1. . Most nouns add the letter s to the singular to form the plural:
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map - maps
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college - colleges
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dance - dances
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dynamo - dynamos
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2. Nouns ending in s, sh, ch, x, or z form the
plural by ending es.
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dress - dresses
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box - boxes
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kiss - kisses
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witch - witches
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touch - touches
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waltz - waltzes
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3. Nouns ending in o preceded by a vowel add s.
Musical terms ending in o add s.
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Vovel Preceding "o"
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Musical terms
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patio - patios
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piano - pianos
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rodeo - rodeos
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alto - altos
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Some nouns ending in o preceded by a consonant add s.
Other add es.
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Add "s"
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Add "es"
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kimono - kimonos
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Negro - Negrees
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zero - zeros
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hero - heroes
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Add "s" or "es"
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cargo
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cargos
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cargoes
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motto
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mottos
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mottoes
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4. Nouns ending in y preceded by consonant change the y
to i and add es.
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army - armies
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lady - ladies
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city - cities
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poppy - poppies
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5. Nouns ending in y preceded by vowel, usually add s.
In many cases the vowel before the final y is e.
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play - plays
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journey - journeys
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boy - boys
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bay - bays
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6. Some nouns ending in f or fe change f
or fe to v and add es. Some nouns ending
in f have 2 plurals, one in s and one in ves.
| Change to "ves" |
Add "s" or Change to "ves" |
wife - wives
thief - thieves
half - halves |
scarf - scarfs - scarves
wharf - wharfs - wharves
hoof - hoofs - hooves |
7.Some nouns form the plural by a change in the vowel.
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man - man
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mouse - mice |
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foot - feet
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goose - geese |
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tooth - teeth
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louse - lice |
8. Some nouns have the same form for both singular and plural.
Fish, sheep, Chinese, species, series, salmon.
9. The plural of compound nouns are generally formed by adding s
to the principle world in the compound.
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mother-in-low
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mothers-in-low |
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board of education
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boards of education |
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attorney general
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attorneys general or attorney generals
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court-material
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court-materials
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Sometimes both parts of the compound are made plural.
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manservant
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menservants
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woman doctor
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women doctors
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Sometimes an s or es is added to the endof the
compound. In that case, there is no important word in the compound.
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forget-me-not
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forget-me-nots
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toothbrush
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toothbrushes
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Compounds ending in ful are made plural by adding s to the end
of the compound. this rule appliens when the same container is filled a number
of times.
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spoonful
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spoonfuls
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bucketful
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bucketfuls
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handful
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handfuls
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cupful
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cupfuls
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10 the plurals of proper names are formed by adding s or es.
There are three Peters in this class.
The two Burnses left the conference room.
The Joneses and the Smiths attended.
The spelling of proper names must not be changed.
Mary - Marys
Marie - Maries
11. Titles are made plural in several ways. The plural of Miss
is Misses; the plural of Mr. is Messrs.
Mrs. has no plural. The plural of Madam is Mesdames,
which is sometimes user for the plural of Mrs. Misses
should not be followed by a period. It is not an abbreviation. In the first column
of the folowing examples, the title is made plural. In the second column the
name is made plural. Either form is correct.
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the Misses Thomas
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the Miss Thomases
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the Messrs. Churchill
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the Mr. Churchills
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12. The plural of numbers, letters, signs, and symbols is formed by adding
the apostrophe and s.
Your 2's look like your 3's.
You use too many ands in your writing. (correct)
or:
You use too many and's in your writing.
(correct)
You must allways cross your t's.
He received three A's and two B's last semester.
