Regular and common irregular plurals

Most English count nouns form the plural with -s: cat becomes cats, book becomes books, and teacher becomes teachers.

Add -es after many nouns ending in -s, -sh, -ch, -x, or -z: buses, dishes, watches, boxes, and quizzes. The extra syllable makes the ending easier to pronounce.

When a noun ends in consonant + y, change y to i and add -es: baby becomes babies and city becomes cities. After a vowel + y, simply add -s: boy becomes boys.

Several very common nouns have irregular plurals: child–children, person–people, man–men, woman–women, foot–feet, and tooth–teeth. These forms must be learned as vocabulary.

A plural noun uses a plural verb with be: The boxes are heavy. The children are outside. Notice both the noun form and the verb agreement.