Number of nouns

A. The plural of a noun is usually made by adding s to the singular:

s is pronounced [z] after vowels and voiced consonants

[s] after voiceless consonants

[iz] after sibilants

B. Nouns ending in o or ch, sh, ss or x form their plural by adding es:

tomato - tomatoes brush - brushes box - boxes

church - churches kiss - kisses

But words of foreign origin or abbreviated words ending in o add s only:

kilo - kilos photo - photos piano - pianos

kimono - kimonos soprano - sopranos

C. If nouns end in y following a consonant we change y in i and add es:

baby - babies country - countries lady - ladies

But nouns ending in y following a vowel form their plural by adding s:

boy - boys day - days donkey - donkeys

D. Several nouns ending in f or fe change them in ve and add s:

calf - calves leaf - leaves shelf - shelves wolf - wolves

half - halves life - lives sheaf - sheaves

elf - elves loaf - loaves thief - thieves

knife - knives self - selves wife - wives

Several nouns take either s or ves in the plural:

hoof - hoofs/hooves scarf - scarfs/scarves wharf - wharfs/wharves

handkerchief - handkerchiefs/handkerchieves

Other words ending in f or fe add s in the ordinary way:

cliff - cliffs roof - roofs safe - safes

E. A few nouns form their plural by a vowel change:

foot - feet mouse - mice child - children

goose - geese louse - lice ox - oxen

tooth - teeth woman - women man - men

F. Names of certain creatures do not change in the plural. Fish is normally unchanged, fishes exist but is uncommon.

Some types of fish do not change in the plural:

carp mackerel salmon

cod pike trout

but if used in a plural sense they would take a plural verb.

Others add s: crabs, herrings, lobsters, sardines, sharks.

Deer and sheep do not change: one sheep - two sheep

G. Collective nouns crew, team, family, government etc. can take a singular or a
plural verb.

Plural - this generally happens when we think of the group as people, doing the sort of things that people do (for instance, making plans, wanting
things, being disappointed, amusing themselves). In these cases, a plural
verb is used, and the group is referred to by the pronouns they and who.

My family are wonderful. They do all they can for me. I don’t know
any other family who would do so much.

‘How are the team?’ - ‘Oh, they’re very optimistic.’

Singular - if we see the group as an impersonal or unit:

Our team is the best.

The average family (which now consists of four members at most) is a great deal smaller than it used to be.

The other words and expressions that can be used in this way:

committee, club, class, school, choir, orchestra, staff, jury, firm, the B.B.C., the Bank of England.

H. Certain words are always plural and take a plural verb:

clothes police

articles of clothes consisting of two parts:

breeches pants pyjamas trousers etc.

and tools and instruments consisting of two parts:

binoculars pliers scissors spectacles

glasses scales shears etc.

Also certain other words including:

arms (weapons) savings

goods spirits (alcohol)

greens (vegetables) stairs

outskirts surroundings etc.

I. Words that end in -ics (like mathematics, athletics, politics) are sometimes used as plurals, but more often as singulars.

Politics is a complicated business. What are your politics?

J. Words plural in form but singular in meaning include:

news The news is good.

certain diseases: mumps, measles, rickets, shingles

and certain games: billiards, darts, draughts, dominoes

K. Some words show no difference between the singular and the plural, both forms end in -s.

They are: crossroads, works (= factory), means (= method), headquarters.

L. Some words which retain their original Greek or Latin forms make their
plurals according to the rules of Greek and Latin:

crisis - crises phenomenon - phenomena

datum - data radius - radii

memorandum - memoranda terminus - termini

But some follow the English rules:

dogma - dogmas formula - formulas gymnasium - gymnasiums

Sometimes there are two plural forms with different meanings:

appendix, appendixes or appendices (medical terms)

appendix, appendices (addition/s to a book)

index, indexes (in books), indices (in mathematics)

M. Compound nouns

1. Normally the last word is made plural:

boy-friends break-ins travel agents

But if the first word is man or woman both parts are made plural:

men pilots women pilots

2. The first word is made plural with compounds formed of

a) noun + adverb (if the noun is made of verb + er)

hangers-on lookers-on runners-up

b) noun + preposition + noun

sisters-in-law wards of court

3. Initials can be made plural:

MPs (Members of Parliament)

UFOs (unidentified flying objects)

VIPs (very important persons)

Exercise 60. Divide the following plurals into three groups. There are ten words in each group.

