Singular vs. Plural

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  Singular and non-count nouns (in the third person) require the –s form of the verb in the present tense.

   

  The girl loves painting.

  My dog likes to eat meat.

  Johnny lives next door to Jenny.

  Milk contains nutrients.

  Tommy has two hobbies.

  Jerry is from Colorado.

   

  Singular count nouns require an article (the, a, an) unless

   

  •  

    Mr. Jones went to Arizona.

     

    My mother loves my father.

     

    Each man contributed one dollar.

     

    The/An apple is on the table.

     

  they are “proper” nouns

   

  they are preceded by a possessive

   

  they are preceded by this, that, each, every, either, neither, or one.

   

  (Wrong: Apple is on table.—articles are required)

   

  Plural nouns and singular non-count nouns do not require an article in the “generic” sense:

   

  Water is important for plants.

   

  However, they require articles (the, some) in most other cases.

   

  Please put some wine in the glasses.

Regular plurals

Most plurals are formed by adding –s or –es to the singular noun:

 

boys	cars	pens	pills	pronounce /z/
cats	rocks	tips	chiefs	pronounce /s/
kisses	watches	boxes	dishes	pronounce /Iz/

In some cases, there are special spelling rules that need to be considered when forming the plural.

knives

hobbies

quizzes

 

Irregular plurals

Some nouns take on a different form in the plural:

 

women

teeth

mice

children

people

Non-count nouns

Non-count nouns do not have a plural form; however, some nouns can be used in both the count and non-count sense:

I have a lot of experience.

I have a lot of experiences.


Third-person singular –s