Making Nouns Plural

ESL Helpful Handouts

Page 1 of 21

Making Nouns Plural Nouns are people, places, and things.

People Singular

boy

Plural

Singular

boys

man

Plural

men

Places Singular

Plural

house

houses

Singular

city

Plural

cities

Things Singular

Plural

Singular

mouse hat

Plural

mice

hats

Free Handout – http://sites.google.com/site/eslhelpfulhandouts Photos: www.flickr.com (Creative Commons License) See photo acknowledgments on page 21.

ESL Helpful Handouts

Page 2 of 21

To make the plural form of most nouns, add –s.

Singular book table

Plural books tables

Exercise 1 Here is a list of nouns that you may find in a classroom. Write the plural forms of these nouns.

Singular book computer desk eraser map pen pencil paper student table teacher

Plural

The plural form of classroom is classrooms.

Exercise 2 The five plural nouns in the box are in this word search puzzle. Circle these words.

The words can appear horizontally, vertically diagonally, and backwards. The answers are on page 19.

T K X Y K Z X W W J S C C M Z

M E K S H D G E C P O F J L F

J A A K X P F L A M L N J H P

K T H C P B H M P Q W L F S E

X V F L H G I U U U N H W S K

Q G M J P E T K S T W I E T J

X W T G I E R Q F X N H S U I

I C E T R C S S P A C F S D Y

A I A S B P Q C U U P C U E R

W L E X K T M I M K T T N N Z

Q L U A R M K D A I V S Y T G

X L A Q W V Y P B O O K S S X

D Q T T F L E J L C R A Q Y T

H W I O X I W K A Y Q Q O M D

L K L G L M R I U A H P Z F X

books computers maps students teachers

Free Handout – http://sites.google.com/site/eslhelpfulhandouts Photos: www.flickr.com (Creative Commons License) See photo acknowledgments on page 21.

ESL Helpful Handouts

Page 3 of 21

When a noun ends in a consonant + y, change the y to -i and add –es to form the plural.

Singular baby butterfly city country dictionary discovery lady library party

Plural babies butterflies cities countries dictionaries discoveries ladies libraries parties

Exercise 3 Write the plural of each noun on the line provided.

baby ______________

butterfly _______________________

city

country

__________________________

dictionary

discovery

lady

_______________________

_______________

______________________

______________________

library _______________

party _________________________

Free Handout – http://sites.google.com/site/eslhelpfulhandouts Photos: www.flickr.com (Creative Commons License) See photo acknowledgments on page 21.

ESL Helpful Handouts

Page 4 of 21

When a noun ends in a consonant + y, change the y to -i and add –es to form the plural.

Exercise 4 Read the clues to the crossword puzzle and fill in the blanks. Insert these words into the puzzle. Use the plural form of these singular nouns: baby, butterfly, city, country, dictionary, discovery, lady, library, party. The answers are on page 19.

The Clues Across 3. The scientists make many new ___________________.

7. There are five ___________________ in our city. They have books on many different subjects.

9. South Africa and India are ____________________.

Down 1. There are two ____________________ in my flower garden.

2. The ____________________ go shopping for new dresses.

4. Paris and Madrid are ____________________.

5. The ____________________ are in the nursery.

6. Melanie goes to many__________________ during the Christmas holidays.

8. John has two ______________. He uses one for English words and he uses the other for Spanish words.

Free Handout – http://sites.google.com/site/eslhelpfulhandouts Photos: www.flickr.com (Creative Commons License) See photo acknowledgments on page 21.

ESL Helpful Handouts

Page 5 of 21

When a noun ends in a vowel + y, add –s to form the plural.

boy

boys

Singular boy day guy key holiday jockey journey monkey toy trolley

Plural boys days guys keys holidays jockeys journeys monkeys toys trolleys

Exercise 5 Circle the correct spelling of these plural nouns.

jokceys

jockyes

jockeys

guys

guies

holidaies

holidays

gyus

hollydays

Free Handout – http://sites.google.com/site/eslhelpfulhandouts Photos: www.flickr.com (Creative Commons License) See photo acknowledgments on page 21.

