Plural vs. Possessive

Plural Most nouns form the plural by adding -s

or -es.Singular Plural

boat boats

hat hats

house houses

river rivers

Plural A noun ending in -y preceded by a

consonant makes the plural with -ies.Singular Plural

a cry cries

a fly flies

a poppy poppies

a city cities

a lady ladies

a baby babies

Plural There are some irregular formations

for noun plurals. Some of the most common ones are listed below.

Singular Plural

woman women

man men

child children

tooth teeth

foot feet

person people

leaf leaves

Plural Some nouns have the same form in the

singular and the plural.Singular Plural

sheep sheep

fish fish

species species

aircraft aircraft

Plural Some nouns have a plural form but take a

singular verb. news — The news is on at 6.30 p.m.

athletics — Athletics is good for young people.linguistics — Linguistics is the study of language.darts — Darts is a popular game in England.

Plural Some nouns have a plural form and take

a plural verb.Examples:

trousers — My trousers are too tight.jeans — Her jeans are black.glasses — Those glasses are his.

Possessive Possessive nouns show ownership or

possession.

Most words simply get apostrophe S ('s).

the box belonging to Steve -> Steve's box the bedroom of the child -> the child's bedroom

Possessive Plural nouns ending in S simply get

an apostrophe (s'). the box belonging to the girls -> the girls'

box the bedroom of the kids -> the kids' bedroom

Possessive For irregular plurals (not ending in

S), add apostrophe S ('s). the coats of the women -> the

women's coats the jackets of the children -> the children's jackets

Possessive For names ending in S, simply add

an apostrophe (s'). the cat belonging to Charles -> Charles' cat the jacket of the Phyllis -> Phyllis' jackets

Possessive For names ending in S, add

apostrophe S ('s). the cat belonging to Charles -> Charles's

cat the jacket of the Phyllis -> Phyllis's jackets

Your Turn! Write down the correct form in

parentheses in each sentence: 1) I think the notebook belongs to

(Carlos, Carlo’s) 2) Could the white rabbit in our yard be

(someones, someone’s) pet? 3) (Theres, There’s) nothing wrong with

your computer.

Your Turn! 4) A new (mens, men’s) store just

opened in the Palms Plaza. 5) The mail carrier delivered the

package to the neighbors, but it was (ours, our’s).

6) My brother was in Korea for two (years, year’s)