94. When we wish a noun to denote more than one object, we often change its form slightly. Man becomes men, child becomes children, river becomes rivers.
This change in the form of a noun by which it denotes one object or more than one is called number.
Number is said to be one of the properties of a noun.
95. When a noun denotes one object, it is said to be in the singular number; as, lion, mouse, knife.
When a noun denotes more than one object, it is said to be in the plural number; as, lions, mice, knives.
96. Most nouns form their plural by adding s or es to the singular; as, key, keys; hand, hands; rope, ropes; mass, masses; fox, foxes; church, churches; bush, bushes.
This is said to be the regular way of forming the plural. Why is it that some words add es instead of s?
97. Nouns ending in o preceded by a vowel form their plural by adding s; as, folio, folios; cameo, cameos.
Some nouns ending in o preceded by a consonant add es, and others s; as, potato, potatoes; mosquito, mosquitoes; solo, solos; piano, pianos.
98. Some nouns form their plural irregularly.
(1) A few nouns change the vowel; as, man, men; goose, geese; mouse, mice; foot, feet; tooth, teeth.
(2) A few nouns add en; as, ox, oxen; child, children.
(3) Nouns ending in y, preceded by a consonant sound, change y to i and add es; as, fly, flies; fairy, fairies.
(4) Some nouns ending in f or fe change f or fe to v and add es; as, wolf, wolves; knife, knives.
99. Some nouns have the same form in both the singular and the plural; as, deer, grouse, salmon.
100. Some nouns ending in s look like plural nouns, but are regarded as singular; as, news, athletics, gymnastics.
101. Some nouns are used only in the plural; as, scissors, pincers, thanks.
102. Compound nouns form their plural in three different ways:—
(1) By adding s to the last word; as, forget-me-not, forget-me-nots.
(2) By adding s to the principal word; as, son-in-law, sons-in-law.
(3) By pluralizing both words; as, manservant, menservants.
103. When a title is used with one name, we may pluralize either the name or the title. We may say the Misses Gray or the Miss Grays, the Messrs. Greenwood or the Mr. Greenwoods.
When a title is used with more than one name, we pluralize the title. We say the Misses Morgan and Adams. The title Mrs. has no plural, so we must say Mrs. Morgan and Mrs. Adams.
104. Letters, signs, or figures form their plurals by adding an apostrophe and s; as, 6’s, i’s, t’s.
105. A few foreign nouns have kept their foreign plurals. Some of these in common use are stratum, strata; alumnus, alumni; axis, axes.
106. Some nouns have two plurals used with slightly different meanings; as, penny has pennies and pence; brother has brothers and brethren; die has dies and dice. Find out from the dictionary the meanings of these plurals.
The correct plural of a noun cannot always be reasoned out. It should never be guessed. It can always be learned from a dictionary.
Summary.—Number is that property of a noun by which it denotes one object or more than one.
A singular noun denotes one object.
A plural noun denotes more than one object.
Nouns form their plural regularly by adding s or es to the singular.
Many nouns form their plural irregularly.
Exercise 1.—Tell the plural of each of the following nouns. Tell how it is formed. Consult the dictionary when you are in doubt.
Exercise 2.—Select all the nouns in the following sentences, and tell whether they are singular or plural. Give the singular of each plural word, and the plural of each singular word.
1. Listen! In yonder pine woods what a cawing of crows!
2. A washstand in the corner, a chest of carved mahogany drawers, a looking-glass in a filigree frame, and a high-backed chair studded with brass nails like a coffin constituted the furniture.
3. There have always been medicine men, rain makers, wizards, conjurers, sorcerers, astrologers, and fortune tellers, ready to trade on the fears of the weak, the ignorant, and the superstitious.
4. April brought the blue scylla and the sweet violet; May brought the much-loved narcissus and lily of the valley.
5. In came the three Miss Fezziwigs, beaming and lovable.
6. People hardly ever do know where to be born until it is too late.
7. The bell in the church tower was striking six, but I undressed for the night and buried myself under the bedclothes.
8. As it fell out, the three princesses were talking one night of whom they would marry.
9. Poor Mrs. Wise! I’m sure she’s to be pitied, living here with all these grandchildren.
10. As soon as Pussy heard me shut the gate in the yard at noon, when school was done, she would run up the stairs as hard as she could go.
11. The puppy’s nightly couch was outside the stable, even during the coldest weather.
12. The fish, strange creatures called groupers, with great sluggish bodies and horribly human faces, come crowding up to be fed.
13. What a hardy set of men they were, those Northmen of old!
14. The streams that have entered into our American life come from springs very wide apart,—from the Puritan whom James I was persecuting, and from the courtiers whom he was patronizing; from the Dutchmen whom Charles II was fighting, and from the Covenanters whom he was trying to convert at the pistol’s point; from the Scotchmen who had captured the north of Ireland, and from the Huguenots who had been driven out of the south of France.
What is the use of listen, sentence 1, furniture, 2, horribly, 12?
How are the adjectives weak, ignorant, and superstitious used in sentence 3?