Group 1 - where - s is pronounced as /s/.

Group 2 - as /z/.

Group 3 - as /iz/.

Books, radios, drinks, matches, lights, faces, lists, tickets, ferries, chairs, shirts, insects, dresses, coaches, churches, boats, horses, houses, rules, peaches, cups, buses, trains, heads, things, bicycles, boxes, thousands, cars, maps.

Exercise 61. In the following sets of words there is one word in each set in which the plural ending is pronounced differently from the others. Can you find the ‘odd man out‘? Give more examples of the same kind.

1. Houses, horses, matches, lines, ages.

2. Ropes, safes, roads, gifts, bikes, chips.

3. Knees, days, grapes, donkeys, flies, rows.

4. Stores, chairs, hearts, wires, ears.

5. Paths, months, mouths, youths, baths.

Exercise 62. Mark the word that is different in the plural, give more examples of the same kind.

1. cup year dress picture pen

2. knife wife loaf shelf roof

3. tomato potato hero photo Negro

4. foot book tooth goose

5. German postman woman sportsman businessman

6. crossroads series office means Chinese

7. orange dress watch glass box

8. university secretary play salary study

9. way boy day play family

Exercise 63. Correct the sentences that are wrong.

1. She is a very nice person. 2. I need a new jeans. 3. I’ve got two brother and four sister. 4. It’s a lovely park with a lot of beautiful tree. 5. There are a lot of sheep in that field. 6. Do you make many mistake when you speak English? 7. She’s married and she has three childs. 8. Most of my friend are students. 9. He put on his pyjama and went to bed. 10. We went fishing but we didn’t catch many fish. 11. There were three persons in the car, two woman and a man. 12. I like your trouser. Where did you get it? 13. The town centre is usually full of tourist. 14. This scissor isn’t sharp enough.

Exercise 64. Give the plural of:

A. A pin, a hat, a fox, a baby, a day, potato, a volcano, a piano, a photo, a knife, a roof, a half, a leaf, a cliff, a chief, a life, a family, a queue, a bath, a berry, a valley, a century, a salmon, a taxi, a person, a penny, a watch, a virtuoso, a lily, a woodworm.

B. A man, a woman, a German, a foot, a tooth, a sheep, a ship, a fish, an ox, a fox, a child, a fireman, a mouse, a swine, a house, a louse, a goose, a mongoose, a deer, a means, a series, a species, an aircraft, an offspring, a Swiss, a Japanese, a Maltese, a Portuguese, a Chinese, a Milanese.

C. A passer-by, a mother-in-law, a room-mate, a me-not, a merry-go-round, a fellow-worker, a man-of-war, a school-inspector, a commander-in-chief, a boy-messenger, a personnel-manager, a woman-driver, a man-servant, a hanger-on, a face-lift, a spoonful, a cupful, a boyfriend, a grown-up, an office-block, a workmate.

Exercise 65. Give the plural of the following nouns and translate them into Russian / Ukrainian:

bus, glass, box, watch, bush, fish, dress, dish, case

day, journey, key, boy, play, donkey, toy

city, country, penny, fly, army, lady, berry, family, story

cuckoo, piano, photo, solo, zero, portfolio, sopra­no, ratio, dynamo, kimono

hero, echo, embargo, Negro, potato, tomato, veto, motto, volcano

cliff, belief, chief, proof, roof, safe, dwarf, reef, gulf, safe, hoof, handkerchief

calf, elf, half, knife, leaf, life, loaf, self, sheaf, shelf, thief, wife, wolf

stimulus, nucleus, syllabus, focus, bacillus, terminus

formula, antenna, vertebra

curriculum, memorandum, stratum, addendum, bacterium, medium, aquarium, symposium, datum

crisis, analysis, axis, diagnosis, ellipsis, hypothesis, oasis, parenthesis, synopsis, thesis, basis

codex, index, appendix, matrix

sheep, deer, grouse, plaice, salmon, pike, trout, carp, moose, fish, cod, series, species, means, (gas)works, barracks, headquarters, swine, dozen

child, ox, man, foot, tooth, goose, louse, mouse, woman

notary public, passer-by, mother-in-law, man-of-war, coat-of-mail, court-martial, commander-in-chief, hanger-on, runner-up

boy-friend, fountain-pen, grown up, assistant director, attorney general, mouthful, spoonful, room-mate, breakdown, overall, sit-in, stand-by, take-off, forget-me-not, merry-go-round, postman, Englishman, writing-table

Exercise 66. State the number of the nouns in bold type and give the corresponding singular or plural, if any.