ESL Helpful Handouts

Page 6 of 21

When a noun ends in a vowel + y, add –s to form the plural.

Exercise 6 Fill in the missing letters of these plural nouns from page 5. The answers are on page 19.

d __ y ___

tr __l __e__s

__ o __ k __ y __

jo __ r __ e y __

__ o __ s

__ e __ s

b __ y __

Exercise 7 Use the words on page 5 to fill in the blank with a singular or plural noun. The answers are on page 19.

1. A _____________________ rides a horse.

2. There are ____________________ at the zoo.

3. The children are playing with their ____________________.

4. The ____________________ is in the classroom.

5. There are seven ____________________ in one week.

6. The ____________________ are playing football.

7. Janet has _____________________ to her apartment and her car.

8. Christmas and Easter are ____________________.

9. You are going to France. Have a pleasant ____________________.

10. Mary rides the ____________________ when she goes downtown.

Free Handout – http://sites.google.com/site/eslhelpfulhandouts Photos: www.flickr.com (Creative Commons License) See photo acknowledgments on page 21.

ESL Helpful Handouts

Page 7 of 21

Add -es to nouns ends in -ch, -sh, -ss, -x, or –z to form the plural.

Nouns that end in –ch

beach

match

sandwich

wrench

Exercise 8 Write the plural form of these nouns.

Singular beach match sandwich wrench

Plural

Exercise 9 Fill in the blank with a singular or plural noun.

1. It’s a sunny day. Let’s go to the ____________________.

2. Bill needs a couple of ____________________ to fix the car engine.

3. I need some ____________________ to light the fire.

4. Jim eats a ____________________ at lunch time.

Exercise 10 Unscramble each of the plural nouns. Copy the numbered cell to the other cells with the same number. A surprise sentence will appear. The answer is on page 19.

Free Handout – http://sites.google.com/site/eslhelpfulhandouts Photos: www.flickr.com (Creative Commons License) See photo acknowledgments on page 21.

ESL Helpful Handouts

Page 8 of 21

Add -es to nouns ends in -ch, -sh, -ss, -x, or –z to form the plural.

Nouns that end in –sh

bushes

eyelashes

dishes

Exercise 11 Write the singular forms of these plural nouns.

Singular

Plural bushes dishes eyelashes

Exercise 12 Fill in the blank with the plural noun.

After supper we have to wash the ___________________.

She has long ____________________.

Mike trims the ____________________ in the front yard every weekend.

Exercise 13 The words that end in –sh have been chopped into small pieces. They are in their plural form.

Write the letters in the boxes so that you put the pieces of the words back together again.

Example:

b

hes

us

b

us

hes

s

e

sh

__bushes__

ye

e

la _________________________

i

d

sh

s

e ________________________

Free Handout – http://sites.google.com/site/eslhelpfulhandouts Photos: www.flickr.com (Creative Commons License) See photo acknowledgments on page 21.

ESL Helpful Handouts

Page 9 of 21

Add -es to nouns ends in -ch, -sh, -ss, -x, or –z to form the plural.

Nouns that end in –x and -z.

box

ax

fox

tax

quiz

Exercise 14 Write the plural form of these words.

Singular ax box fox quiz tax

Plural

Exercise 15

One of the above words is used in a sentence in this fallen phrase puzzle. Use the letters below each column to complete the sentence. Notice that the letters below each column are scrambled. (Hint: Ann and Betty have boxes full of something. The first word of the phrase is given.) The answer is on page 20.

Example:

I t a x t g o v e e v y e e y v t a g o I e

t x v e r

e p h a e e

p e h r e a

a s e n r r

y t o me n t y .

r n r s y a y t n m e o t

A

n

n

.

f j A

u e b n B

e h n l o w

a t x l e

l a e v t

e o n r y s

f d y

Free Handout – http://sites.google.com/site/eslhelpfulhandouts Photos: www.flickr.com (Creative Commons License) See photo acknowledgments on page 21.

