2020-11-29 ศัพท์ น่าสับสน ชุด P – Plurals
2020-11-29
ศัพท์ น่าสับสน ชุด P – Plurals
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Dictionary.com
ออกเสียง Plural = ‘PLOOR-uhl’
Abused, Confused, & Misused Words by Mary Embree
Plural = more than one in number;
a plural word or form:
dictionaries is the plural form of dictionary
Not to be confused with:
pleural – pertaining to the pleura,
a serous membrane lining the thorax
and enveloping the lungs:
pleural pneumonia
Plurals
How are nouns made plural?
Plurals of nouns are used to indicate
when there is more than one person, place, animal, or thing.
The normal method for making nouns plural
is to add an “-s” at the end of the noun.
If a noun ends in “-s,” “-x,” “-z,” or with a cluster of consonants,
such as “-sh,” “-ch,” or “-tch” (as in“watch”),
we add “-es” to render it plural.
Words ending in “-y”
When the noun ends in a “-y” and it is preceded by a consonant,
we change “y” to “i” and add “-es.”
However, when a word ends in a “-y” preceded by a vowel,
then we simply add an “-s” as usual
Irregular plurals
There are some nouns that are irregular.
They do not adhere to spelling rules,
and so these need to be memorized.
(*Persons is also a plural form of person,
but in modern English it is usually reserved for more formal, bureaucratic, or legal language,
as in, “Any such persons found to be guilty of shoplifting will be prosecuted.”)
Be aware that irregular plural nouns
cannot be made plural again;
that is, you cannot have childrens or feets.
However, people is anexception
—it can be pluralized as peoples in some cases.
Adding “-ves” vs. “-s”
With some nouns that end in “-f,” “-fe,” or “-lf,”
we replace the endings with“-ves” to make them plural.
Below is a list of some common examples
However, many other words
that end in “-f,” “-fe,” or “-lf” are simply made plural with an “-s”
on the end.
Here are some common examples:
And yet some other words can receive either “-ves” or “-s,”
such as:
- one handkerchief – two handkerchiefs – two handkerchieves
- one hoof – two hoofs – two hooves
- one scarf – two scarfs – two scarves
Unfortunately, there is no steadfast rule
for which words will receive a “-ves” ending, an “-s” ending, or both
—they are irregular and have to be memorized.
Words ending in “-ff” or “-ffe”
Words ending in “-ff” or “-ffe,” on the other hand,
have straightforward plural forms:
we simply add “-s” to the end,
as in:
- one cliff – two cliffs
Words with the same plural and singular forms
We also have some nouns
that remain the same in singular andplural.
(*Note that fish can also bepluralized as fishes.
However, it is more common for this “-es” form to be used
in reference to more than one kind offish,
as opposed to multiple fish in general.)
Uncountable nouns
Although similar in nature to the above nouns,
uncountable nouns refer to
things that cannot be divided intoindividual units,
and that therefore cannot be madeplural at all.
To quantify them, we need to use a unit ofmeasure,
such as one pound of rice, a bottle of milk, a piece of advice, etc.
The rules surrounding these can be quitecomplex,
So, see the section on Uncountable Nouns to learn more.
Words from Latin or Greek
There are also nouns taken from Latin or Greek
that maintain their originalforms in the plural.
However, as we’ll see,
some of these words have begun shiftingtowards
more conventional plural forms,
in addition to their original spellings.
Non-Existent Plural Adjectives
In many languages, especially languages deriving from Latin,
adjectives become plural
when they are used to describe plural nouns.
However, in English, adjectives are never made plural.
As you can see, it is always the noun that ispluralized,
and never the adjective.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language
plu′ral·ly adv.
Our Living Language
In English, plurals of nouns are normally
indicated by the ending -s or -es,
or in a few cases by -en,
as in children and oxen.
Some vernacular varieties of English
do not use plural endings in measurementphrases
such as three mile and ten pound.
This zero plural has a long history
and was not formerly as socially stigmatized as it is today.
It appears in literary works dating from the Middle English period to the present day, including works of dialect writers,
such as this example from Mark Twain's Huck Finn:
"The nearest white settlement warnt nearer nor four mile."
In adjectival constructions even Standard English has no -s plural:
a five-pound box of candy is acceptable,
whereas a five-pounds box is not.
These adjective phrases derive from an -a suffix
in Old English that marked plural adjectives.
This ending has long since fallen away, leaving behind the unmarked root forms.
The absence of -s in the plural form of animal names
(hunting for bear, a herd of buffalo) probably
arose by analogy with animals like deer and sheep
whose plurals have been unmarked
since the earliest beginnings of the English language.
See Note at foot
Merriam-Webster Dictionary
Usage Notes
The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals
Find out why 'poets laureate' and 'poet laureates' are both acceptable.
The most basic rule is to pluralize a noun byadding the suffix -s
(as in voters);
however, if the noun ends in -s, -x, -z, -sh, or -ch
(with the exception
—see, we already have an exception
—of words ending in -ch
pronounced with a hard k,like monarchs and stomachs),
the suffix -es is added in order to create an extra syllable
to pronounce the plural
—as in goddesses, anticlimaxes, blitzes, flashes, and torches.
That's pretty easy to apply in one's writing,
but not all nouns follow the general pattern.
For example,
there are the common singular nouns used unchanged as plurals
("caught two fish"),
compound words in which
the first element is sometimes pluralized and sometimes not
(runners-up, close-ups),
and words ending in -y and -o that only take the suffix -s?
These exceptions became so common
that grammarians were forced to lay out rules for the them.