1. The doctor told him not to read without glasses. 2. Women who write anonymous letters to themselves are such a common phenomenon that the police are sure to jump to that solution. 3. You're not to leave the state unless we give you permission. 4. Once she got an offer, but the wages were only fourteen shillings a week. 5. It gave him a thrill to realize that Julia had genius. 6. The Japanese are a wonder­ful people, fond of dancing and light wines. 7. There was no piano, partly because pianos were too uncompromisingly ac­cidental, and partly because it would have taken up much room. 8. His clothes were work of art – of exquisite cut. 9. Gavin walked out of the room and towards the stairs. 10. There was scarcely a white hair on her head and her eyes, as black and shining as buttons, sparkled with fun. 11. From the pig-run came the quick hard patter of hoofs, a castanet sound. 12. One of the stewardesses, her lips moving silently, was making a count of heads. 13. – Do you ski? – Used to. But I haven't any skis now! 14. It gave the impression of shameful slum conditions, in spite of the television antennae at practically every roof. 15. She evidently remembered Jo­seph and his brethren. 16. Alice was one of those actresses who were quite sure of themselves from the first rehearsal. 17. – Are you going to pay me damages? – Alas, where have you been damaged? 18. Love can never make us forget that we are brothers-in-arms, can it?

Exercise 67. Comment on the nouns in bold type. Translate the sentences into Russian / Ukrainian.

1. The police are here and they are doing their best, sir. 2. The local police have closed this night club. 3. The police were assisted by private detectives. 4. The cattle are in the fields. 5. – Where are the people? – They've gone to the briefing. 6. Her poultry are the finest in the whole village. 7. The Roman Catholic clergy are stationed in Vatican. 8. – Who are those people? – They are tourists. 9. Dice are used in many board games. 10. The people at the interview were very helpful. 11. Hey, people, what are you doing? 12. How different are the beliefs of various peoples across the world! 13. This is a warlike people. 14. The peoples of the Commonwealth will have a new monetary unit.

Exercise 68. Change the number of the nouns in bold type making all thenecessary changes.

1. Afterwards he took a photo of me with wet hair to finish out the film. 2. He talked to another Divisional chief. 3. His shirt cuff showed up spotlessly, just half an inch beneath the sleeve. 4. He was as lively as a trout in a moun­tain stream. 5. Matthew Swain was one of a rapidly disap­pearing species, the small-town general practitioner. 6. It was like lying in the dark with a mosquito hovering above his face. 7. The cab branched off, along the side of a wood, and he heard a late cuckoo calling. 8. Among the retainers of a well-appointed house there were persons from every stratum of society. 9. "A pony is always small," said Regan. 10. It is only a hypothesis, but it's possible. 11. Everybody had a handkerchief concealed in his cuff. 12. I wish a fly­ing fish would come on board tonight. 13. The waitress spent the morning working in the dining-room. 14. Brit­ain's oil refining industry faces a serious crisis. 15. Mary was sitting in a straight-backed antique chair and the youth sat at her feet. 16. Suddenly she realized that there was not a passer-by in the street. 17. Now all the passengers were gone in a bus, along with the stewardess and the sec­ond officer.

Exercise 69. Explain the formation of the plural of the nouns in bold type.Translate them into Russian / Ukrainian.

