Right: a lot of stockings
Let's start with the basics and remember how to write “socks” and “stockings” in the genitive plural. Adults suggested memorizing this way: stockings are actually long - the ending is short ("stocking"), knee-highs and socks are short - the ending is long ("socks", "socks").
Initially, all words were written with the same ending -ov: stockings, socks, boots (the word “stockings” still exists in some dictionaries with the mark “obsolete”). But later “boots” and “stockings” lost their endings, and the spelling “stockings” and “boots” began to be considered once correct.
Right: couple of socks
True, recently there has been a tendency towards numerous changes in dictionaries. For example, in the “Russian Spelling Dictionary” edited by V.V. Lopatin, the usual variant of “socks” coexists with the genitive case form “sock”. There is a possibility that soon “sock” will become an acceptable norm, but for now we recommend writing and speaking in the genitive plural – “socks”.
In general, everything that is put on the feet is usually used with a zero ending. For example, a stocking, a boot, a slipper, a boot, a felt boot.
Right: tomato ov
For most masculine nouns ending in a hard consonant, the ending -ov is typical in the genitive plural. Therefore, only “tangerines” and “tomatoes” are correct, even if everyone in the store asks to weigh a “kilogram of tangerines.”
Right: macaron
If we’re talking about food, then it’s worth remembering one more form of the genitive case of a noun, which is used only in the plural: there’s nothing? - pasta. And no “pasta”!
Right: several Georgians
Exceptions to the rule include nationalities and words related to military themes. The genitive plural of these words coincides with the nominative singular form: “Turks - Turks”, “Georgians - Georgians”, “soldiers - soldiers”, “epaulets - shoulder straps”, etc.
And now no genitive case - plural nouns in their pure form.
Right: trainer s
Nouns ending in a consonant form the plural using the ending -ы: “trainers”, “editors”, “creams”, “contracts”. This is a literary norm. At the same time, let us remember that in the word “agreement” the stress falls on the last syllable.
Right: director A
Usually plural nouns ending in -a are used in colloquial speech. Now the only correct options are considered to be “directors”, “professors”, “doctor”.
Right: Donya
Right: keychains
Until recently, dictionaries had the only correct declension scheme for a word: brelok, brelok, trinkets, trinkets, and so on. This spelling (and pronunciation) is due to its French origin. True, if in the letter, perhaps someone else remembered the captive letter “o” in the suffix, then in speech we often listened to how friends brought “keychains” from travel, and their keys were always “with a keychain.” However, dictionaries surrender to the onslaught of spoken language. Now in Lopatin’s Spelling Dictionary the form of the word “trinkets” is considered equal to “trinkets”, although other dictionaries still made a note that this is a colloquial and non-literary version.
Right: awls
We hope you have recovered from the shock of the “donyas”. Let’s not rant and just say that the word “aw” in the plural is declined by analogy with “bottom”: shilya, shilyev, shilyami, shilyakh.
Right: the doctors
In the modern Russian language there are approximately 300 words in which the nominative plural is, so to speak, variable. Endings in -ы (-и) are more familiar to us and are considered literary (editors, proofreaders, trainers). But over the years, forms in -a (-я) have managed to rightfully take the place of some literary variants. If at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries there were “Dr. s", then now the only correct option is "Dr. A" with emphasis on the last letter. And if you still have doubts, you can always say the unmistakable “doctors”.
Right: contracts
Although several years ago the modern Russian language underwent great changes, and now it is not considered a gross mistake if you say “agreement” with the emphasis on the first syllable (but we hope that those who read “Mela” still adhere to the traditional and correct pronunciation of “agreement”). People make mistakes just as often when there are several “agreements”: treaties or agreements? There is only one correct option: “The CIS countries signed a peace treaty s».
Right: poker (gender case)
As a bonus, let's take the genitive plural. We hope that in childhood everyone was familiar with the poker, and maybe you were even trusted to use it. And if there are several of them, then you need to write it like this: two pokers, five pokers.
If in doubt, it is better to always check yourself in the dictionary. There's no shame in this. But to write with errors in your native language and consider that there is nothing criminal in this, to put it mildly, is not good.
In English there are two numbers of nouns, just like in Russian: singular and plural (in some languages it happens differently). At first glance, it may seem that the plural of nouns in English is formed according to some difficult, incomprehensible rules. In fact, everything is simple, since in most cases the plural is formed according to the basic rule, and the remaining cases are quickly memorized with practice.
