This post helps us understand what singular and plural nouns are, how a singular noun is changed into a plural noun, and how we identify them in a sentence.
What is a singular noun in English?
A singular noun in English is a noun that refers to a person, place, thing, or something else that is one in number. When it functions as a subject, it takes a singular verb.
| Person | Place | Thing | Animal |
| Jon | Delhi | Bed | Tiger |
| Man | School | Bat | Lion |
| Singer | Country | Book | Elephant |
| Father | Park | Pen | Monkey |
| Brother | Garden | Phone | Dog |
| Teacher | Hospital | Chair | Horse |
| Worker | Staduim | Door | Pig |
| Student | Jungle | Bus | Goat |
| Policeman | Town | Apple | Zebra |
Types of singular nouns in English
A singular noun can belong to a variety of types based on its unique features. Here are the main types of singular nouns:
| Types of nouns | Definition | Singular | Plural |
| Proper noun | It is a specific name given to a noun: person, thing, place, subject, concept, or any other thing. | Ashish, India, Delhi, Google, Mount Everest, Diwali, January… | It is not changed into the plural form as it refers to one specific person, place, or thing. |
| Common noun | It is a name that creates a class of something or someone. It refers to a thing, person, place, or something else without making it specific. | man, country, city, company, mountain, festival, month, cat, school, match… | men, countries, cities, companies, mountains, festivals, months, cats, schools, matches… |
| Collective noun | It is a name given to a collection of something sharing one common feature. The entire group works as one entity and is often considered singular in English. | army, class, jury, family, team, society… | armies, classes, juries, families, teams, societies… |
| Material noun | It refers to a name of a material something is made out of. In other words, it refers to the name of a material that is physical in nature. | diamond, gold, silver, wood, bread, cheese, water, sand… | It is not changed into the plural form as it refers to one specific person, place, or thing… |
| Abstract noun | It is a name given to something that does not have a physical existence. It refers to the name of a feeling, emotion, concept, idea, subject, activity, quality, stage of human life, etc. | love, hate, loyalty, growth, loss, win, promotion, devotion, failure, liberty, honesty, justice, joy… | Note that some abstract nouns have a plural form, and some don’t. losses, wins, promotions, failures |
Examples:
- Jon Jones is believed to be the best MMA fighter.
- Open the gate. There is a person waiting for me outside.
- My team has all the courage and determination to get the deal.
- Make my tea without sugar.
- His house costs more than my entire building does.
- You live and die for your family.
- Love always wins over hate.
What is a plural noun in English?
A plural noun in a word that refers to more than one of a something/someone—person, place, animal, thing, etc. Most plural nouns in English are formed by adding ‘s’, or ‘es’ at the end of a singular noun. There are also other ways to form a plural noun from a singular noun, which we will understand in the post further.
Also, note that some plural nouns are not formed by adding ‘s/es or anything else at the end of a singular noun.
How to change a singular noun to a plural noun?
There are ways in which a singular noun is changed into a plural noun. Now, we will be looking at a couple of ways in which singular nouns are changed into plural nouns.
Singular and plural nouns (by adding ‘s’)
| Singular noun | Plural noun |
| Car | Cars |
| Dog | Dogs |
| Student | Students |
| Teacher | Teachers |
| House | Houses |
| Phone | Phones |
| Laptop | Laptops |
| School | Schools |
| Garden | Gardens |
| Mountain | Mountains |
Singular and plural nouns (by adding ‘es’)
| Singular noun | Plural noun |
| Bus | Buses |
| Church | Churches |
| Class | Classes |
| Dress | Dress |
| Box | Boxes |
| Dish | Dishes |
| Brush | Brushes |
| Match | Matches |
| Speech | Speeches |
| Tomato | Tomatoes |
| Potato | Potatoes |
| Hero | Heroes |
| Zero | Zeroes |
| Mango | Mangoes |
| Boss | Bosses |
| Loss | Losses |
| Address | Addresses |
| Guess | Guesses |
| Kiss | Kisses |
Note that singular nouns that end with ss, x, and ch are often changed into plural nouns by adding ‘es’ at the end of the singular noun. However, don’t assume that all words (singular nouns) ending with such combinations of letters would be changed into the plural form by adding ‘es’ at the end of the singular nouns.