The names of many fishes, birds, and mammals
have both a plural that is formed with a suffix
and one that is identical with the singular
(partridges and partridge are plural forms
and so are caribous and caribou).
On the other hand, some have only one or the other:
the plural of monkey is only monkeys;
the plural of the fish known as shad is shad.
Generally, those who hunt, fish for, or raise animals are most likely to use the unchanged form, and the -s form is often used to emphasize diversity of kinds.
So, whereas a fisherman would say "I caught three bass,"
a scientist would say
"I'm researching the various basses of the Atlantic Ocean."
Most compounds that are made up of two nouns
—whether they appear as one word, two words, ora hyphenated word
—form their plurals by changing the finalelement only;
a word like bookcase is pluralized as bookcases,
book club as book clubs, and bird-watcher as bird-watchers.
Nouns that are made up of words that are not nouns
also form their plurals on the lastelement,
as in the plurals breakthroughs and tip-offs.
But you already knew that.
Things get a bit more complicated than this, though.
If a compound is made of a noun withthe -er suffix and an adverb,
only the noun element is pluralized.
This means that hanger-on becomes hangers-on,
onlooker becomes onlookers, and passerby becomes passersby.
For a compound made up of two nouns separatedby a preposition,
the first noun is pluralized to form the plural,
as in attorneys-at-law, chiefs of staff, and bases on balls.
And compounds made up of a noun followed by an adjective
are usually pluralized by adding -s tothe noun,
as when heir apparent becomes heirs apparent.
But if the adjective tends to be understood asa noun,
the compound may have more than one plural form.
In this way, both poets laureate and poet laureates are acceptable.
The question of whether to use the plural suffix -s or -es
sometimes arises in those words ending in -y.
Basically, if the noun ends in a "consonant + y,"
the -y is changed to -i- and -es is added (babies);
if the noun ends in a "vowel + y," an -s is added (galleys).
There is an exception in the case of "vowel + y":
words ending in -quy.
Colloquy, for example, becomes colloquies and soliloquy becomes soliloquies.
The -s suffix only applies to nouns ending in -ay, -ey, or -oy
(parkways, donkeys, alloys).
Another exception is the rule for proper nouns ending in -y,
which is to add an -s—hence, Sundays, Bloody Marys, and Januarys.
Relatively speaking,
the rule governing the pluralization of nouns ending in -o is simpler.
Nouns ending in "consonant + o" take an -es (tomatoes);
those ending in "vowel + o" take an -s (ratios).
However, the rule has been broken countless times
in regard to "consonant + o" words Zeroes/zeros,
cargoes/cargos, haloes/halos,
and tornadoes/tornados are all established plurals,
and there are many, many more.
Nouns formed by shortening,
such as combo and rhino, also break the rule
since they tend to have plurals only in -s,
as do many (but by no means all) words of very obvious foreign origin, such as kimono and espresso.
If you're undecided about how to pluralize a noun ending in -o,
we suggest you consult our dictionary.
We understand that much of this article is a refresher
and that you probably "automatically" know
when to use the -s and -es plural suffixes,
but we hope that we have enlightened you on some of the rules
(and the exceptions) of pluralization.
Guidelines were set many years ago by grammarians
—some have survived intact, some have been tweaked,
and some (ahem, the nouns ending in -o) have been broken
so many times, that they seem nonexistent.
Merriam-Webster Dictionary
Usage Notes
Plural and Possessive Names:
A Guide
Why is it "Socrates' Deathbed" but "Dickens's Novels"?
What to Know
Names are pluralized like regular words.
Add -es for names ending in"s" or "z"
and add -s for everything else.
When indicating the possessive,
if there is more than one owner add an apostrophe to the plural;
if there is one owner, add 's to the singular
(The Smiths' car vs. Smith's car).
If the possessive involves a last name ending with "s" or "z,"
you can add either.
Special rules apply for classical and biblical names.
The plurals of last names are just like the plurals of most nouns.
They typically get formed by adding -s.
Except, that is, if the name already endsin s or z.
Then the plural is formed by adding -es.
the Smith clan → the Smiths
Jill and Sam Clarence → the Clarences
Mr. and Mrs. Jones → the Joneses
the Fernandez family → the Fernandezes
"And remember—it's Socrates' deathbed, but Zeus's lovers."
Unlike regular nouns that end in y,
names that end in y are also made plural by adding -s:
the Kennedy clan → the Kennedys
the Daley family → the Daleys
Possession And Names
If you want to talk about something
that belongs to more than one member of a family,
you start withthe plural form and add an apostrophe
to show possession:
the Smiths' car
a party at the Fernandezes' house
the Daleys' driveway
If you want to talk about something that belongsto a single person
being identified by last name,
you follow the usual -'s rule for most names:
the car that belongs to Smith → Smith's car
For names that end in an s or z sound,
though, you can either add -'s or just an apostrophe.
Going with -'s is the more common choice:
the car that belongs to Jones → Jones's car or Jones' car
Special Rules for Classical Names
For classical and biblical names there are otherrules.
For names ending in s or es and having two or more syllables,
you usually just add an apostrophe.
If the name is only one syllable, add -'s.
Socrates' students
Ramses' kingdom
Amos' prophecy
Zeus's warnings
The names Jesus and Moses are always
made possessive with the apostrophe alone:
Jesus' disciples
Moses' law
Silent Ending Letters
The usual way to show possession
with a name that ends in a silent s, z, or x is with -'s.
Didier Deschamps's career
Josquin des Prez's music
Eugène Delacroix's paintings
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