ESL Helpful Handouts

Page 10 of 21

Some noun that end in –f or –fe change to –ves in the plural.

Words that end in -f Exercise 16 Write the plural forms of these nouns.

Singular calf half leaf loaf scarf thief wolf

Plural calves

scarves

Read these sentences and notice the singular and plural forms of the nouns.

A calf is a young cow. Calves are young cows.

One half is one of two equal parts. Halves are two equal parts of one whole thing.

A leaf is the part of a plant that grows from a branch. Leaves are the parts of a plant that grow from branches.

A loaf is bread that has been baked into one large piece. Loaves are large pieces of bread.

A scarf is a piece of cloth that you wear around your neck and head. Scarves are pieces of cloth that you wear around your neck and head.

A thief is someone who steals things. Thieves are people who steal things.

A wolf is a wild animal that is like a large dog. Wolves are wild animals that are like large dogs.

Exercise 17 Read the sentences above in order to find the words tthat answer the questions below.

Example: Which plural noun means “young cows”? __calves__ 1. Which plural noun means “parts of a plant that grow from branches"? ____________________ 2. Which plural noun means “wild animals that are like large dogs”? ____________________ 3. Which plural noun means “two equal parts of one whole thing?”

4. Which plural noun means “people who steal things”?

leaves

____________________

____________________

5. Which plural noun means “pieces of cloth that you wear around your neck and head”?

6. Which plural noun means “large pieces of bread”?

_____________

____________________

Free Handout – http://sites.google.com/site/eslhelpfulhandouts Photos: www.flickr.com (Creative Commons License) See photo acknowledgments on page 21.

ESL Helpful Handouts

Page 11 of 21

Some noun that end in –f or –fe change to –vest in the plural.

Words that end in –fe Exercise 18 Write the plural form of these nouns.

Singular knife life wife

Plural

knives

Exercise 16 Here are 2 cryptograms. Write the letter that corresponds with the number in each of the blanks below in order to form a sentence. The answers are on page 20.

Example: a d e h i m n o r s t v w 9

___ ___ ___ ___ ___ 25 15 16 23 11 ___ ___ 12 3

26

23

4

15

_W_ _i_ _v_ _e_ _s_ 25 15 16 23 11

m_ _a_ _r_ _r_ _i_ _e_ _d_ 24 9 20 20 15 23 26

_t_ _o_ 12 3

a 8

h 19

e 25

10

___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ 9 20 23 25 3 24 23 10

___ ___ ___.

24 23 10

c 1

24

f 5

g 4

___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ 13 18 6 2 25 11

3

20

___ ___ ___ ___ 12 4 9 12

11

12

16

25

___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ 9 20 23 24 9 20 20 15 23 26

_a_ _r_ _e_ _w_ _o_ _m_ _e_ _n_ 9 20 23 25 3 24 23 10

_t_ _h_ _a_ _t_ 12 4 9 12

_a_ _r_ _e_ 9 20 23

_m_ _e_ _n_.

24 23 10

i 6

___ ___ ___ 8 22 25

k 13

l 15

n 18

___ ___ ___ ___ ___ 11 19 8 22 12

o 21

p 12

r 22

s 11

___ ___ ___ ___ ___ 10 21 21 15 11

t 10

u 17

v 2

___ ___ ___ 5 21 22

___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___.

1 17 10 10 6 18 4

a 23

b 19

d 12

___ ___ ___ ___ ___ 18 20 10 26 13 ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ 19 20 8 24 4

e 26

h 4

i 20

___ ___ ___ 23 8 26 ___ ___ ___ 23 6 12

l 18

m 25

n 6

r 8

s 13

t 24

___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ 24 4 26 24 20 25 26 13

w 2

v 10

___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ 19 26 24 2 26 26 6

___ ___ ___ ___ ___.

12 26 23 24 4

Free Handout – http://sites.google.com/site/eslhelpfulhandouts Photos: www.flickr.com (Creative Commons License) See photo acknowledgments on page 21.

