities.
• One match – some matches.
• One mosquito – some
mosquitoes.

32. Exercise 3
There is …
• There is one branch in this
tree.
• There is a sharpener on the
table.
• There is an eraser in my
bag.
• There is a cow in the field.
• There is a leaf on the road.
• There is a mobile in the
shop.
There are …
• There are many/few
branches in this tree.
• There are many/some
sharpeners on the table.
• There are erasers in my bag.
• There are cows in the field.
• There are leaves on the
road.
• There are mobiles in the
shop.

33. Recourses/References
• Advanced English Grammar by Wren and Martine
• https://www.google.co.in/search?q=images+noun+plural+and+singular&biw
• www.google.co.in/search?q=images+noun+plural+and+singular
• www.google.co.in/search