Inglês para fins acadêmicos: prática de gramática e vocabulário

Inglês sem Fronteiras MEC/CAPES UnB

Plural Forms

1. Write a list with things that you buy when you go to the supermarket.

List
1. ____________________ 6. ____________________

2. ____________________ 7. ____________________

3. ____________________ 8. ____________________

4. ____________________ 9. ____________________

5. ____________________ 10. ___________________

General rule: Singular noun + s = Plural Noun

  chair → chairs car → cars

Nouns ending in –f or –fe change the –f or –fe to –ves.

leaf → leaves knife →knives

Nouns ending in –s, -ss, -sh, -ch, -x, -o form their plural with –es

brush → brushes fox →foxes bus  buses

tomato → tomatoes watch → watches

Words of foreign origin ending in –o just add –s

piano → pianos kilo → kilos

Singular nouns ending in a consonant + -y change the –y to –i + -es

baby →babies
 Inglês para fins acadêmicos: prática de gramática e vocabulário
Inglês sem Fronteiras MEC/CAPES UnB

Nouns ending in –y following a vowel just add –s

day →days

Nouns ending in –is form their plural with –es

analysis  analyses thesis  theses

Nouns ending in –on form their plural with –a

phenomenon  phenomena criterion  criteria

Nouns ending in –um form their plural with –a

medium  media datum  data

Nouns ending in –us form their plural with –i

campus  campi stimulus  stimuli

Some nouns have an irregular plural form.

person  people tooth → teeth man → men

foot → feet mouse → mice woman → women

goose → geese child → children

Exercises

1 – Write the respective plural form of each of the words below.

SINGULAR FORM PLURAL FORM SINGULAR FORM PLURAL FORM

emphasis life

church bacterium

mouse spy

embargo shelf

hero appendix

bay syllabus
 Inglês para fins acadêmicos: prática de gramática e vocabulário
Inglês sem Fronteiras MEC/CAPES UnB

2 – Choose one of the words from the box to complete the sentences using their plural forms.

basis peach diary millennium child echo scarf

a) I’ve lost the two _______________________ I had.

b) The whole argument rested on doubtful ________________.

c) ________________ love playing with the ________________ this cave produces.

d) The Earth has suffered many impacts in the last _______________.

e) I bought two beautiful silk ___________________ yesterday.

f) The _____________ from this tree are delicious.

3 – Rewrite the sentences below, writing them in their plural form:

a) A fire rainbow is a rare and beautiful phenomenon.

_____________________________________________________________________________

b) The curriculum I read last week was very impressive.

_____________________________________________________________________________

c) The shelf I ordered from the store is going to arrive tomorrow.

_____________________________________________________________________________

d) My daughter lost her first tooth yesterday!

_____________________________________________________________________________

e) I love watching this series on TV!

_____________________________________________________________________________