Rules for forming the plural of nouns in English
1. Basic rule
In most cases, the plural of nouns in English (plural) is formed using the ending -s. Pay attention to how this ending is pronounced:
- After vowels and voiced consonants - like [z],
- After voiceless consonants - like [s].
However, if you are confused about the pronunciation of -s at the end of a word, you will certainly be understood.
2. Nouns ending in -s, -sh, -ch, -x, -z, -ss
What if the word ends with – s? In this case (for greater euphony and ease of pronunciation) you need to add -es. The same goes for words -ss,-sh, – ch, – x, -z.
Ending -es helps to pronounce combinations of sounds that would be difficult to pronounce without it. Let me remind you, -es added at the end of words to -s, -ss, -sh, -ch, -x, -z. Imagine what it would be like without -es:
watchs, matches, boxes, buss (!), classes (!!!)
Agree, it’s much easier to pronounce the words:
watches, matches, boxes, buses, classes.
3. Nouns ending with consonant + y
consonant + ending -y, That -y changes to -ies .
If a noun ends in vowel + ending -y, then to -y is added -s. In other words, the plural is formed according to the basic rule.
4. Nouns ending with -o
If a noun ends in -o, you need to add -es.
Exceptions:
- photo – photos (photo),
- memo – memos (memo).
- piano – pianos (piano),
5. Nouns ending in -f, -fe
In nouns ending in -f or - fe, need to replace -f or - fe on -ves.
6. Table: plural nouns in English
This image provides a quick summary of the rules for forming the plural of a noun.
Special cases of plural formation in English
In English there are exceptions to the rules for forming plurals. Most of them concern rather rare words; the most important thing to remember is the cases from the first paragraph (man - men, woman - women, etc.), since they are the most frequent.
1. Main exceptions: the plural is not formed according to general rules
A number of nouns form their plurals in a non-standard way:
Note: the word women is pronounced [ˈwɪmɪn].
2. The plural and singular forms are the same
Some nouns have the same plural and singular forms. These include:
3. Nouns used only in the singular
As in Russian, some nouns in English are used only in singular or plural. These include:
1. Abstract, uncountable nouns
- Knowledge - knowledge,
- Love - love,
- Friendship - friendship,
- Information - information,
2. Names of sciences and academic disciplines in -ics
Although they end in -s, these words are used in the singular.
- Ecomonics - economics,
- Physics - physics,
- Aerobics - aerobics,
- Classics – classic literature.
3. And others
- Money - money,
- Hair - hair.
3. Nouns used only in the plural
As in Russian, many names of paired objects do not have a singular number
- Pants - trousers,
- Scissors - scissors,
- Glasses – glasses (for the eyes, not glasses in the game),
Some words that are used in English only in the plural are used in Russian in the plural and singular:
- Goods – product, goods.
- Clothes - clothes.
Note: clothes is or clothes are?
Often have difficulties with words clothes - clothes. Should we use it as singular or plural? How to write correctly: clothes is or clothes are?
We are accustomed to the fact that “clothes” is a singular number in the Russian language, so we strive to use the English clothes in the Russian manner, as if it were a singular noun, but this is a mistake. In English this word is plural and is used accordingly:
- Wrong: Your clothes are so dirty. -Your clothes are so dirty.
- Right: Your clothes are so dirty. -Your clothes are so dirty.
4. Plural of compound nouns
Compound nouns consist of more than one word and can be written:
- Separately or with a hyphen: mother-in-law(mother-in-law), assistant headmaster(assistant school principal).
- Together: postman(postman), schoolboy(schoolboy).
In separate compound nouns, as a rule, the word with the main meaning takes the plural form:
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In English, as in many others, the names of many paired objects are used only in the plural, for example, scissors (scissors), trousers (trousers), glasses/spectacles (glasses), tongs (forceps), scales (scales):
- These scissors are for cutting paper.
These scissors are for cutting paper. - Your trousers are too long.
Your trousers are too long. - Where are my glasses/spectacles ? I want to read the newspaper.
Where is my glasses? I want to read the newspaper.
Some of these nouns are often used with the expression a pair of (pair...), which emphasizes that they consist of two parts:
- a pair of trousers (pair of trousers)
- a pair of jeans (a pair of jeans)
- a pair of shoes (pair of boots/shoes)
- a pair of slippers (pair of slippers)
- a pair of glasses (pair of glasses)
- a pair of gloves
- a pair of earrings
Note
It was said above that the noun scales (scales) is used only in the plural as the name of a paired object. This is true for scales in their original form, when they were a pair of cups suspended from a rocker. But today, scales are electronic weighing devices that have nothing in common with scales in their original form. Therefore, the scales on which you weigh yourself in your bathroom can be called both “scales” and “scale”. In the US, this noun is usually used in the singular ( scale), and in Great Britain - in the plural ( scales), although Americans also often say “scales”.
