English Grammar 101: Plural Form of Nouns
The English language has both regular and irregular plural forms of nouns. The most common case is when you need to add -s to the noun. For example one car and two cars.
The other two cases of the regular plural form are:
- nouns that end with s, x, ch or sh, where you add -es (e.g., one box, two boxes)
- nouns that end with consonant + y, where you change the y with i and add -es (e.g., one enemy, two enemies)
On the irregular plural form of nouns there are basically eight cases:
- nouns that end with -o, where you add -es (e.g., one potato, two potatoes)
- nouns ending with -is, where you change -is to -es (e.g., one crisis, two crises)
- nouns ending with -f, where you change -f to -v and add -es (e.g., one wolf, two wolves)
- nouns ending with -fe, where you change -f to -v and add -s (e.g., one life, two lives)
- nouns ending with -us, where you change -us to -i (e.g., one fungus, two fungi)
- nouns that contain -oo, change -oo to -ee (e.g., one foot, two feet)
- nouns that end with -on, where you change -on with -a (e.g., phenomenon, phenomena)
- nouns that don’t change (e.g., sheep, offspring, series)
It might appear overwhelming, but after using these nouns a couple of times you will be able to memorize their plural form easily.
Daniel Scocco on December 5, 2007 
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For more about noun plurals, you might want to check out Forming Noun Plurals at AmericanEnglishDoctor.
That link is pointing to a blank page Maeve :).
Please, please, please no more “apostrophe S” for plurals.
We recently added this problem to the Precise Edit Training Manual because we have to fix it so many times.
and then there is moose. which in plural form is not meese or even mooses, but rather is the ever creative word “moose”
You need to add, words ending with u, add -s (emu: emus, guru: gurus)
Great list otherwise.
Also for “nouns ending with -f, where you change -f to -v and add -ves” shouldn’t it be “change -f to -v and add -es” otherwise you have two v’s in there?
Bobbi-lee, corrected the nouns ending with -f.
The words ending with u, they would fall under the first rule of just adding -s, isn’t it?
There’s another category missing.
Man and woman become men and women in plural, but I think this is unique and is an exception to a rule, otherwise all other nouns containing an ‘a’ would use ‘e’ in the plural.
and then you have “boot” which has the plural form “boots” and not “beet” =)
Can some one explain why we say…get in the car/get out of the car…..but..we say get on a bus/plane/boat/train…?
What about data? I have, perhaps improperly been using the word “data” interchangeably as singular and plural. Someone told me that it is more correct make the singular “datum.”