1. He was just six feet tall and he had a gallant bearing. 2. I moved the stick forward and came down slowly to fifteen hundred feet. 3. He wasn't above five foot five, I should think. 4. They arrived daily from various termini. 5. Eric watched the wood-lice that were unable to avoid the flames. 6. Some call it a grape-vine, but it has always seemed like a pair of giant antennae to me. 7. He used his white linen pocket handkerchief and held it against his lips. 8. Nevada felt the horse's heart suddenly pound between his legs as his hoofs didn't meet the expected ground. 9. He had neglected his work so much that now he had only a fortnight to learn what the curriculum allowed three months for. 10. The outlines of the cypresses that lined the driveway were sharp and clear. 11. The wind howled across the deserted runway. If wolves appeared tonight, Mel thought, it would not be surprising. 12. The handcuff was clicked on to Greg's right wrist, and the other on the cop's left wrist. 13. It became almost a phe­nomenon in this back street, where carts stuck like winter flies, and people went by with books under their arms, as if educated. 14. There were some daffodils, narcissi and hya­cinths in the garden. 15. The larks sprang up in front of his feet, the air was full of butterflies, a sweet fragrance rose from the wild grasses. 16. There were nine of them at sea but four were carrying cargoes destined for his own personal warehouses in Brooklyn. 17. Public sanatoria are short of beds. I get two beds a week for females.

Exercise 70. Choose the correct form of the verb, singular or plural. Sometimes either a singular or a plural verb is possible.

Example: Gymnastics is / are my favourite sport. ('is' is correct)

1. The trousers you bought for me doesn't / don't fit me.

2. Physics was / were my best subject at school.

3. Fortunately the news wasn't / weren't as bad as we had expected.

4. The police wants / want to interview Fred about a robbery.

5. Three days isn't / aren't long enough for a good holiday.

6. Where does / do your family live?

7. England has / have lost all their football matches this season.

8. Does / Do the police know about the stolen money?

9. Can I borrow your scissors? Mine isn't / aren't sharp enough.

10. I'm going to take a taxi. Six miles is / are too far for me to walk.

Exercise 71. Read the following words in the plural and then give their singular form.

Rooms, moments, pipes, plays, years, storms, kitchens, stockings, pockets, clocks, answers, replies, feelings, rains, nights, husbands, stars, children, actions, men, geese, sheep, ships, drops, beliefs, days, trains, roads, oceans, seas, continents, islands, voices, teeth, phenomena, curricula.

Exercise 72. Make the nouns in the following sentences singular with all the necessary changes.

1. Men who drink and drive are criminals. 2. Housekeepers must be economical. 3. Secretaries should know computers and languages. 4. Politicians must be good leaders and speakers. 5. Horror films are not for small children. 6. Partners should be honest people. 7. Hours passed before the police came. 8. Accountants must be good at figures. 9. I can see sheep in the field. 10. There are geese in the pond.

Exercise 73. Comment on the nouns in bold type. Translate the sentences into Russian / Ukrainian.

1. According to modern standards my family isn't big. 2. My family are early birds. 3. The board consists of twelve people. 4. I know what the board think of me. They regard me as the spoiled granddaughter of a rich and powerful woman. And the board are very aware of that. 5. This council is responsible for looking after roads. 6. The council have been promising to mend the fences, doors and windows for years. 7. The public stop and stare. 8. "You could join us," he suggested helpfully. "We're a jolly crowd. " 9. The government has cut back on public expenditure. 10. Some people said darkly that the Government were behind it. 11. The staff are going to buy a leaving present for their boss. 12. His staff is very efficient. 13. This team plays for Spain. 14. The team are training hard for the coming match. 15. Statistics is the study of figures. 16. Statistics are often misleading. 17. Politics is a popular topic now. 18. What are his politics? 19. The jury were in disagreement. 20. The jury has announced its verdict.

Exercise 74. Translate the following nouns into English and put them into three columns according to the form of the verb (only singular; only plural; can be used with both singular and plural verb). There are 15 words in each column.

Би-би-си, совет, полиция, герб, деньги, команда, интеллект, форель, рахит, оркестр, бинокль, шашки, статистика, железо, крупный рогатый скот, завод, домино, политика, кофе, плесень (грибок), штаб-квартира, подонки, весы, волосы, рис, порода, одежда, молодежь, свинка, любовь, люди, дюжина, часы, пинцет, сахар, сборная Англии, “Спартак”, физика, благодарность, казарма, большинство, гимнастика, зарплата, духовенство, рейтузы.

Exercise 75. Read and translate the sentences paying particular attention to the form of the verb.