ESL Helpful Handouts

Page 12 of 21

Some nouns that end in a consonant + -o form the plural by adding –es.

a hero

an echo

some potatoes

three tomatoes

Exercise 19 Write the plural forms of these nouns.

Singular echo hero potato tomato

Plural

Exercise 20 Find and circle the plural nouns in the box on the right. The words can appear in the puzzle horizontally, vertically, diagonally, and backwards. A hidden sentence will appear between the circled words in the top 6 lines of the puzzle. Write the sentence below. The answer is on page 20.

P E T D E P Q L O C

B O C T S P N F H M

I T T H F E G Z H E

__ __ __ __ __ __ __

L O A A O R W E Z O

L M T O T E R A U D

A A O M O O S O O N

__ __ __

T T E A E L E F X P

E O S S R K A S Q T

P E A T S T D X R H

O S N O U U Q T O W

ECHOES HEROES POTATOES TOMATOES

__ __ __ __ __ __ __ __

tomatoes and potatoes

__ __ __

__ __ __ __ __ __ __ __

__ __ __ __ __ __ .

Free Handout – http://sites.google.com/site/eslhelpfulhandouts Photos: www.flickr.com (Creative Commons License) See photo acknowledgments on page 21.

ESL Helpful Handouts

Page 13 of 21

Some nouns that end in a consonant + -o, form the plural by adding –s.

auto Brian saw many unusual autos at the Washington auto show.

ghetto The mayor of the city wants to improve conditions in the ghettos.

memo She often writes memos on yellow Post it notes.

Beverly Sills

Geraldine Farrar

photo The photographer took hundreds of photos at the photo shoot.

piano The piano store sells new and used pianos.

soprano Beverly Sills and Geraldine Farrar were famous sopranos.

Exercise 21 The sentences below have been divided into parts. Find the matching parts of each sentence.

Example: _b_ Brian saw

a. new and used pianos. b. many unusual autos at the auto store.

_____ The photographer took

a. at the auto store.

_____ Beverly Sills and Geraldine Farrar

b. new and used pianos.

_____ The mayor of the city

c. memos on yellow Post it notes.

_____ Brian saw many unusual autos

d. hundreds of photos at the photo shoot.

_____ The piano store sells

e. wants to improve conditions in the ghettos.

_____ She often writes

f. were famous sopranos.

Exercise 22 A new sentence has been scrambled. Unscramble the sentence and write it below. The answer is on page 20. photos

top

Mary’s

There

and

are

memos

desk.

on

of

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Free Handout – http://sites.google.com/site/eslhelpfulhandouts Photos: www.flickr.com (Creative Commons License) See photo acknowledgments on page 21.

ESL Helpful Handouts

Page 14 of 21

Nouns that end in a vowel + -o add –s to form the plural.

kilo some photos

radio

some tattoos

zoo

studio

tattoo

some videos Exercise 23 Enter the maze at tattoo. Find your way through the maze. Exit the maze at tattoos.

Exercise 24 Write the plural of each noun.

Singular

Plural

tattoos

kilo photo radio studio tattoo video zoo Free Handout – http://sites.google.com/site/eslhelpfulhandouts Photos: www.flickr.com (Creative Commons License) See photo acknowledgments on page 21.

ESL Helpful Handouts

Page 15 of 21

Some nouns that end in –o add either –s or –es to form the plural. Either way is correct. The –es form is most common.

mosquito

torpedo tornado

volcano zero

Exercise 25 Write the plural form of each noun.

Singular

Plural

mosquito tornado torpedo volcano zero Exercise 26 Stepping Stones. Write one letter in each circle. Follow the arrows to know where to place each letter.

Example: mosquitoes torpedoes m

o

o

t

s

i

q

u

e

s

volcanoes

tornadoes

zeroes

Free Handout – http://sites.google.com/site/eslhelpfulhandouts Photos: www.flickr.com (Creative Commons License) See photo acknowledgments on page 21.