If a noun is plural, then its verb must be plural: "The scales aren't weighing correctly … I’m sure of it!” = “These scales are weighing incorrectly... I’m sure of it!”
clothes (cloth), goods (goods, goods), stairs (ladder), arms (weapon), riches (wealth, riches), proceeds (revenue) are used, unlike the Russian language, only in the plural:
- Your clothes are dirty.
Your clothes are dirty. - In these years of globalization the free trade of goods should not be questioned.
In these times of globalization, freedom of trade cannot be questioned. - I ran up the stairs and tore the door open.
I ran up the stairs and yanked open the door. - The police used firearms to disperse the crowd.
The police used firearms to disperse the crowd. - The proceeds on the sale of the goods have been transferred into your account.
Proceeds from the sale of goods have been transferred to your account.
Nouns in English wages (wage) And contents (content) are used, as a rule, in the plural, while in Russian the corresponding nouns are used only in the singular:
- My wages are high.
My salary is high. - The table of contents should not contain any pictures.
The table of contents (of books) should not contain any pictures.
Nouns potatoes (potato), onions (onion), carrots (carrot), oats (oats) are used, unlike the Russian language, in the plural:
- Potatoes are very cheap in autumn.
Potatoes are very cheap in the fall. - Carrots are very healthy.
Carrots are very healthy. - Spanish onions are sweet.
Spanish onions are sweet. - Oats are used as fodder for horses.
Oats are used as horse feed.
However, these nouns can also be used in the singular: a potato (potato, one piece of potato), an onion (bulb), a carrot (carrot, one carrot root).
Nouns people (People) And police (police), although they have a singular form, are used with a plural meaning and should always be carried with you plural verb:
- People say that the police are investigating the case.
(People) They say the police are investigating the matter.
If a noun people has the meaning “people as a nation, believers of the same religion or people of the same race”, then this noun is used in the singular and the verb must be singular:
- Hungarians are a hospitable people.
Hungarians are hospitable people.
In the same meaning, the noun people may also have plural. Then it takes the form peoples:
- The peoples of Europe have been living together for centuries.
The peoples of Europe have lived together for many centuries.
In order not to miss new useful materials,
But there are also special cases when a noun has only a singular form or only a plural form ( scissors– scissors, always plural; news– news, always singular). We will get acquainted with these nouns in this article.
- We use plural nouns that come in pairs:
Trousers– pants (two legs, we always speak in the plural), and also jeans- jeans, tights- tights, shorts- shorts, pants- underpants.
Pajamas– pajamas (top and bottom).
Glasses– glasses (2 lenses), as well as binoculars- binoculars.
- These nouns are always plural, so they require the plural:
My jeans don’t suit me at all. – My jeans don’t suit me at all. (not my jeans doesn’t)
- If you need to say about these things in the singular, then you need to use a pair of+ these words:
Those are fabulous trousers or that is a fabulous pair of trousers. (but not a fabulous trousers)
I want some new glasses or I want a new pair of glasses.
- These nouns are always plural, so they require the plural:
- There are nouns that end in -ics, and most often it is not plural. For example: economics, electronics, maths, politics, physics.
Politics was his favorite subject in his school that is why he became a politician. (but not Politics were)
- Word news– news is also not plural, despite how we translate it, it is always singular:
What is the latest news you read in that newspaper? (But not What are the latest news)
- Some words that end with -s, can be both singular and plural, no matter how paradoxical it may sound:
- Word news– news is also not plural, despite how we translate it, it is always singular:
- It also happens that some singular nouns are used together with the plural form. For example: audience- audience, committee- Committee, company- company, family- family, firm– company, government- state, staff- team, team- team. These are the so-called collective nouns or collective nouns. Have you noticed that all these words name one thing, but, as a rule, they consist of a group of people (family, group, team - all these phenomena cannot consist of one person). And we often think of these phenomena as a group of people ( they– they), which is why we use the verb in the plural form:
The government (they) don’t want to decrease taxes. – The state does not want to reduce taxes.
- We sometimes use the plural after names of companies and sports teams:
Russia are playing Brazil next Monday. (in a football match) – Russia plays against Brazil next Monday. (meaning a football match)
- But it is also possible with such words to use the singular form of the verb, it all depends on what meaning you put into it. If all members of a group, family, state act in unison, in the same way, do one thing all together, then, as a rule, we talk about them in the singular:
The government wants to stop the war. – The state wants to stop the war.