1. These scales are not correct. 2. My glasses have become too weak for me. 3. The scissors are blunt. 4. My kid's pyjamas are made of cotton. 5. These tights were made in Italy. 6. Don't you think your trousers are too short? 7. What are your earrings made of? 8. The goods have arrived. 9. Give my best regards to your family. 10. The surroundings were unfamiliar to him. 11. The cleaner collected all the floor sweepings and potato peelings lying near the rubbish pipe. 12. My wages have risen considerably lately. 13. The outskirts of this town are shabby looking. 14. Her clothes are very trendy. 15. Clothes make the man: the old saying is rather to the point. 16. Clothes are no longer something one doesn't discuss. Clothes are part of the image.

Exercise 76. Use the right form of the verb to be.

1. The information about this company ____ encouraging. 2. All the furniture in this office ____ the latest design. 3. My knowledge of German ____ very limited. 4. These shorts ____ too long. 5. They ____ a big family, with many branches. 6. This equipment ____ for camping. 7. The scissors ____ here a minute ago. 8. The Government ____ of the opinion that money in the accounts ____ siphoned out of the country. 9. These trousers ____ too tight. 10. The weather ____ fabulous in Italy in early autumn. 11. These stairs ____ dangerous. 12. Where ____ your clothes made? 13. The headphones on my new walkman ____ great. 14. ____ the scales over there electronic? 15. There ____ a hair on my dinner plate. 16. Yesterday's homework ____ rather difficult. 17. Her luggage ____ on the scales already. 18. Your advice ____ very timely. Thank you. 19. The news ____ too good to be true. 20. The team ____ no more than seven young men. 21. The hospital staff ____ all very young.

Exercise 77. Use the verbs in the correct form:

1. My watch (to be) ten minutes fast. 2. These data (to be) not accurate. 3. No news (to be) good news. 4. Mathe­matics (to be) my favourite subject when I was at school. 5. Money (to do) not make you happy. 6. Your clothes (to hang) on the chair. 7. The goods (to have) arrived. 8. The pyjamas (to be) too short. 9. Your advice (to have) helped me greatly. 10. How many pieces of furniture (to be) there in your living room? 11. In England postmen (to wear) a uniform. 12. Mice (to be) also domestic animals. 13. Paper (to be) very expensive today. 14. Your hair (to need) cutting. 15. There (to be) a lot of different fruits at the greengrocer's.

Exercise 78. Make sentences according to the example.

Example: He's going to be a detective. — Detectives solve mysteries.

1. He decided to be an artist. 2. She would like to become a teacher. 3. My brother wants to be an architect. 4. Jason is going to become a decorator. 5. Nancy made up her mind to become a nurse. 6. His son wants to be an engineer. 7. Our neighbour is a carpenter. 8. Megan is going to be a dressmaker. 9. Mary's son wants to become an actor. 10. This young man would like to be a busker. 11. My student decided to become an accountant. 12. Ourfriend will be a policeman soon. 13. His wish is to become a bodyguard. 14. Ted's parents want him to become a doctor. 15. This man is a barber.

Exercise 79. Translate into English.

1. В нашем офисе работает семь мужчин и шесть женщин. 2. У этого крестьянина есть корова, два вола, десяток овец и несколько гусей. 3. Два полицейских охраняли дом Джеймса. 4. У этой актрисы красивые белые зубы. 5. У сына Линды уже появился зубик. 6. В доме есть мыши. К сожалению, сегодня утром я видела мышку на кухне. 7. – В прошлое воскресенье мы ездили на рыбалку. – И сколько рыбок вы пойма­ли? – Макс поймал пять маленьких рыбок, а явсего одну, но это была большая рыба. 8. – Мы видели кра­сивого оленя в лесу. – Да, олени красивые животные. 9. У нее очень маленькие ноги. 10. Онбежал очень быстро, несмотря на боль в ноге. 11. Опубликованы две серии рассказов С. Моэма. 12. В мире более 24 000 разновидностей рыбы. 13. В этих лесах водятся дикие гуси. 14. – Полиция здесь? – Да, она только что при­ехала. 15. Прохожие помогали пожарным спасать лю­дей. 16. – Какой милый ребенок! – Да, все дети хоро­шие, когда они маленькие. 17. Мужчины, женщины, дети работали в полях. 18. Моя кошка слишком лени­вая, она не хочет ловить мышей. 19. Мама купила две рыбы для кошки и собаки. 20. Портье вручил ключи дамам. 21. Моя пижама сшита из хлопка.

Exercise 80. Put the following nouns into the plural form.

