English Grammar

Plural nouns

The simplest method of forming a plural is by adding –s or –es to the singular. Examples are: dog (singular)/dogs (plural), book/books, tree/trees, box/boxes and boy/boys

A few dozen nouns form their plurals irregularly.

Examples are: child/children, man/men, woman/women, tooth/teeth, mouse/mice, sheep/sheep, radius/radii, phenomenon/phenomena, bacterium/bacteria.

Some nouns are unusual in having only a singular form or only a plural form. Nouns which have only a singular form include furniture, wheat, happiness, gratitude, abuse, information, clothing, gossip, poetry, scenery, advice and news.

Nouns which have only a plural form include police, cattle, oats, tweezers, pants, remains, scissors, binoculars, shorts, trousers, drawers and socks. We cannot say a pant or a cattle, and we must say instead a pair of pants or a herd of cattle.

With some nouns, the plural is identical to the singular. Examples are: sheep, deer, swine, fish and salmon.

• This sheep is hungry.
• These sheep are hungry.

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