ESL Helpful Handouts
Page 1 of 5
Nouns
A Review Of Plural Spelling Changes
To make the plural form of
most nouns, add s to the
end of the word.
cup = cups
snake = snakes
.
ski = skis
(I am taking my new
skis
pair of skis to the
to the mountains next
weekend.)
Add es to the end of a noun
that ends in s, x, z, ch, sh.
box = boxes
waltz = waltzes
match = matches
brush = brushes
This page has been downloaded from http://sites.google.com/site/eslhelpfulhandouts. Written by S. Watson.
All Images: www.FreeDigitalPhotos.com. Image Acknowledgments: See page 5.
ESL Helpful Handouts
Page 2 of 5
Nouns
A Review Of Plural Spelling Changes
When a noun ends in a consonant and
y, drop the y and add ies.
city = cities
Add s to some nouns that
end in o .
kangaroo = kangaroos
Add es to some words
that end in o.
tomato = tomatoes
Some words that end in o form the plural by
adding either s or es to the end of the word.
• Ato
tornado = tornados
tornado = tornadoes
This page has been downloaded from http://sites.google.com/site/eslhelpfulhandouts. Written by S. Watson.
All Images: www.FreeDigitalPhotos.com. Image Acknowledgments: See page 5.
ESL Helpful Handouts
Page 3 of 5
Nouns
A Review Of Plural Spelling Changes
Some nouns that end
in f or fe, drop f or fe
and add ves.
Some nouns that end
in f add s to form the
plural.
loaf = loaves
belief = beliefs
thief = thieves
cliff = cliffs
Some nouns have irregular plural
forms without s.
man - men woman - women
child - children
goose - geese
mouse - mice
louse - lice
ox - oxen
This page has been downloaded from http://sites.google.com/site/eslhelpfulhandouts. Written by S. Watson.
All Images: www.FreeDigitalPhotos.com. Image Acknowledgments: See page 5.
ESL Helpful Handouts
Page 4 of 5
Nouns
A Review Of Plural Spelling Changes
Some nouns have the same
singular and plural form.
one shrimp
two shrimp
one series
two series
Nouns borrowed
from other
languages such as
Latin or Greek,
have foreign plural
forms.
cactus = cacti
datum = data
index = indices
medium = media
stimulus = stimuli
This page has been downloaded from http://sites.google.com/site/eslhelpfulhandouts. Written by S. Watson.
All Images: www.FreeDigitalPhotos.com. Image Acknowledgments: See page 5.
ESL Helpful Handouts
Page 5 of 5
Nouns
A Review Of Plural Spelling Changes
Write the plural noun in the blank.
1. (cup)
Over half the adults in the United states drink at least two _______________ of coffee a day.
2. (kangaroo)
_______________ are native to Australia.
3. (snake)
The first time that I ever saw rattle _______________ was in Florida.
4. (thief)
People who steal are called _______________.
5. (ski)
Mike is taking his new ________________ to Colorado next month.
6. (series)
A series is a group of similar things. Several groups are also called _______________.
7. (tornado)
Some storms, including _______________ , cannot be forecast accurately.
8. (belief)
Those politicians held different ________________ on the subject of the economy.
9. (box)
Ellen received four _______________ of chocolate on Valentine’s Day.
10. (cliff)
The bay is surrounded by towering _______________.
11. (child)
This project encourages school ______________ to study science.
12. (waltz)
I had hoped that she would save the last ________________ for me.
13. (louse)
You can buy a lotion at the pharmacy that treat head _______________.
14. (match)
________________ catch fire by friction.
15. (brush)
My grandfather liked to lather his beard with shaving _______________.
16. (city)
I have visited all of the capitol ________________ of the countries in the European Union.
17. (tomato)
Chop the _______________ into bite size pieces before you add them to the salad.
18. (loaf)
How many _______________ of bread did you buy?
19. (stimulus)
The optical illusions showed how the brain reacts to visual ________________.
20. (shrimp)
The jumbo shrimp platter comes with 12 fried _______________ and 2 vegetables.
Image Acknowledgements: Salvatore Vuono, Karen Shaw, Tony Dowson, Adam Hickmot, Suat Eman, Mark Truman,
Felixo, Inc., Meiklejohn, Pixomar, George Stojkovie, Simon Howden, m-bartocsh.
This page has been downloaded from http://sites.google.com/site/eslhelpfulhandouts. Written by S. Watson.
All Images: www.FreeDigitalPhotos.com. Image Acknowledgments: See page 5.