Potato, lady, leaf, crisis, a woman pilot, proof, means, trout, brother-in-law, looker-on, kilo, cloth, foot, radius, M.P., half, soprano, donkey, sheep, phenomenon, bush, herring, princess, break-in, passer-by, UFO, index, calf, clothes, salmon, tomato, secretary, a man driver, mouse, loaf, merry-go-round, bath, cliff, hero, German, watch, crossroads, luggage, piano, child, policeman, roof, knife, advice, Negro, a glass, dictionary, mouth, fungus, sportswoman, self, carp, safe, datum, fish, a prisoner of war, key, formula, thief, belief, scenery, news, photo, shelf, a sister-in-law, baby, gymnasium, goose, handkerchief, Englishman, analysis, focus, church, clergyman, ox, deer, people, pike, kiss, kimono, index, father-in-law, wife, hoof, study, bath, tooth, cliff, ward of court, disco, businessman, fellow-student, typist, committee, VIP.

Exercise 81. Which of the following words are singular in meaning; which are plural; and which can be used either singular or plural?

the news	trousers
people	statistics
cattle	mathematics
the team	gymnastics
billiards	the government
measles	headquarters
scissors	the clergy
thanks	underpants
the police	Manchester United

Exercise 82. Is it singular or plural? Give the corresponding form of the verb to be with these nouns.

Means, food, television, child, informal, scissors, data, men, sum, oxen, hair, contents, feet, papers, horse, trouble, advice, traffic, bread, watch, pyjamas, weather, money, clock, police, work, workers, spectacles, phonetics, table, fish, fruit, furniture, teeth, clothes, sheep, news, economics, sports, progress, goods, glasses, ship, trousers, mice, paper, phenomena.

Exercise 83. Translate into English:

1. Это явление еще не известно. 2. Он перепробо­вал много разных работ и в конце концов стал акте­ром. 3. У нее красивые длинные волосы. 4. У них на ферме гуси, утки, овцы и козы, а еще есть пруд, где много рыбы. Я поймал две рыбки. 5. Часы на стене по­казывают полночь. 6. За ним гналась полиция. 7. Ко­гда он пришел домой, семья ужинала. 8. На улице было мало прохожих. 9. Женщины и дети выехали из города. 10. Я ищу работу. 11. Народы разных стран стремятся к миру. 12. Содержание фильма было мне знакомо. 13. 10 гривен − небольшая сумма денег. 14. 10 лет − большой срок. Многое может измениться.

Exercise 84. Put the sentences in the singular form according to the example.

Example: There are nice roses in the vases. – There is a nice rose in the vase.

1. Monkeys can climb up the trees very easily. 2. There are changes in these exercises. 3. Have you got tickets for the football matches? 4. She doesn’t like to go to bars, pubs and cafes. 5. Can I talk about my problems and suggestions? 6. Are there any chairs at the tables? 7. What languages can your brothers speak? 8. Computers are more expensive than calculators. 9. Buses, trains and planes are transport vehicles. 10. Travellers need passports if they travel to foreign countries. 11. Are cameras easy to operate? 12 What are the largest towns on these rivers? 13. Are these seats free? 14. There are only offices and banks in these streets. 15. Have you got your keys, bags and money with you?

Exercise 85. Put the sentences in the plural form according to the example.

Example: The cat caught a mouse. – The cats caught mice.

1. There is a tomato on the plate. 2. A hero behaves bravely. 3. Have you got a photo of your family? 4. That potato is bad. 5. A piano can be very expensive. 6. A Negro is called Afro-American now. 7. Did you like that disco? 8. Have you got a child? 9. A goose crossed the road. 10. He lost a tooth in a fight. 11. Wash your dirty foot. 12. He works as a postman. 13. She is a successful sportsman. 13. A businessman should be well dressed. 14. A man and a woman differ. 15. Is he a chairman of the committee? 16. Is your son a good sportsman?

Exercise 86. Complete the table. Note that some of these words are of foreign origin have regular plurals.

Singular	plural	singular	Plural
	cacti		memoranda
analysis		stadium
	stimuli	museum
	strata		addenda
datum			radii
	vertebrae	drama
basis		genius
fungus			appendices
	genera	axis
index			media
	crises	album
	criteria		phenomena

Exercise 87. Translate into English.

