The category of number

NOUN.

I. REGULAR PLURALS.

1. -s

2. -s, -ss, -sh, -ch, -x, -z Þ -es

3. consonant + y Þ y ® i

But: proper names: Mary ® Marys

Gatsby ® Gatsbys

January ® Januarys

compound nouns (ending in prepositions): stand-bys

4. -o Þ -es/-s

-es (if o is preceded by a consonant):

echoes	potatoes	vetoes
heroes	tomatoes

-s (exceptions):

pianos	solos	kilos
photos	tangos	concertos

-es/-s:

mottoes/s	volcanoes/s	buffaloes/s
tornadoes/s	haloes/s	mosquitoes/s

-s (if o is preceded by a vowel and in proper names):

cuckoos	tattoos	radios	videos
kangaroos	studios	portfolios	Romeos
zoos

5. -f(e) Þ -ves

wife ® wives	calf ® calves	self ® selves
life ® lives	half ® halves	shelf ® shelves
knife ® knives	loaf ® loaves	sheaf ® sheaves
wolf ® wolves	leaf ® leaves	thief ® thieves
elf ® elves

Note 1:

wharf ® wharfs/ wharves	handkerchief ® handkerchiefs/ handkerchieves
hoof ® hoofs/ hooves	scarf ® scarfs/ scarves

Note 2. Other nouns ending in - f(e) have regular plurals:

chief ® chiefs	proof ® proofs
roof ® roofs	belief ® beliefs

II. IRREGULAR PLURALS

1.

man ® men	foot ® feet	goose ® geese	louse ® lice
woman ® women	tooth ® teeth	mouse ® mice

2. penny ® pence/ pennies (individual coins)

3. ox ® ox en

child ® childr en

brother ® brothers/ brethr en (creed, not relationship)

4. No changes:

deer	sheep	trout
carp	grouse	salmon
fish	swine

5. corps ® corps [kɔ: ® kɔ:z]

III. WORDS OF GREEK, LATIN OR FRENCH ORIGIN

(Sometimes they keep their plural forms, especially in technical language, or have regular plurals)

- us ® -i [əs ® aɪ]

focus	['fəʋkəs]	foci	['fəʋkaɪ]	focuses	['fəʋkəsɪz]
fungus	['fʌŋgəs]	fungi	['fʌŋgaɪ]	funguses	['fʌŋgəsɪz]
nucleus	['nju:klɪəs]	nuclei	['nju:klɪaɪ]	nucleuses	['nju:klɪəsɪz]
syllabus	['sɪləbəs]	syllabi	['sɪləbaɪ]	syllabuses	['sɪləbəsɪz]
stimulus	['stɪmjuləs]	stimuli	['stɪmjulaɪ]	¾
radius	['reɪdɪəs]	radii	['reɪdɪaɪ]	¾
genius	['ʤi:nɪəs]	genii	['ʤi:nɪaɪ]	geniuses	['ʤi:nɪəsɪz]
		(spirits)		(men of talent)

But: apparatus ® apparatus/ apparatuses

Most other words ending in -us have regular plurals: viruses, circuses.

-a ® ae [ə ®i:]

antenna	[æn'tenə]	antennae	[æn'teni:]	antennas
formula	['fɔ:mjulə]	formulae	['fɔ:mjuli:]	formulas
vertebra	['vɜ:tɪbrə]	vertebrae	['vɜ:tɪbri:]	¾

Others: arenas, diplomas

-um ® -a [əm ® ə]

memorandum	memoranda	memorandums
minimum	minima	minimums
referendum	referenda	referendums
bacterium	bacteria	¾
stratum	strata	¾
datum	data	¾
curriculum	curricula	curriculums

-is ® -es [ɪs ® i:z]

analysis ® analyses	diagnosis ® diagnoses
basis ® bases	thesis ® theses (['Ɵi:sɪs] ® ['Ɵi:si:z])
crisis ® crises	axis ® axes (['æksi:z])

But: me'tropolis ® me'tropolises

-on ® -a

criterion ® criteria ([kraɪ'tɪərɪən] ® [kraɪ'tɪərɪə])
phenomenon ® phenomena

But: au'tomaton ® au'tomata/ au'tomatons

Also: appendix ® appendices (in books)/ appendixes (in medicine)

index ['ɪndeks] ® indices (['ɪndɪsi:z], in maths)/ indexes (['ɪndeksɪz], in books)

matrix ® matrices/ matrixes

-eau ® -eaux ([əʋ] ® [əʋz])

tableau ['tæbləʋ] ® tableaux ['tæbləʋz]
plateau ['plætəʋ] ® plateaux/ plateaus ['plætəʋz]

But: bureau ® bureaus

IV. NOUNS THAT HAVE ONLY PLURAL FORMS

· trousers, spectacles, scissors, tongs, jeans, glasses, scales, pliers;

· barracks, works, gardens, species, series, cross-roads, headquarters, kennels (may be treated as singular):

a zoological gardens;

a chemical works)

· news, means, gallows (is)

· wages, goods, belongings, brains, clothes, congratulations, earnings, manners, stairs (are)

· diseases: measles, mumps, shingles (is)

· games: billiards, bowls, dominoes, draughts [dra:fts] (is)

· word ending in -ics

- athletics, gymnastics, linguistics, mathematics, physics (is)

- acoustics, economics, phonetics, statistics, ethics: (is - science, are - specific reference)

· proper names: the Highlands, the Midlands, the Netherlands (are)

V. PLURAL IN COMPOUND NOUNS

1. As a rule, the second component takes the plural (if there are two noun-stems):

housewives	maid-servants
boyscouts	matchmakers

2. If the first element is man or woman, both components become plural:

men-servants
women-doctors

3. In compounds formed by: - a noun plus a preposition

- a noun plus a prepositional phrase

- a noun plus an adjective or an adverb

the first component takes the plural:

mothers-in-law	courts-martial	lookers-on
commanders-in-chief	passers-by	men-of-war

4. In compounds with a conjunction the second element takes the plural:

gin-and-tonics

5. If there are no noun-stems, the last component takes a plural ending:

breakdowns	mock-ups	drop-outs
grown-ups	go-betweens

VI. WORDS TO PAY ATTENTION TO:

! Advice, news, progress, research, knowledge, evidence, success (uncountable nouns)

! Ink, money, hair, fruit, applause, chess (invariable nouns)