Plural of nouns
I. General rule
As in french, we generally form the plural of nouns by adding $\textbf{"-S"}$ to the singular noun.
Eg:
- A dog $\rightarrow$ dogs ;
- A cow $\rightarrow$ cows.
II. Particular plural
A. Words ending in s,ch,sh ,x,o,z take “es†in the plural form.
- S : a glass $\rightarrow$ glasses
- CH : a watch $\rightarrow$ watches
- SH : a dish $\rightarrow$ dishes
- X : a box $\rightarrow$ boxes
- O : a tomato $\rightarrow$ tomatoes
- Z : a buzz $\rightarrow$ buzzes
$\textbf{NB:}$ Exception is made with : piano and photo we just add $\textbf{"-s"}$ in the plural form
Eg:
- a piano $\rightarrow$ pianos
- a photo $\rightarrow$ photos
B. Words ending in “Y†and preceded by a consonant take “ies†in plural form.
Eg:
- A family $\rightarrow$families
- A story $\rightarrow$ stories
C. Words ending in ef, f, fe , take “ves†in plural form|
Eg:
- a thief → thieves ; a wife→wives
- a self→shelves (étagère)
III. Irregular plural
Some nouns do not respect the general rule or do not respect the preceeding rules. we call this the irregular plural. one should know them by heart.
A tooth→teeth
A foot→feet
A child→children
A man→men
A woman→women
A mouse →mice
A goose→geese
An ox→oxen
A criterion→criteria
A phenomenon→phenomena