1. Старик достал из мешка пять рыбин и дал каждой собаке по одной. 2. Меня не переставляет удивлять красота рыб в этом аквариуме. 3. В нашей семье все хорошо играют в шахматы. 4. Вся наша семья живет по соседству. 5. Фруктовые деревья были все в цвету. 6. На этом фестивале присутствовали представители всех народов. 7. Украинский народ очень гостеприимен. 8. На этой выставке представлены все сорта фруктов, выращиваемые на территории нашей страны. 9. Тебе следует есть больше фруктов. 10. Я знаю, что мои волосы красивые; мне это все говорят. 11. Не думаю, что нам будет легко найти средства на этот эксперимент. 12. Так как эти часы были подарены мне на совершеннолетие, они были мне особо дороги. 13. В этом году олени вытоптали все наши посевы. 14. Как он сказал мне, в этом ручье все еще водилась форель. 15. В багаже находились разнообразные медицинские приборы. 16. Фарфор очень хорош; нежен и прозрачен. 17. Зарплата сиделки в этом госпитале хорошая. 18. Преступник покинул город, так как полиция разыскивала его. 19. Этот остров был родиной нового народа. 20. Команда корабля состоит из 20 человек, включая капитана. 21. Было 11 часов и вся семья спала. 22. Сейчас моя семья живет за городом. 23. В новом фильме 325 серий. 24. Вчера я купил два красивых натюрморта. 25. Чтобы защититься от воров, нам необходимы новые сейфы. 26. Под крышами старых домов обычно много мышей. 27. У каждой армии есть свой флаг. 28. Столкновение произошло по вине нашего шофера. Думаю, ему придется оплатить убытки. 29. Ураган нанес большой ущерб урожаю. 30. Эти брюки слишком коротки для моего сына. 31. Возьми мои ножницы, они острые. 32. Мои попутчики были веселые и интересные люди. 33. Содержание вашего сочинения не соответствует теме. 34. Франция славится своими винами. 35. Товар только что прибыл на станцию. 36. Лестница очень крутая. 37. – Как у тебя дела с фонетикой? – Замечательно. Разве ты не знаешь, что фонетика – мой любимый предмет. – Неужели? А я думал, что этика. 38. Мне очень нравятся эти часы. Где вы их купили? 39. Каких из этих овец вы продадите? 40. Его познания в этой области поразительны. 41. В Австралии живет несколько странных видов животных. 42. Боюсь, что этих данных вам не хватит для написания статьи. 43. Пастух погнал овец в сторону деревни. 44. Мне нужно вырвать два зуба. 45. Охотник получил награду за то, что застрелил волков, нанесших большой урон сельскому стаду. 46. Наш клуб купил несколько виолончелей для оркестра. 47. Он показал мне фотографии своего младшего сына. 48. Информация, принесенная разведчиком, очень ценная. 49. Вчера астрономы всего мира наблюдали очень странное явление. 50. Легкая атлетика – мой любимый вид спорта.

Exercise 88. Translate into English.

1. – Где мои ножницы? – Они на мамином столе. 2. В нашем зоопарке есть очень интересный аквариум. Там можно увидеть двух щук, форель и даже морских свинок. Мой старший брат очень любил ходить в зоопарк, когда был маленьким. Он часами наблюдал за лисами, оленями, овцами и волками. 3. Любимая сказка моих племянников – сказка об эльфах. Это маленькие человечки, они меньше игольного ушка. 4. В комнате было три женщины: дочь моей младшей сестры, младшая дочь моей сестры и знакомая моей тещи. 5. – Где моя пижама? – Она в чемодане. Твои носовые платки тоже там. Не забудь положить кусок мыла. 6. Свинка – опасное заболевание. Но врачи обладают обширной информацией об этом заболевании, а также средствами борьбы с ним. 7. Она настоящая красавица. У нее длинные волосы и ангельские глаза. 8. После десятиминутного перерыва дети вернулись в класс. 9. Ради бога! Да сходи же к стоматологу, а то очень скоро у тебя не останется ни одного здорового зуба.

Exercise 89. Translate into English.

