Plural Nouns.doc

Plural Nouns1. Plurals of individual nounsNumber indicates whether you are talking about one or more than one person, place or thing. If you are referring to only one, the noun is in the singular number. If you are referring to more than one, the noun is in the plural number. The plural forms of most nouns are made by adding -s to the singular forms. But if the singular ends with -s, -x, -z, -ch, or -sh, th e plural is made by adding -es.SingularPluralSingular Pluralpaper papers lunch lunchestaxi taxis dress dressesidea ideas quiz quizzesmenu menus brush brushesgame gamesbox boxesWords that end with -o are different. If such vowels as -a, -e, -i, -o, and -u come just before the -o, only -s is added: studios. If a consonant comes just before -o, usually only -s is added. But in some words, -es is added. You should memorize these common -es words:cargoes mosquitoes potatoes torpedoesechoes mottoes tomatoes vetoesheroes Negroes tornadoes volcanoesWords that end with -y form the plural in two ways. Generally, the -y is changed to -i and -es is added.country-countries company-companies army-armiesBut proper names are exceptions, e.g.Henry-Henrys Mary-MarysIf a noun ends in -y preceded by a vowel, the plural is formed simply by adding -s, e.g.boy-boys key-keys The plural of noun ending with -f or -fe is formed, sometimes by adding -s, sometimes by changing -f or -fe to -ves. For this there is no all purpose rule.leaf leaves chief chiefshalf halves gulf gulfslife livesproofproofsself selvesroofroofswife wives safe safesStill we should pay attention to the following points:a. A few nouns form the plural by change of a letter or letters in the middle of the word: tooth-teethwoman-womengoose-geesefoot-feet mouse-mice louse-liceb. A few nouns have the same form in both numbers, e.g.deersheepyokemeansChineselijinyuanc. Names of things consisting of two similar halves, e.g. scissors, trousers, scales, spectacles, tongs, pants, shorts, etc., and some -ing participles usually take plural forms, e.g. savings, belongings, tidings, etc. Some other nouns always take plural forms in certain sense, e.g. contents（目录），slums（贫民区），goods（货物），thanks（感谢），remains（遗物，遗体），etc.d. Examples of double plural formscloth cloths 不同的布clothes 衣服fish fish 可指一尾或多尾鱼fishes 不同种类的鱼fruit fruit 水果的总称fruits 不同种类的水果genius geniuses 天才genii 鬼shotshots 开枪的次数shot 投篮e. The plural forms of some nouns may have different meaning from their singular forms, e.g.air 空气airs 架子、架式condition 情况conditions 条件、环境arm 手臂 arms 武器letter 字母letters 文学 custom 风俗 customs 关税minute 分钟minutes 记录 礼貌lo