ESL Helpful Handouts

Page 16 of 21

Some nouns have irregular plural forms.

Singular child foot goose man mouse ox tooth woman

Plural children feet geese men mice oxen teeth women goose

Exercise 27 Write the plural form of each noun.

Singular child foot goose man mouse ox tooth woman

Plural

Exercise 28 Fill in the blanks with singular and plural nouns.

Example: There is one child in the classroom. There are three __children__ on the playground.

How many children_ are on the playground? There are three __children__ on the playground.

How many __children__ are in the classroom? There is one __child__ in the classroom.

There is one man in the office.

There are five ____________ in the restaurant.

How many ____________ are in the restaurant?

There are five____________ in the restaurant.

How many ____________ are in the office?

There is one ____________ in the office.

There is one woman in the office.

There are nine ____________ in the supermarket.

How many ____________ are in the supermarket?

There are nine____________ in the supermarket.

How many ____________ are in the office?

There is one ____________ in the office.

There is one mouse in the house.

There are twenty ____________ in the field.

How many ____________ are in the field?

There are twenty ____________ in the field?

How many ____________ are in the house?

There is ____________ in the house.

Jim had an accident and lost a tooth.

The dentist pulled out all of my grandfather’s ____________.

How many of my grandfather’s____________ did the dentist pull out?

The dentist pulled out all of my grandfather’s ____________ .

How many ____________ did Jim loose in an accident?

Jim lost one ____________ in an accident.

teeth

Free Handout – http://sites.google.com/site/eslhelpfulhandouts Photos: www.flickr.com (Creative Commons License) See photo acknowledgments on page 21.

ESL Helpful Handouts

Page 17 of 21

Some nouns have the same singular and plural form.

deer

sheep

fish

Singular

deer fish sheep shrimp

shrimp

Plural deer fish sheep shrimp

Exercise 29 Write the plural form of each noun.

Singular

Plural

deer fish sheep shrimp Exercise 30 Riddles. Read the clues. Look up the words that you do not know in your bilingual dictionary.

Answer the questions with the singular or plural form of the nouns.

1. The Clues a. lives in the woods b. a wild animal c. the male has long horns What kind of animal is this? ____________________ How do you write the plural form? _________________

2. The Clues a. lives in water b. swims using its tail and fins c. is covered with scales What kind of animal is this? ____________________ How do you write the plural form? _____________

3. The Clues a. has a thin shell and a long tail b. lives in water c. a small pink animal that you can eat What kind of animal is this? ____________________ How do you write the plural form? _________________

4. The Clues a. a farm animal b. the skin is covered with wool c. eats grass What kind of animal is this? ____________________ How do you write the plural form? _____________

Free Handout – http://sites.google.com/site/eslhelpfulhandouts Photos: www.flickr.com (Creative Commons License) See photo acknowledgments on page 21.

ESL Helpful Handouts

Page 18 of 21

Some English nouns that are borrowed from other languages have different plural forms.

a bacterium

some data

some parentheses marks

some nuclei

Singular bacterium datum nucleus parenthesis

Plural bacteria data nuclei parentheses

Exercise 31 Write the plural form of each word.

Singular bacterium datum nucleus parenthesis

Plural

Exercise 32 Find the four plural nouns above in the spiral word search. They will appear horizontally and vertically. The answers are on page 21.

e t r h p j g k m h p n w f q t f p s

j i a i r e t c a b l y i q l i e w s

y s

z u

n x

p l

t e

s y

x p

d t

s m

i u

l a

i w

o n

h u e w f n b k a b k q p

d v r u c t f n z f d s y

q v

y e

m i

d l

q n

p y

a i

o y x p b m m u e r l e

r e

p l

y b r c

d y c s j t n

y u m p d j j

a b

n i y l

j y i d

j n

y e

v i

o t

l u m b x n f u n r

r f

q a

e i

k v

c t

l v

l v

m u

s n

l o

r x

r j

b e

r m

e z

n r

s o u p

f t x v v x q p v f z g k i a j h f

s k p s e s e h t n e r a p g m w n

c u

i z y l q v i f q p w o c t x l j h y w

d a t a b a b j s z m d r w h c x g g m

bacteria data nucleus parentheses

Free Handout – http://sites.google.com/site/eslhelpfulhandouts Photos: www.flickr.com (Creative Commons License) See photo acknowledgments on page 21.

