The Category Of Number
This category indicates whether one
or more things is meant. Oneness is
expressed by singular and more-than-oneness by plural forms.
All English nouns have form which corresponds to the structural type
of the singular or plural. But not all of them have the grammatical
category of number. Only count nouns are inflected for it. Only these
nouns indicate whether the noun names one or more than one referent ,
that is ,are used in both numbers.
Grammatical numbers of English nouns are the singular
and the plural.
The basic form is the singular.The plural of almost all the
counts is built by adding the inflexion -/e/s to the basic
form /singular
form/. In speech this inflexion is related in 3 variants:
/s/ , /z/ , /iz/
depending upon the character of the preceding sound
- /s/ occurs after
voiceless consonants ,
- /z/ after voiced consonants and vowels
,
- /iz/
after sibilants
- /s/ cup-cups
cat –cats
/z/ bag-bags
boy-boys
/iz/ bus-buses
rose-roses
bush-bushes
match-matches
In nouns with the final
–y preceded by a consonant
–y changes
into –i. The plural ending is –es
Study-studies
Lobby-lobbies
A small number of nouns have irregular plurals. They are
- Man-men
- Woman-woman
- Goose-geese
- Foot-feet
- Tooth-teeth
- Mouse-mice
- Louse-lice
- Child-children
- Ox-oxen
In a number of nouns having a sound /f/ in the singular/spelled –f
of –fe/ this sound changes into /v/ in the plural form and the ending
–es is added.
Knife-knives
Leaf-leaves
Life-lives
Loaf-loaves
Shelf-shelves
Wife-wives
Wolf-wolves
There is no change of the sound in the plural of the nouns
roof,proof,safe. Both variants are found in the nouns
handkerchieves /-fs/
,hoof-hooves/hoofs/ , scarf-scarfs /ves/
The formation of the plural of nouns ending in
/ -o/
The plural of these nouns is built up by adding to the singular form
the inflexion
/-es/ hero-heroes
Negro-Negroes,tomato-tomatoes,potato-potatoes
/-s/ in:
- nouns ending in 2 vowels /radio-radios,zoo-zoos/
- in shortenings /photo-photos,kilo-kilos/
- in musical terms of Italian origin /solo-solos,piano-pianos/
