Singular Plural Rules

Introduction to Singular/Plural Inconsistency

Everything within a sentence should be either singular or plural. For example, "Everyone has
their own idea of the American Dream" should either be "Everyone has his or her own idea of the
American Dream" or "People all have their own ideas about the American Dream." ut you can!t
have "everyone" having "their" idea. "t generally doesn!t matter whether you choose to ma#e
sentences singular or plural$ %ust choose one and stic# with it, both within sentences and between
sentences &i.e., throughout the paragraph'. "f you don(t understand the example that was %ust
shown here is a hint) plural sub%ects &nouns' must agree with plural verbs. Also, singular sub%ects
must agree with singular verbs. *his section could have been titled sub%ect+verb agreement.
,ingular+Plural "nconsistency generally arises because of the problem of gender-specific
pronouns. For example, people #now, if they thin# about it, that "everyone" has his or her own
idea, but it sounds wordy to say it that way, so people switch to plural because "they" is gender-
neutral &i.e., it can refer to men, women, or a mix of both'. .e do it in verbal conversation all the
time, but when you!re writing, you need to observe the rules of formal writing. ,o if "Everyone
has his or her own idea" sounds wordy to you, that!s fine$ choose plural and go with "People all
have their own ideas."
/ote that "People all have their own ideas about the American Dream." Different people have
different ideas$ they don!t all have one idea about something. ut plural people can share one
thing$ a husband and wife can have "a life," if you mean the life they live together, but if you!re
tal#ing about their individual lives, then you would have to say so. For example)
0y grandmother and grandfather had a long and happy life in Desert 1ot ,prings, 2alifornia. 3tal#s
about the life they shared4
56
0y grandmother and grandfather devoted their lives to the care of their family. 30y grandmother
and grandfather had separate lives 7 my grandfather passed away several years ago but my
grandmother is still living 7 and each devoted his or her life to the care of the family they had
together4
Plurals of Nouns:
8. Add an "s" to form the plural of most nouns.
o 9ebra -- 9ebras
o piano -- pianos
o bloc# -- bloc#s
:. "f the word ends in any of the following hissing sounds) s, z, x, ch, or sh, add an "es" to
form the plural.
o 9ebra -- 9ebras
o piano -- pianos
o bloc# -- bloc#s
;. "f the word ends in a vowel plus "y", add "s".
o trolley -- trolleys
o ray -- rays
o #ey -- #eys
<. "f the word ends in a consonant "y", change the "y" into an "ie" and add "s".
o baby -- babies
o daisy -- daisies
o fairy -- fairies
=. "f the word ends in "is" change the "is" to "es".
o synopsis -- synopses
o thesis -- theses
o metastasis -- metastases
>. A few words that end in "fe" or "f" have plurals formed by "ves".
o wife -- wives
o #nife -- #nives
o shelf -- shelves
o elf -- elves
?. .ords that end in "o" can often have two plural forms, but some can only have one plural
form. 2onsider the following guidelines)
o "f the word ends in a vowel plus "o", %ust add a "s".
stereo -- stereos
fascia -- fascias
imbroglio -- imbroglios
o "f a musical term ends in "o", %ust add a "s".
solo -- solos
piano -- pianos
piccolo -- piccolos
cello -- cellos
o ,ome words can be formed with either a "s" or and "os".
avocados+avocadoes
cargos+cargoes
innuendos+innuendoes
lassos+lassoes
peccadillos+peccadilloes
&there are other pairs li#e this'
/ote that the spell-chec# in most word processors will usually
recogni9e only one of these forms as legitimate, which is fine.
@. *he plurals of numbers, single capital letters, or acronyms ta#e a single "s" with no
apostrophe)
o 8As
o Bs
o A*0s
Subject and Noun Agreement:
8. .hen two or more nouns or pronouns that are connected by and are the sub%ect of a
sentence, use a plural verb.
o 6ight) Ceorge and his buddies are going to the concert.
o .rong) Ceorge and his buddies is going to the concert.
ecause they are connected by and they are considered as a group of things, and the verb
must reflect the plurality of the group.
:. .hen two or more nouns or pronouns that are connected by or or nor are the sub%ect of a
sentence, use a singular verb.
o 6ight) *he #nife or the candlestic# is the murder weapon.
o .rong) *he #nife or the candlestic# are the murder weapon.
ecause they are connected by or or nor they are considered separately, and the verb must
reflect that uniDueness &singularity'.