ESL Helpful Handouts

Page 19 of 21

The Answers Exercise 2 T

E A C

S H

R E T

S C

P O

E R

M U A P M

S Exercise 4 Across 3. discoveries 7. libraries 9. countries

S

T

U

D

E

N

T

B O O K S S

Down 1. butteflies 2. ladies 4. cities 5. babies 6. parties 8. dictionaries

Exercise 6 days, trolleys, monkeys, journeys, keys, toys, boys Exercise 7 1. jockey 2. monkeys 3. toys 4. boy 5. days 6. guys 7. keys 8. holidays 9. journey 10. trolley Exercise 10 beaches sandwiches wrenches Fred eats chicken sandwiches.

matches

Free Handout – http://sites.google.com/site/eslhelpfulhandouts Photos: www.flickr.com (Creative Commons License) See photo acknowledgments on page 21.

ESL Helpful Handouts

Page 20 of 21

The Answers (continued) Exercise 15 A

F J

N B B U E

N E H O L W

T A X L E

A T V E L

N Y E S O R

D

F Y

.

Ann and Betty have boxes full of jewelry.

Exercise 16 Knives are sharp tools for cutting.

Lives are the times between birth and death.

Exercise 20 P E T D E P

B O C T S P

I T T H F E

L O A A O R E

L M T O T E R

A A O M O O S

T T E A E

E O S S R

P E A T S

O S N O U

E S

H Bill ate potatoes and tomatoes for supper.

Exercise 23 There are memos and photos on top of Mary’s desk.

There are photos and memos on top of Mary’s desk.

Free Handout – http://sites.google.com/site/eslhelpfulhandouts Photos: www.flickr.com (Creative Commons License) See photo acknowledgments on page 21.

ESL Helpful Handouts

Page 21 of 21

The Answers Exercise 32 d a t a

a i r e t c a b

s

s e s e h t n e r a p

u

e

l

c

u

n

Photo Acknowledgements: www.flickr.com (Creative Commons License) stevegarfield, salomon 10, ubo_pakes, hpk, james.thompson, untipografico, Marie the Bee, Lauren Close, Colin Purrington, ejhogbin, ollenssen, la Ruth, James F. Clay, michaelcardus, Ian Kershaw, Andrew. P, Changhua Coast conservation Action, Clare and Toby, ama_ lia, Jeffrey Beall, nightthree, Tojosan, loop_oh, loswl, N I C O,Dyanna, premasagar, Ezu, adam, shazwan, Doug Fisher, jamesjyu, Noel C. Hankamer, kusine, The Style Pa, Joel Abroad, Frozen Capybara, beadingvera-Schmuck Ideen Gestaltung, digital primate, Newton Free Library, brixton, lakewentworth, ocularinvasion, Crazy George, Draconiansleet, Spud Girl, epSos.de, StimsonJCat, Nick Bair, 邪恶的正太, PSPorter, jetalone, sahdeva, philentropist, pareto8020, cobalt123, nedrichards, Illusive Photography, Carolina Velis, Westmont Public Library, jemsweb, dr_relling, Frank Peters, norbesc, Jinx!, Racy Rachel, tkcrash123, nic0, Honou, dbrooker1, INeedCoffee/Coffeehero, Nathan Yau, JCB, mag3737 This is a free handout from ESL Helpful Handouts. Please visit our site for other free ESL handouts. http://sites.google.com/site/eslhelpfulhandouts

Free Handout – http://sites.google.com/site/eslhelpfulhandouts Photos: www.flickr.com (Creative Commons License) See photo acknowledgments on page 21.