Plural in English: the rules of education. How the plural of nouns is formed in English

The subject may be one or there may be many. In most languages ​​this means that the noun will change its form even slightly, and English is no exception.

Multiple and single

As a rule, there is a difference in how to name oneor several items. And the need to do this arises so often that it is not even always realized. Nevertheless, when studying foreign adverbs, one of the first and basic themes is the formation of the plural. In English it is usually not too difficult to do, but there are different nuances, subtleties and exceptions that you need to remember. Without it, it's easy to hit your finger in the sky.

The forms of numbers in English are calledSingular and Plural. Some nouns do not have one of these forms at all, and others simply form them in a special way. So, we need to figure out what nouns are talking about, what are their features.

Nouns: the general rule

In order to form a Plural form, the ending form is added to the initial form of the word -s. This is the most common and simple rule, for example:

• a truck - trucks (trucks);
• a cup-cups;
• a flag - flags (flags).

In this case it is necessary to take into account that after deaf sounds the ending is read as [s], while in the remaining cases - [z] or [iz].

Nevertheless, this does not always happen. If the noun ends in s, ch, x, sh, tch, z, then the ending will be -es, because it is so much more convenient to say:

• a box - boxes;
• a boss - bosses (bosses).

The words ending in o in the plural also add -es:

• a tomato - tomatoes.

Those words that in the singular included at the end f or fe, in the plural it will be replaced by v:

• a wolf - wolves (wolves);
• a leaf - leaves.

It should be noted that this does not always happen, but in most cases. If there are doubts, it is better to refer to dictionaries or reference books.

In addition, there is also a special rule for nouns ending in y. If the penultimate letter is not a vowel, and the word itself is proper, then y changes to i:

• a pony - ponies;
• a lady - ladies (lady).

But:

• a monkey - monkeys (monkeys);
• Mary - Marys (Mary, Mary).

These are the simplest examples of how the plural of nouns in the English language is formed. Next, we will talk about more complex examples in which different subtleties will have to be taken into account.

Composite nouns

Another kind of words invariably causes difficulties. It's about compound nouns, such as daughter-in-law, good-for-nothing, etc. Many just add the ending -s to the whole construction, but this is not true. In this case, you need to highlight the main word and work with it. That is, the correct options will be daughters-in-law (daughter-in-law), but, for example, good-for-nothings (loafers), since there is no nominal part here. Apparently, to form a Plural form is not so difficult even for compound words. The main thing is to know about this rule and be able to apply it.

Borrowed words

The stumbling block in the subject of the plural form is the concepts that came
from Latin, Greek, etc. Remembering them can be difficult, but almost all of them are related to special scientific vocabulary, so it's likely that they will not be able to meet with them in ordinary text. Examples can be:

• a criterion - criteria;
• an index - indeces.

As can be seen, in this case, educationThe plural of nouns in English coincides with how this form looked in the original source. In case of doubt, it is better to look into the dictionary, especially since the same words in different subjects will behave differently. For example, the noun antenna in electronics forms the form antennae, and in biology - antennas.

Exceptions

Unfortunately, not always the pluralnouns in English fall under one of the above rules. There are also exceptions. The most famous and most used in the general vocabulary are the following:

• a tooth - teeth;
• a foot - feet;
• a child - children;
• a (wo) man - (wo) men (female / male);
• a mouse - mice;
• a penny - pence;
• a sheep-sheep (sheep);
• a goose - geese (geese);
• a swine - swine;
• a deer-deer;
• an ox - oxen (bulls).

There is still some number of words that also have a special form,
but they are used much less often. Since the list is rather small, it's easier to just memorize it. And then do not have to think about what form forms the plural in English in this or that case.

In addition, the same category may include the names of nationalities ending in -se or -ss. Examples can be:

• a Japanese - Japanese (Japanese);
• a Swiss - Swiss (Swiss);
• a Portuguese - Portuguese;
• a Chinese - Chinese.

Features of collective nouns

Another special category has nonuances in the formation of the very form of Plural. But grammatically, it can, in different situations, perform both in Singular and in Plural. By the way, this is even more influenced by the nationality of the interlocutor.

The fact is that in the UK and the US perceptioncollective nouns are seriously different: the British, rather, individualists, while Americans are more inclined to collectivism. In grammar, this is expressed in matching the predicate to the subject.

The category of collective words includes such words,such as crew, committee, family, team, class, company, corporation, etc. If it is meant that the noun expresses a single policy or collective action, then Singular is used. If we talk about the multitude of people that make up the family, the team, etc., then the plural is applied. In English, as already mentioned, there are many nuances and subtleties that are not always easy to remember, so as not to make mistakes.

If you do not want to make mistakes,It is easier to replace collective nouns with similar constructs. Instead of the class, students are suitable, and the team can be changed to players. In other cases, just members or participants. The coordination of verbs with these words of problems should not cause.

Only single

Often a stumbling block is uncountable nouns and generally abstract concepts. If the real is more or less clear, then with the rest - not very.

To this variety it is possible to include hair (not inthe meaning of "individual hairs"), money, information, water, progress, relationship, advice, knowledge, etc. It is also worth mentioning those that end in -s: news, mathematics, physics, politics, statistics, etc. A plural number in the English language in this case is not formed at all, and the coordination occurs in a single:

• You information is quite interesting.
• Physics is an important science.

Words such as fruit and fish, about which alreadymentioned earlier, in different cases either will form a plural, or not, depending on the semantics. In the sense of "different kinds" they will add to the end -s, but if it's just about the number of more than one, then no.

Because the examples that fall under thisthe rule is pretty much, if there is a suspicion that a particular word forms non-standardly in the English language or does not do it, it's better to double-check yourself. In the end, even experienced translators and carriers sometimes make mistakes. What can we say about those who are just beginning to learn the language, but practice will help.

Only plural

This category also includes enougha large number of examples, including among the collective nouns: military, police, people, clothes, goods, etc. In addition, there are also items that can be called pair: scissors (scissors), braces (suspenders), trousers (trousers) and some others. Obviously, to speak about how the plural in the English language is formed, these examples do not make sense, because they are already in it. It is important to remember these examples and to correctly coordinate verbs with them.

Language is a living substance that constantlychanges. Some rules disappear, but others replace them. It is possible that the plural of nouns in the English language in a few dozen years will occur entirely on other principles.