The Table Below Shows the Use of Regular Singular and Plural Nouns.
Table 2.1
The List of Regular Singular and Plural Nouns
The words ending Singular
Plural
The plural of most nouns is formed by adding final “s”
Plate Plates
Table Tables
Student Students
The nouns ending “ss”
Boss Bosses
Glass Glasses
Class Classes
Nouns ending in “ch”
Bench Benches
Catch Catches
Beach Beaches
Nouns endingin “sh”
Bush Bushes
Dish Dishes
Flash Flashes
Nouns ending in “x”
Fox Foxes
Ax Axes
Box Boxes
Nouns endingin “z”
Quiz Quizzes
Fez Fezzes
Nouns endingin “dg”
Judge Judges
Noun ending in “y” Baby
Babies Cry
Cries City
Cities Nouns ending in “o”
Veto Vetoes
Buffalo Buffaloes
Mosquito Mosquitoes
5. Definition of Irregular Plural Nouns
An Irregular Plural noun is an Irregular noun in the Plural form. An Irregular noun is a noun that becomes plural noun by changing it’s spelling in
other ways than adding an “s” or “es” to the ending of the word. This change can
happen in variety ways.
14
Irregular plural nouns are generally nouns that follow older patterns of Englishor are nouns that have been borrowed from Latin or Greek and thus take
the Latinor Greek plural formation. In the case of words that have been borrowed from Latinor Greek, there is a tendency for them to adopt over time the regular
English plural –s inflection. Therefore, we see words such as syllabus that actually
have two pluralforms, the original syllabi and the English syllabuses.
15
a. The form of Irregular Plural
Irregular plurals based on older English may take the form of: a An internal change.
Example Man
→ men
Foot →
feet Mouse
→ mice
b An en ending. Example
Child →
children Ox
→ oxen
Brother → Brethren the older plural of
brother is found mainly in religious contexts. c There are a number of animal that have the same singular and plural form.
Example Sheep
→ sheep
Deer →
deer
14
Ibid.,
15
DeCapu, op. cit., p.50,.
Fish →
fish Bison
→ bison
Swine →
swine Shrimp
→ shrimp
d The singular has the same form as the plural. Example
Series →
series means
→ means
e Many foreign word s retain their foreign plural in English. 1 Singular us ending becomes plural I ending.
Example Stimulus
→ stimuli
Radius →
radii 2 Singular a ending becomes plural ae ending.
Example Larva
→ larvae
Vertebra →
vertebrae 3 Singular um ending becomes plural a ending.
Example Memorandum
→ memoranda Stratum
→ strata
some such word are used chiefly in the plural. Example
Data and bacteria 4 Singular is ending becomes plural es ending.
Example Crisis
→ crises
Parenthesis →
parentheses 5 Singular on ending becomes plural a ending.
Example Criterion
→ criteria
Phenomenon → phenomena
6 Singular uex or ix ending becomes plural ices ending. Example
Vortex →
vortices Matrix
→ matrices
7 Singular eau ending becomes plural eaux ending. Example
Bureau →
bureau Plateau
→ plateau
There is an increasing tendency for regular “s” plural to alternate with
foreign plural. The dictionary therefore also records such plural as memorandum, vertebras, vortexes, criterions, and bureaus.
No plural is used for nouncountable words such as information, advice, clothing, and furniture.
Some noun words ending “s” are singular nouncountable nouns, especially names of diseases and fields of study news, measles,
economics. However, when words that name fields of study are used for practical matters, such words are often considered plural.
Example His businesses are very questionable
The acoustics in this room are not good Some words ending
in “s” are used chiefly as plural ashes, brains, goods, riches. In this group are words for items that have two parts scissors, spectacles,
pliers, and trouser. The Table Below Shows the Use of Irregular Singular and Plural Nouns.
Table 2.2
The Form of Irregular Plural Nous
Singular Plural
Arti
Man Men
Laki-laki Foot
Feet Kaki
Tooth Teeth
Gigi Mouse
Mice Tikus
Child Children
Anak-anak Sheep
Sheep Biri-biri
Deer Deer
Rusa Datum
Data Data
Criterion Criteria
Criteria Crisis
Crises Krisis
Fish Fish
Ikan Series
Series Seri
Louse Lice
Kutu Goose
Geese Angsa
6. Irregular Plural from Latin and Greek
English has borrowed a great many words from Latin and Greek. Many nouns particularly ones from Latin have retained their original plurals from
some time after they are introduced. Other nouns have become Anglicized, taking on the normal final “s”. In some case, both forms are still competing.
The choice of a form can often depend on context: for a linguist, the plural of appendix is appendices following the original language, for physician,
however, the plural of appendix is appendixes. Likewise, a radio engineer works with antennas and an entomologist deals with antennae. Choice of form can also
depend on the level of discourse: traditional Latin plurals are found more often in academic and scientific context, whereas, in daily speech the anglicized forms are
more common. In the following table, the Latin plurals are listed together with the Anglicized forms when they are more common.
Table 2.3
The List of Irregular Plural Nouns from Latin and Greek Original Singular
Original Plural From
Phenomenon Phenomena
Latin and Greek Criterion
Criteria Latin and Greek
Bacterium Bacteria
Latin
