Pre-A1 Starter Plurals, demonstratives and possessive adjectives
Regular plural nouns
Lesson goal. After this lesson you can write plural nouns correctly — adding -s, -es or changing to -ies — and you will stop writing three book.
When to use it
- Talking about more than one person or thing: two books, many students.
- After numbers from two upwards: five chairs.
- After many, some, a lot of: many friends.
Form
| Noun ends in | What to do | Example |
|---|---|---|
| most cases | + s | book → books · pen → pens |
| -s · -ss · -sh · -ch · -x · -o | + es | bus → buses · watch → watches · box → boxes |
| consonant + y | drop y, + ies | city → cities · baby → babies |
| vowel + y | + s | day → days · boy → boys |
| -f · -fe | change to ves | leaf → leaves · knife → knives |
Step by step
- Ask: one or more than one?
- If more than one, look at the last two letters.
- Match it to the table and add the right ending.
- Read the sentence again: a number with no plural ending is a mistake.
Three places learners slip
| Noun | Wrong | Correct |
|---|---|---|
| box | boxs | boxes |
| city | citys | cities |
| day | dies | days — because the letter before y is the vowel a |
Examples
I have three books.
There are many buses in the city.
My mother buys two watches.
Big cities are noisy.
We have five days off.
The leaves are yellow.
Common mistakes
I have three book. → I have three books.
Vietnamese nouns never change, so learners leave the noun alone. English must mark the plural even when a number is already there.
two boxs → two boxes
Nouns ending in -x take -es so they are easier to say. Same group as bus, watch, dish.
many citys → many cities
The letter before y is t, a consonant, so drop the y and add -ies.
Memory tip
The -s, -sh, -ch, -x, -o group all end in a hissing sound, so they need the extra -es to be pronounceable. Say them aloud and you will hear it.
Summary
- More than one always needs a plural ending.
- Default +s; the -s, -sh, -ch, -x, -o group takes +es.
- Consonant + y → -ies; vowel + y → just +s.
Practise this lesson
Do exercises with an explanation for every question, take mini tests and track your progress on GrammUp.