- We use the plural verb with the word police- police:
The police have been investigating this crime for more than 6 months! – The police have been investigating this crime for more than 6 months! (but not has been)
- But we can also talk about the singular if we use words like a police officer / a policeman / a policewoman.
- We sometimes use the plural after names of companies and sports teams:
- Also, we usually do not use the word person– plural person ( persons). Most often said people- People.
She is a great person. - She's a great person.
They are great people. - They are great people. (but not persons)
Many people don’t know where to work. (but not Many people doesn’t know)
- We think about the amount of money ( a sum of money), time period ( a period of time), distance ( a distance) as one thing, so we use the singular form of the verb:
Ten million dollars was stolen from the bank. (not were stolen)
Five years is a very long time, anything can happen at this period of time. (not five years are)
It can be difficult, of course, to immediately remember all these rules, but if you constantly repeat these rules, you will soon not even notice how and where you need to put the singular or plural.
Execute Using nouns only in the plural and only in the singular
In English, a noun has singular and plural forms: dog – dogs (dog – dogs), box – boxes (box – boxes).
The singular form is conveyed by the so-called. “zero ending” - wall_ (wall – ending “absent”).
The most common way to form a plural is to add an ending –s by the way: cat – cats, wall – walls.
Another common way is to add an ending –es.
1. The ending –es is added to the stem of the word if it ends with –s, -ss, x, z, ch, tch, sh:
- class – classes (class – classes);
- bush – bushes (bush – bushes);
- box – boxes (box – boxes);
- inch – inches (inch – inches);
- fox – foxes (fox – foxes);
- match - matches (match - matches, match - matches).
As a rule, in such words the ending -s is pronounced like .
2. To the stem of a word that ends with consonant +y, while the ending -y changes to –i:
- army - armies (army - armies);
- country – countries (country – countries);
- duty - duties (debt - debts, tax - taxes).
The ending –es in this case is pronounced as [z].
3. If the word ends with the vowel +у, then add to the base of the word -s:
- Boy – boys (boy – boys);
- Toy – toys (toy – toys);
- Day – days (day – days).
The ending –s in this case is pronounced as [z].
4. To the base that ends at -O In most cases:
- hero – heroes (hero – heroes),
- potato – potatoes (potatoes – potatoes).
- Zoo – zoos (zoo – zoos);
- Photo – photos (photography – photographs);
- Solo – solos (solo);
- Piano – pianos (piano);
- Video – videos (video);
- Radio – radios (radio).
There are 12 nouns that end in –f or –fe, the plural is formed with -es. Wherein –f changes to –v, and the ending –es is read as [z].
- Calf – calves (calf – calves);
- Half – halves (half – halves);
- Knife – knives (knife – knives);
- Leaf – leaves (leaf – leaves);
- Life – lives (life – lives);
- Loaf – loaves (loaf – loaves);
- Self – selves (personality – personalities);
- Sheaf - sheaves (bundle - bunches);
- Shelf – shelves (shelf – shelves);
- Thief - thieves (thief - thieves);
- Wife - wives (wife - wives);
- Wolf - wolves (wolf - wolves).
Other nouns ending in f are pluralized using the ending –s, which is pronounced [s]:
- Chief – chiefs (chief – chiefs);
- Cliff – cliffs (cliff – cliffs);
- Roof – roofs (roof – roofs);
- Kerchief – kerchiefs (kerchief – kerchiefs, scarf – shawls).
Exception words
A number of nouns form their plural in a special way that does not follow the rules, namely by changing the vowel at the base of the word. This is an old way of forming the plural of nouns, so the forms of these plural words need to be remembered:
- Child – children (child – children);
- Foot – feet (side – feet);
- Goose - geese (goose - geese);
- Man – men (man – men, man – people);
- Woman [‘wumən] [‘women] – women [‘wɪmɪn] ([‘wimen] woman – women);
- Mouse – mice (mouse – mice);
- Ox – oxen (bull – bulls);
- Tooth – teeth (tooth – teeth);
- Louse - lice (louse - louse).
Noun man often forms words with other nouns, usually denoting nationalities or professions. In these cases, man becomes plural as follows:
- Englishman - Englishmen (English - English);
- Fireman - firemen (fireman - firefighters);
- Businessman - businessmen (businessman - businessmen).