Some singular nouns ending with ‘ss’
- Boss
- Toss
- Address
- Waitress
- Class
- Dress
- Glass
Some singular nouns ending with ‘x’
- Box
- Duplex
- Fox
- Fax
- Index
- Tax
- Xerox
Some singular nouns ending with ‘ch’
- Match
- Catch
- Batch
- Branch
- Bitch
- Couch
- Church
- Leech
- Pouch
- Porch
- Touch
Singular and plural nouns (by adding ‘ies’)
| Singular noun | Plural noun |
| Lorry | Lorries |
| Spy | Spies |
| Baby | Babies |
| Candy | Candies |
| Possibility | Possibilities |
| Impossibility | Impossibilities |
| Ability | Abilities |
| City | Cities |
| Duty | Duties |
| Liability | Liabilities |
| Country | Countries |
| Family | Families |
| Jury | Juries |
| Society | Societies |
Notice that all these singular nouns end with the letter ‘y’. When changed into plural nouns, we replace the letter ‘y’ with ‘ies’.
Singular and plural nouns (by adding ‘ves’)
| Singular noun | Plural noun |
| Theif | Thives |
| Shelf | Shelves |
| Dwarf | Dwarves |
| Life | Lives |
| Wife | Wives |
| Knife | Knives |
| Wolf | Wolves |
| Leaf | Leaves |
Notice that the singular nouns that end with the letter ‘f’ or ‘fe’ are replaced with ‘ves‘.
All of these (patterns) help us get familiar with how plural nouns are formed in English. But it is quintessential for us not to assume that all plural nouns are formed using these patterns or that all the singular nouns follow these patterns. Many don’t.
Examples of singular and plural nouns:
- My men know what to do with a person like you.
- My friends run a business.
- Your brother always borrows my dresses.
- All the classes will be suspended till the end of this month.
- Some thieves stole my only bike the other day.
- The possibility of winning the match is still high.
- Delhi is better than most cities in India.
- I want to use my life to save other lives.
- Leaving this match, all the other matches were fixed.
- The teacher gave me a box of chocolates after getting the highest marks on the test.
Irregular singular and plural nouns
Irregular plural nouns don’t follow certain rules when it comes to being formed from singular nouns. The best way to learn them is to read and listen to the language as much as possible.
Nouns that have the same singular and plural form
| Singular noun | Plural noun |
| Series | Series |
| Deer | Deer |
| Fish | Fish |
| Sheep | Sheep |
| Offspring | Offspring |
The writer’s note
It’s essential for us to understand we can’t learn all the words in English or the words that end with certain letters. It is not even a natural way of learning. This is for us to observe and study the language. The best way to learn these or anything else in English or any other language is to expose yourself to it as much as possible.
Read and listen to the language as much as possible, and you’ll see your understanding of the language hiking up gradually. There is no shortcut to it.
Now, we know what singular and plural nouns are. Feel free to share your question, doubt, or feedbacks in the comment section, and also, share the post with the people that need it.
For one-on-one classes, contact me at [email protected].
FAQs
What is a singular and plural noun?
Singular nouns refer to something/someone that is one in number, and plural nouns refer to more than one of a something/someone—person, place, animal, thing, etc.
What are 10 examples of singular nouns?
Some of the singular nouns in English are the following: cat, bat, man, phone, school, friend, city, house, tiger, room, father, dancer, bed, laptop, etc.
What are 15 examples of irregular nouns?
Here’s the list of some irregular nouns in English: man (men), women (women), mouse (mice), child (children), tooth (teeth), crisis (crises), analysis (analysis), goose (geese), deer (deer), fish (fish), sheep (sheep), series (series), and thesis (theses).
What are 5 nouns that are always singular?
Love, hate, courage, honesty, and water are some of the nouns that are used only in the singular form. They don’t have plural forms.
Is furniture plural or singular?
Furniture is one of the words (nouns) that only have a singular form. It does not refer to any specific equipment (chair, table, bed, sofa…). It refers to the entire class of objects mainly made of wood and used in houses. You can’t count furniture; we can count chairs, tables, beds, etc. Therefore, it takes a singular verb.
What is the plural of sheep?
Sheep is one of the few nouns that have the same singular and plural form. Fish, deer, series, and sheep are some of those nouns.
What is the plural of deer?
Deer is one of the few nouns that have the same singular and plural form. Fish, deer, series, and sheep are some of those nouns.
What is the plural of water?
Water is a mass (material) noun. Since we can’t count it, it does not have a plural form and is considered singular.
