EXPLANATION
Regular Plural
Nouns in English make the plural form by adding -s. For example:
table + s = tables
cup + s = cups
When the noun ends with the sounds /s, z, sh, ch/, the plural is formed by adding -s. This rule is phonetic, and is applicable for the formation of the 3rd person Simple Present and Saxon Genitive. For example:
church + es = churches
dish + es = dishes
bus + es = buses
buzz + es = buzzes (the sound of a bell, as to enter a house)
When the plural is fomed by adding -es, we pronounce /Iz/.
Nouns that finish with -y also take the -es to form the plural and change -y for -i. For example:
poppy + es = poppies (the wild red flower)
However, the difficult aspect of this grammatical construction is the fact that English has a lot of irregular plurals. Below you will find a list.
Irregular Plurals
US -> I
| SINGULAR | PLURAL |
| alumnus | alumni |
| cactus | cacti |
| focus | foci/focuses |
| fungus | fungi/funguses |
| nucleus | nuclei |
| radius | radii |
| stimulus | stimuli |
IS -> ES
| SINGULAR | PLURAL |
| axis | axes |
| analysis | analyses |
| basis | bases |
| crisis | crises |
| diagnosis | diagnoses |
| ellipsis | ellipses |
| hypothesis | hypotheses |
| oasis | oases |
| paralysis | paralyses |
| parenthesis | parentheses |
| synthesis | syntheses |
| synopsis | synopses |
| thesis | theses |
IX -> ICES
| SINGULAR | PLURAL |
| appendix | appendices |
| index | indeces/indexes |
| matrix | matrices/matrixes |
EAU -> EAUX
| SINGULAR | PLURAL |
| beau | beaux |
| bureau | bureaus/bureaux |
| tableau | tableaux/tableaus |
*** -> EN
| SINGULAR | PLURAL |
| child | children |
| man | men |
| ox | oxen |
| woman | women |
*** -> A
| SINGULAR | PLURAL |
| bacterium | bacteria |
| corpus | corpora |
| criterion | criteria |
| curriculum | curricula |
| datum | data |
| genus | genera |
| medium | media |
| memorandum | memoranda |
| phenomenon | phenomena |
| stratum | strata |
NO CHANGE
| SINGULAR | PLURAL |
| deer | deer |
| fish | fish |
| means | means |
| offspring | offspring |
| series | series |
| sheep | sheep |
| species | species |
OO -> EE
| SINGULAR | PLURAL |
| foot | feet |
| goose | geese |
| tooth | teeth |
A -> AE
| SINGULAR | PLURAL |
| antenna | antennae/antennas |
| formula | formulae/formulas |
| nebula | nebulae |
| vertebra | vertebrae |
| vita | vitae |
OUSE -> ICE
| SINGULAR | PLURAL |
| louse | lice |
| mouse | mice |
O -> OES
| SINGULAR | PLURAL |
| tomato | tomatoes |
| potato | potatoes |
| volcano | volcanoes, volcanos |
| hero | heroes |
| SINGULAR | PLURAL |
| person | people |
| mouse (PC) | mouses |
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