Matching singular and plural forms
There are nouns that have the same singular and plural form (a word in the plural is the same as in the singular):
- sheep (sheep - sheep),
- swine (pig - pigs),
- fish (fish - fish),
- salmon (salmon – salmon);
- trout (trout - trout);
- deer (deer - deer)
- works (factory – factories);)
- carft (ship - ship);
- aircraft (aircraft – airplanes);
- means (means - means);
- series (series - series).
Such nouns also include names of nationalities that end in –ese And - ss, For example:
- Chinese – Chinese, Chinese woman, Chinese;
- Japanese – Japanese, Japanese;
- Swiss - Swiss, Swiss.
Plural of nouns borrowed from Latin and Greek
Some words borrowed from Latin and Greek in the 15th century retain their plural forms:
Latin words:
- Antenna (antenna) – antennae;
- Datum (given value) – data;
- Erratum (printing error) – errata;
- Formula (formula) – formulae;
- Genius (spirit, demon) – genii;
- Radius (radius) – radii;
- Stimulus (stimulus) – stimuli.
Greek words:
- Bacterium (bacterium) - bacteria;
- Crisis (crisis) – crises;
- Ellipsis (ellipse) – ellipses;
- Thesis (thesis) – theses;
- Criterion (criterion) – criteria;
- Phenomenon (phenomenon) – phenomenal;
- Stadium (stadium) – stadia.
Pluralizing compound nouns
Complex nouns are formed into the plural in a special way.
If a compound noun is written together, then the ending –s (–es) is added to the last part of the word:
- Schoolboy - schoolboys (schoolboy - schoolchildren);
- Blackboard - blackboards (board - boards).
If a compound noun is written hyphenated, then the ending is given to that part of the complex noun that carries the main meaning:
- Daughter-in-law – daughters-in-law (daughter-in-law – daughters-in-law);
- Passer-by – passers – by (passer-by – passers-by).
Nouns that are used only in the singular
(Singularia Tantum)
There are nouns in English that only have a singular form. These include:
- Nouns denoting products: bread - bread, tea - tea, milk - milk.
- Abstract nouns: love - love, advice - advice.
- Words with the suffix -ics: athletics - athletics, mathematics - mathematics.
- Names of games, diseases that end in - s: billiards - billiards, mumps - mumps.
- Such nouns as: weather - weather, luggage - luggage, furniture - furniture, money - money, news - news.
Nouns that are used only in the plural
(Pluralia Tantum)
There are nouns in English that only have a plural form. These include:
- Nouns denoting paired objects: trousers - trousers, pyjamas (pajamas) - pajamas, scissors - scissors, glasses - glasses, binoculars - binoculars.
- Some collective items: clothes - clothes, goods - goods, people - people, police - police, cattle - livestock.
Nouns that have only a singular or only a plural form are uncountable nouns, i.e. those that cannot be counted. Singularia Tantum agrees with words only in the singular, Pluralia Tantum - only in the plural. With words of this group in the singular, the indefinite article a/an is never used; Instead of the indefinite article, the indefinite pronoun some is used:
- Some milk - milk (a little, some amount of milk);
- Some bread - bread (a little, some amount of bread).
However, some nouns have special forms of singular formation or denotation of some quantity;
- A piece of advice - one piece of advice;
- A piece of furniture - a piece of furniture;
- A piece of news - one piece of news;
- A piece of water - a glass of water;
- A piece of bread - a loaf of bread;
- A piece of meat - a kilogram of meat;
- A piece of sugar - a kilogram of sugar;
- A piece of flour - a kilogram of flour, etc.
Remember that ONLY nouns take the plural form! Adjectives before a noun do not agree with number:
- Young girls - young girls;
- Little boys - little boys.
Designation of a group of people
The subject (who? what?), expressed by a noun that denotes a group of people, agrees with the predicate in the singular or plural:
- in the singular, if the group is perceived as a single whole: Our team was the best in the country. - Our team was the best in the country.
- in the plural when referring to all team members: Our team were all given medals. — All members of our team got medals.
Dependence of the meaning of some nouns on their number
Some nouns, depending on the number in which they are used, can change their meaning:
- people (people) - peoples (peoples);
- glass (glass) - glasses (glasses);
- wood (wood) - woods (forest);
- hair (hair) - hairs (hairs).
Despite the fact that the rule seems quite complicated, remember the variety of endings for plural nouns in the Russian language (pines, people, trees, bills, reptiles, troubles, negotiations, etc.). For comparison - girls, ladies, classes. We wish you success!
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