1. Сведения только что поступили, и секретарша просматривает их. 2. Врач дал нам так много советов, что мы не знаем, какими из них воспользоваться. 3. Упорный труд – ключ к успеху. 4. Это творческая работа, однако, знания здесь тоже очень важны. 5. Ваши успехи нас радуют. 6. Я вижу, что мои со­веты тебе помогают, не правда ли? 7. – А что думает об этом полиция? – Она обескуражена (to discourage) этим пре­ступлением. 8. – Мне нужны хорошие новые джин­сы. – Хорошие джинсы стоят дорого. 9. Моя зарп­лата не столь высока, чтобы обедать в ресторанах. 10. Ее одежда – это в основном джинсы, свитера и майки. 11. Осторожнее, ступени очень крутые. 12. По­лиция все еще ищет угонщиков самолета, но пока не задержала их. 13. Бильярд – его любимая игра. 14. Его специальность – экономика. 15. А что гово­рит твоя семья? Она согласна на твой брак с Викто­ром? 16. Штат этой фирмы состоит из тридцати че­ловек. 17. Сегодня весенняя погода. 18. Какая великолепная сегодня погода! 19. Обожаю бродить по лесу в грибную погоду. 20. Она работает в своем саду в любую погоду. 21.Эта реклама утверждает, что если пользоваться пас­той Блендамед, то у вас будут красивые белые зубы. 22. Я сладкоежка. 23. Трое полицейских постоянно ох­раняют этот банк. 24. Милиция уже здесь. Она делает все, чтобы найти компромисс с грабителями. 25. В под­вале дома есть мыши. Вчера утром у двери я увидел маленькую очаровательную мышку. 26. Нам пришлось остановить машину, так как два оленя медленно пере­ходили дорогу. 27. В этом пруду много рыбок. 28. Боль­шие дети – большие заботы. 29. Домашний скот Тома состоит из лошадей, коров, быков, овец, сви­ней. 30. Моя тетя, которая живет в деревне, держит домашнюю птицу: кур, уток, гусей, индеек. 31. Я очень люблю фрукты. Они придают мне силы (энергию). 32. Ми­ланцы гордятся своим оперным театром. 33. – Где твои новые часы? – К сожалению, я их потерял.

Exercise 90. Put in the nouns and add -s if necessary.

1. Claire had to take her luggage through ____ (custom). 2. Please accept this gift as an expression of our ____ (thank). 3. The woman is demanding ____ (damage) for her injuries. 4. The ____ (pain) was so bad I called the doctor. 5. The old man carried his few ____ (belonging) in a plastic bag. 6. If we pay in cash, we make a ____ (saving) of ten percent. 7. More ____ (good) should be transported by rail instead of by road. 8. The gas explosion caused some ____ (damage) to the flats. 9. We're going to spend all our ____ (saving) on a new car. 10. The company always takes ____ (pain) to protect its image.

Exercise 91. Choose the correct verb form.

1. The television news is / are at ten o'clock. 2. These clothes is / are the latest fashion. 3. Maths is / are Emma's favourite subject. 4. The troops was / were involved in a training exercise. 5. The contents of the briefcase seems / seem to have disappeared. 6. Darts is / are sometimes played in pubs in England. 7. The athletics we watched was / were quite exciting. 8. The remains of the meal was / were thrown in the bin.

Exercise 92. Choose the correct forms. Complete this e-mail Rachel has received from her sister.

Thank / Thanks for your email. Your news was / were interesting. We must talk soon.

What about us? Well, we're living on the outskirt / outskirts of town, not far from the company headquarter / headquarters, where Jeremy works. We've spent nearly all our saving / savings on the house. That wouldn't matter so much if I hadn't crashed the car last week and done some damage / damages to the front of it. More bills! But at least I wasn't hurt. The house is nice actually, but the surroundings isn't / aren't very pleasant. We're on a very busy crossroad / crossroads.

I'm doing the course I told you about. Statistics is / are an easy subject, I find, but economics gives / give me problems!

Exercise 93. Trevor and Laura are shopping for clothes. Choose the correct form.

Trevor: These trousers is / are a bit tight They doesn't / don't feel very comfortable. And I think the blue ones goes / go better with the jacket.

Laura: That jacket is / are too long.

Trevor: Well, the jeans fits / fit all right. Perhaps I'll buy the jeans instead.

Laura: Yes, the jeans looks / look good on you. I like the style. I think they suits/suit you. Now you get changed while I look for a / some shorts. And I might get a / some skirt.

Exercise 94. Put in a group noun and is or are. Use these nouns: