The Category of number.

English countable nouns have two numbers – the singular and the plural.

The main types of the plural forms of English nouns are as follows:

1.1.1. The general rule for forming the plural of English nouns is by adding the ending –s ( -es) to the singular; -s is pronounced in different ways:

[ iz ] after sibilants [z], [s], [ʒ], [ʃ], [dʒ], [tʃ]: noses, horses, bridges.

[ z ] after voiced consonants other than sibilants and after vowels: flowers, beds, doves, bees, boys.

[ s ] after voiceless consonants other than sibilants: caps, books, hats, cliffs.

1.1.2. If the noun ends in –s, -ss, -x, -sh, -ch, or –tch, the plural is formed by adding –es to the singular:

bus – buses

glass – glasses

box – boxes

brush – brushes

bench – benches

match – matches

1.1.3. If the noun ends in a consonant and –y, the letter –y usually changes into –i before –es:

sky - skies

fly – flies

army – armies

lady – ladies

But the letter –y remains unchanged before -s :

a)in proper names:

Mary – Marys

Kennedy – the Kennedys

February - Februarys

b) in compound nouns:

stand-by – stand-bys

lay-by – lay-bys

c) after vowels:

day – days

key – keys

toy - toys

1.1.4. If the noun ends in a consonant and –o, the plural is generally formed by adding –es.

cargo – cargoes

hero – heroes

potato – potatoes

echo – echoes

The following nouns ending in –o form the plural in –s and not in –es:

a) all nouns ending in a vowel and –o:

cuckoo – cuckoos

portfolio – portfolios

b) abbreviations:

photograph/photo – photos

automobile/auto – autos

kilogramme/kilo – kilos

professional/pro – pros

c) musical terms of Italian origin:

piano –pianos

cello – cellos

solo – solos

concerto - concertos

d) proper nouns:

Eskimo – Eskimos

Romeo – Romeos

There are a few nouns ending in –o which form the plural both in –s and –es:

mosquito – mosquitos or mosquitoes

tornado – tornados or tornadoes

volcano- volcanos or volcanoes

zero – zeros or zeroes

1.1.5

a) The following nouns ending in –f /-fe change it into - ves in the plural:

calf – calves

elf – elves

half – halves

knife – knives

leaf – leaves

life – lives

loaf – loaves

self – selves

sheaf – sheaves

shelf - shelves

thief – thieves

wife – wives

wolf – wolves

Other nouns ending in –f/-fe do not change the final letter before –s):

belief – beliefs

chief – chiefs

cliff – cliffs

gulf – gulfs

grief – griefs

proof - proofs

roof - roofs

safe – safes

still life – still lifes

There are some nouns ending in –f which have two forms in the plural:

Dwarf – dwarfs or dwarves

Hoof – hoofs or hooves

Scarf – scarfs or scarves

Wharf – wharfs or wharves

1.2. For historical reasons certain nouns form their plural differently.

1.2.1. There are seven nouns which form the plural by changing the root vowel:

man – men

woman – women

foot – feet

tooth- teeth

goose – geese

mouse – mice

louse – lice

1.2.2. There are two nouns which form the plural in –en:

Ox – oxen

Child – children

1.2.3. With some nouns the plural form does not differ from the singular: deer, sheep, swine, fish, trout, salmon, craft (with the meaning of boat), aircraft, means, series, species, headquarters, works, crossroads, barracks etc.

E. g. This sheep looks small. All thosesheep are good.

The poor traveller was swallowed by a hugefish. We caught three fish that afternoon.

N O T E. – The noun fish has the plural form fishes to denote different kinds of fish.

E. g. He studies the fishes of the Indian ocean.

1.3. Some words borrowed from Latin and Greek keep their Latin or Greek plural forms:

Singular

-is [is]

analysis

diagnosis

oasis

parenthesis

thesis

Plural

-es [i:z]

analyses

diagnoses

oases

parentheses

theses

-on [ǝn]/-um [ǝ]

criterion

phenomenon

datum

stratum

medium

bacterium

curriculum

-a [ǝ]

criteria

phenomena

data

strata

media

bacteria

curricula

-us [ǝs]

stimulus

nucleus

radius

corpus

genus

-i [ai]/ -ora [ǝrǝ]/ -era [ǝrǝ]

stimuli

nuclei

radii

corpora

genera

-a [ǝ]

-ae [i:]

antenna

vertebra

antennae

vertebrae

formula

-ix/ -ex [iks]

appendix

index

-ices [isi:z]

appendices ( or appendixes)

indices ( or indexes)

1.4. In compound nouns the plural is formed in different ways.

1.4.1. As a rule in compounds it is the second component that takes the plural form:

Housewife –housewives

Toothbrush – toothbrushes

Boy-scout – boy-scouts

Maidservant –maidservants

1.4.2. Compounds ending in –man change it into –men in spelling. In pronunciation, however, there is no difference between the singular and plural forms:

Policeman – policemen

Postman –postmen

Such nouns as German, Roman, etc. are not compounds, and therefore have regular plurals:

German – Germans

Roman - Romans

1.4.3. Compounds in which the first component is man or woman have the plurals in both first and last components:

Man-servant – men-servants

Woman-doctor – women-doctors

C o m p a r e: man-killer – man-killers (someone or something that kills men)/men-killers (men that kill)

1.4.4. In compounds which consist of two nouns connected by a preposition the first noun takes the plural form:

Editor-in-chief - editors-in-chief

Mother-in-law - mothers-in-law

Man-of-war - men-of-war

1.4.5. In compound nouns formed by a noun plus a preposition or an adverbial the plural ending is added to the noun:

Passer-by - passers-by

Looker-on - lookers-on

C O M P A R E: onlooker - onlookers, bystander - bystanders

1.4.6. If a compound does not include any nouns, the last element takes the plural ending:

Forget-me-not - forget-me-nots

Merry-go-round - merry-go-rounds

Break-down - break-downs

Grown-up - grown-ups

Stand-by - stand-bys

Press-up - press-ups

1.5. The word penny has two plural forms: pence (irregular) and pennies (regular).

Penceis used to denote a sum of money.

E.g. There are 100 pence in one pound.

The bus fare is 80 pence.

Pennies is used for individual coins.

E.g. Pennies are made of bronze.

I’ve only got a few pennies left.

1.6. The following English nouns have regular plural forms, while the corresponding Russian nouns are always plural.

Watch - watches

Clock - clocks

Gate - gates

Sledge - sledges

Vacation - vacations

Funeral - funerals

Necklace - necklaces

Note:The noun fruit is uncountable.

E.g. Fruit is eaten either raw or cooked.

Try to eat plenty of fruit and vegetables.

Peaches are my favourite fruit.

However, it is used as a countable noun when it means different kinds of fruit.

E.g. The drink is made from four tropical fruits.

The potato is a vegetable, not a fruit.

Date: 2015-12-18; view: 911