SINGULAR AND PLURAL 1) Singular words ending in –s athletics (atletismo) economics (economía) politics (política) linguistics (lingüística) mathematics (matemáticas) physics (física) measles (sarampión, measles is an illness……) mumps (paperas ,mumps is an illness….) rabies (rabia, hidrofobia) rickets (raquitismo) billiards (billar) darts (dardo) dominoes (domino) draughts (AmE chequers) (juego de las damas) News: noticia, (bad news: problema. This boy is bad news). The news is bad. 2) Unusual plurals person, people -
Mutation plurals:
foot (pie), feet tooth (diente), teeth mouse (ratón), mice dormouse (lirón), dormice louse (piojo), lice goose (ganso), geese man (hombre), men woman (mujer), women -
-en plurals: Child (niño/a), children Ox (buey), oxen Brother (hermano), brethren (religious term)
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Foreign plurals: alga, algae larva, larvae phenomenon, phenomena criterion, criteria analysis, analyses hypothesis, hypotheses schema, schemata fungus (hongo), fungi stimulus, stimuli memorandum, memoranda bacterium,bacteria bureau (agencia, departamento, escritorio), bureaux paparazzi graffiti When the words are totally assimilated they add –(e)s: album, albums campus, campuses virus, viruses
3) -
Zero plurals (same form for singular and plural, and verb usu singular): Trout (trucha/s) Salmon (salmon/es) Fish (pez/peces) Duck (pato/s) Deer (ciervo/s) Sheep (oveja/s) Cod (bacalao/s) quail ( codorniz/codornices)) grouse ( urogallo/s) aircraft (avión/aviones) Ending in –s (and with verb in singular or in plural): Species (especie/s). A species/ many species (countable)
series . A TV series/many TV series crossroads (cruce/s) barracks ( cuartel/es) headquarters ( cuartel general) gallows ( horca/s) rendezvous (encuentro/s). Voz francesa.
4) Nouns always plural Scissors (Tijeras). A pair of scissors are on the table. shears (= tijeras de podar) binoculars glasses, sunglasses, spectacles (gafas, anteojos) headphones, earphones tights (= mallas) jeans trousers, shorts, pants pyjamas underpants panties / knickers clothes----- una prenda de ropa= a garment / an item of clothing handcuffs (esposas) pliers (= alicates) tongs (=tenazas) scales (= balanza) tweezers (=pinzas)
5) NOUNS WITH A SPECIAL MEANING IN THE PLURAL
These words have a different meaning in the singular. premises (=building) (oficina, domicilio, local)
minutes (acta). Write a meeting minutes sights (mirilla de un arma). Gun sights honours (honorario) customs (aduana) spirits (humor) He was in good spirits after having passed the class. airs (to give oneself airs) (presumir) looks (f铆sico, aspect) manners ( modales) damages (indemnizaci贸n)
works (= fábrica, taller) MORE CURIOUS STUFF… -
The plural of numbers, letters and abbreviations is formed by adding apostrophe and –s: Eg There are two s’s in necessary.