;. 2ompound sub%ects &more than one noun' are tric#y. .hen there is both a singular noun
and a plural noun forming the compound, the verb form must agree with the noun that is
closest.
o 2onsider) *he woman plays hard. -or- *he women play hard.
o 6ight) *he men or the woman plays hard.
o .rong) *he man or the woman play hard.
/ote than the noun closest to the verb, woman, is singular so the verb, plays, must agree
as it would if there were only woman as the sub%ect.
.e can also turn that around)
o 6ight) *he man or the women play hard.
o .rong) *he man or the women plays hard.
Again, note the noun closest to the verb.
<. Phrases that are inserted between the sub%ect and the verb can cause confusion. 2onsider
the sentence without the phrase to clarify the proper usage.
o 2onsider) 5ne is empty. EFeaving out the phrase.G
o 6ight) 5ne of the %ars is empty.
o .rong) 5ne of the %ars are empty.
Hes, jars is a plural noun but the phrase specifies one of the jars.
o 6ight) 0ia, along with her teammates, is tense. E*he basic sentence is, "0ia is
tense."G
o .rong) 0ia, along with her teammates, are tense.
/ote that if the sentence were structured so as to compound the sub%ects, then the rule
above would apply.
o 2onsider) 0ia or her teammates are tense.
=. e careful with contractions.
Don't is a contraction of do not. "t should be used with a plural sub%ect.
o *hey dont li#e it.
o 6epublicans dont support that policy.
o Iuar#s dont subdivide.
Doesnt is a contraction of does not. "t should be used with a singular sub%ect.
o 1e doesnt li#e it.
o *he President doesnt support that policy.
o A dollar doesnt buy as much as it once did.
EJ2EP*"5/) .hen using the pronouns I or you, the contraction dont is the proper
form.
o " dont li#e it.
o Hou dont li#e it.
>. ,ome words and phrases are singular and reDuire a singular verb. *hey are)
anybody anyone each each one
either neither everyone nobody
no one somebody someone
o 2onsider) Each is empty. EFeaving out the phrase.G
o 6ight) Each of the %ars is empty.
o .rong) Each of the %ars are empty.
o 2onsider) ,omeone is lying. EFeaving out the phrase.G
o 6ight) ,omeone in this room is lying.
o .rong) ,omeone in this room are lying.
?. *here are nouns that have an "s" on the end that are, nevertheless, singular. *hin# about
what they are. Measles is a disease. "t is news, and there are no such things as newses
&sic'. *hese nouns reDuire a singular verb. ,ome examples are)
civics mathematics physics stasis
measles news tuberculosis basis
Example) 0athematics is necessary for that ma%or.
,PE2"AF 2A,E) .hen referring to dollars as things, it reDuires a plural verb. .hen
referring to an amount of money in dollars, it reDuires a singular verb.
o 6ight) *en-thousand dollars is a tidy amount.
o .rong) *en-thousand dollars are a tidy amount.
o 6ight) Dollars are the preferred medium of exchange.
o .rong) Dollars is the preferred medium of exchange.
@. *here are some nouns that refer to things that have two or more parts to them and the
sub%ect is, therefore, plural. Again, thin# about what they are and the two or more parts
that they!re made of.
pliers twee9ers shears trousers
pants slac#s shoes lips
ears feet sides margins
o *he pliers are rusty.
o 0y toes are cold.
o *he slac#s are made of wool.
K. .hen a sentence begins with there is or there are the sub%ect is following the verb. *he
verb must then agree with the following sub%ect. "n other words, there is not the sub%ect.
"n the following examples the sub%ect is in italics and the verb is underlined.
o *here are many logs.
o *here are too many people to be counted.
o *here are a few simple rules that apply.
o *here is a log.
o *here is but one who stands to be counted.
o *here is a simple rule that applies.
8A. ,ome nouns refer to a collection or group but are considered singular. Family is a good
example. A family has more than one member by definition but is a recogni9able entity in
itself, and is therefore considered singular.
family team inventory group
set class committee membership
o *heir family holds a reunion every year.
o *he inventory is counted today.
o *he committee decides on matters of policy.
EJ2EP*"5/) .hen referring to a portion or distinct members of the group the plural
verb is used.
o 1er family are disagreeing with each other.
MAS!"IN#$%#MININ#
"n Crammar-/ouns, there are %&!R '#N(#RS)
*) Masculine gender:
A noun is said to be in the 0asculine gender if it refers to a male character or member of a
species.
0an, lion, hero, boy, #ing, horse and actor are nouns of masculine gender.
#+ample:
L A boy is playing in the play-ground.
L 1ero of the movie is not a native of this country.
"n these sentences the words MboyN and MheroN are masculine-gender nouns.
