Singular and Plural Nouns
One bus, two buses. The -s and -es rules, and the words that break them.
එක දෙයක් ගැන කියද්දි singular (ඒකවචන). එකකට වඩා වැඩි නම් plural (බහුවචන). ගොඩක් වචනවලට අගට -s එකතු කරාම බහුවචන වෙනවා. ඒත් නීතියට අවනත නොවෙන වචනත් තියෙනවා.
The rules
| Rule | Singular → plural |
|---|---|
| Most nouns: add -s | phone → phones, car → cars |
| Ending in -s, -ss, -sh, -ch, -x, -z: add -es | bus → buses, dress → dresses, dish → dishes, watch → watches, box → boxes |
| Consonant + -y: change to -ies | baby → babies, city → cities, party → parties |
| Vowel + -y: just add -s | day → days, key → keys, boy → boys |
| Ending in -f / -fe: usually -ves | leaf → leaves, knife → knives, wife → wives, life → lives |
| Ending in -o: some take -es | potato → potatoes, tomato → tomatoes, hero → heroes |
| …but some just -s | photo → photos, radio → radios, piano → pianos |
The rule-breakers
These don't follow any rule. You just have to learn them. Good news: there aren't many.
| Singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| man | men |
| woman | women |
| child | children |
| person | people |
| tooth | teeth |
| foot | feet |
| mouse | mice |
And some are the same in the singular and the plural: one sheep, two sheep; one fish, ten fish; also deer, species and aircraft.
Plural-looking words that are singular
Some words end in -s, but take a singular verb (is, not are):
Singular, even with an -s
- The news is at 7.30.
- Maths is my favourite subject.
- Billiards is popular in Sri Lanka.
Words that are only plural
Things with two parts are always plural: trousers, jeans, shorts, glasses, scissors. Others: clothes, goods, stairs, savings, congratulations.
Always plural
- My trousers are too tight.
- Where are my glasses?
- Do you have a pair of scissors?
To count them, say a pair of: a pair of jeans, two pairs of shoes.
Quick check
Tap an answer. Nothing is saved.
Two passed without stopping. 😤
Colombo and Kandy are big .
Put the in the drawer.
The news on TV at 8.
Three were waiting at the bus stop.
I lost my again!
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