*he next in the /oun-Cender is feminine gender.
,) %eminine gender:
A noun is said to be in the feminine gender if it refers to a female member of a species.
.oman, lioness, heroine, girl, mare, niece, empress, cow and actress are few of the feminine-
gender nouns that we use.
#+ample:
L A girl is playing in the play-ground.
L 1eroine of the movie is not a native of this country.
"n these sentences the words MgirlN and MheroineN are feminine-gender nouns.
*he next in the /oun-Cender is common gender.
-) ommon gender:
A noun is said to be in 2ommon gender if it refers to a member of species which can be a male
or a female.
2hild, student, friend, applicant, candidate, servant, member,
parliamentarian and leader are few of the common-gender nouns.
#+ample:
L A child is playing in the play-ground.
L A Parliamentarian should have command over his language.
"n these sentences the words, MchildN and MparliamentarianN are nouns of common gender.
*he next in the /oun-Cender is neuter gender.
.) Neuter gender:
A noun is said to be in the neuter gender if it refers to a member of a species which is neither a
male nor a female.
/ormally nouns referring to lifeless ob%ects are in neuter nouns.
2hair, table, tree, star, mountain, street, boo#, car, school,
paper, pencil and computer are few of the neuter nouns which .e use regularly.
#+ample:
L 2omputer has brought about drastic changes in our lives.
L *ree is cleansing the air.
L ,tars are not visible in the day-time.
L oo#s are our best friends.
"n these sentences the words, McomputerN, MtreeN, MstarsN and Mboo#sN are the neuter-gender
nouns.
N&/#:
a) 2ollective nouns, even if they refer to living-beings, are used as neuter-nouns.
#+ample:
i. *he army is doing its tas#.
ii. *he police are called to manage the situation.
"n these sentences the nouns &army and police' refer to only living-beings. ut they are used only
as neuter-nouns.
b)5b%ects noted for their power, strength, and violence are used as 0asculine gender nouns.
*he sun, summer, time, death etcO are masculine-gender nouns.
#+ample:
i. *he sun is so scorching now that we can not go out now to face him without an umbrella.
ii. *he death is cruel. 1e is as certain as tomorrow.
"n these sentences the words MsunN and MdeathN have been used as 0asculine-gender nouns.
c) 5b%ects noted for their beauty, gentleness and grace are used as feminine-gender nouns.
*he moon, the earth, spring, charity etcO are feminine-gender nouns.
#+ample:
i. *he moon is so bright at this time that she induces romantic mood in us.
ii. *he earth is patient. 1er beauty is spoiled day-by-day.
*he masculine-genders and their respective feminine-genders have been given below for your
reference.
Masculine %eminine
abbot abbess
actor actress
Alexander Alexandra
bachelor spinster
baron baroness
beau belle
billy-goat nanny-goat
boar sow
boy girl
bridegroom bride
brother sister
buc# doe
Masculine %eminine
buc#-rabbit doe-rabbit
bull cow
bull-calf cow-calf
bulloc# heifer
2ecil 2ecilia
2harles 2harlotte
2hristian 2hristina
2larence 2lara
coc# hen
coc#-sparrow hen-sparrow
colt filly
count countess
dog bitch
dra#e duc#
du#e duchess
earl countess
emperor empress
enchanter enchantress
father mother
father-in-law mother-in-law
fiance fiancee
Francis Frances
friar nun
gander goose
gentleman lady
Ceorge Ceorgina
god goddess
grandfather grandmother
hart hind
he she
he-goat she-goat
headmaster headmistress
heir heiress
1enry 1enrietta
hero heroine
him her
host hostess
hound brach
husband wife
Pohn Poan
Poseph Posephine
Masculine %eminine
#ing Dueen
lad lass
landlord landlady
lion lioness
lord lady
male female
male-child female-child
man woman
manservant maidservant
marDuis marchioness
masseur masseuse
master mistress
mayor mayoress
mon# nun
0r 0rs
nephew niece
5liver 5live
Patric# Patricia
Paul Pauline
postman postwoman
postmaster postmistress
priest priestess
prince princess
ram ewe
6obert 6oberta
shepherd shepherdess
sir madam
sire dam
son daughter
son-in-law daughter-in-law
sorcerer sorceress
stag hind
stallion mare
steer heifer
stepfather stepmother
stepson stepdaughter
steward stewardess
,ultan ,ultana
tiger tigress
tutor governess
uncle aunt
Masculine %eminine
Qictor Qictoria
waiter waitress
widower widow
.illiam .ilhelmina
wi9ard witch