Chapter 4
Nouns
THEORY
1. Kinds of Nouns — Quick Recap
(Detailed in Chapter 3.) Proper, Common, Collective, Material, Abstract. Nouns are also classed as Countable (book, boy) or Uncountable / Mass (water, advice).
2. Number — Singular and Plural
Definition: Number shows whether a noun denotes one (singular) or more than one (plural).
| Rule | Formation | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| General | add –s | book → books, pen → pens |
| Ends in s, sh, ch, x, z | add –es | bus → buses, box → boxes, watch → watches |
| Consonant + y | y → ies | lady → ladies, city → cities |
| Vowel + y | add –s | boy → boys, key → keys |
| Some words in f/fe | f → ves | leaf → leaves, wife → wives, knife → knives |
| Exceptions (f/fe) | add –s | roof → roofs, chief → chiefs, proof → proofs |
| Consonant + o | add –es | hero → heroes, potato → potatoes, mango → mangoes |
| Vowel + o / abbreviations | add –s | radio → radios, photo → photos, piano → pianos |
Memory Trick (f → s, not ves): "Chief, roof, proof, gulf, safe, cliff, dwarf*" keep –s. (*dwarf also allows "dwarves".)
3. Irregular and Foreign Plurals
| Type | Singular → Plural |
|---|---|
| Vowel change (mutation) | man→men, woman→women, foot→feet, tooth→teeth, goose→geese, mouse→mice, louse→lice |
| Add –en | ox→oxen, child→children |
| Same form | sheep, deer, fish, aircraft, series, species, swine |
| Latin/Greek | datum→data, medium→media, crisis→crises, basis→bases, phenomenon→phenomena, criterion→criteria, radius→radii, syllabus→syllabi, index→indices, formula→formulae |
Five solved examples:
- The data are reliable. → "data" (plural of datum).
- These phenomena are rare. → plural of phenomenon.
- Three sheep were grazing. → unchanged plural.
- The criteria were strict. → plural of criterion.
- The mice ran away. → plural of mouse.
4. Plurals of Compound Nouns
| Rule | Example |
|---|---|
| Pluralise the principal word | commander-in-chief → commanders-in-chief; passer-by → passers-by; son-in-law → sons-in-law |
| No principal noun → pluralise the last | forget-me-not → forget-me-nots; grown-up → grown-ups |
| "man/woman" + noun → both change | man-servant → men-servants; woman-doctor → women-doctors |
5. Nouns Used Only in Singular or Only in Plural
| Always Singular (uncountable) | Always Plural (take plural verb) |
|---|---|
| news, scenery, furniture, advice, information, luggage, baggage, machinery, poetry, work, knowledge, traffic, mischief, bread, money | scissors, trousers, spectacles, tongs, pliers, pincers, jeans, shorts, alms, riches, thanks, surroundings, belongings, premises, proceeds |
Exam Tip: scissors, trousers, spectacles take a plural verb but are counted with "a pair of": a pair of scissors is on the table.
Five solved examples:
- The scenery is beautiful. (not "sceneries are")
- Your trousers are torn. (plural verb)
- This furniture is costly. (uncountable)
- The proceeds were donated. (plural)
- No news is good news. (singular verb)
6. Some Nouns Whose Meaning Changes with Number
| Singular | Plural (different sense) |
|---|---|
| air (atmosphere) | airs (affected manners) |
| good (benefit) | goods (merchandise) |
| iron (metal) | irons (fetters) |
| wood (timber) | woods (forest) |
| respect (regard) | respects (compliments) |
| force (strength) | forces (army) |
| content (satisfaction) | contents (things inside) |
7. Gender
| Gender | Definition | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Masculine | Male | boy, king, lion, hero |
| Feminine | Female | girl, queen, lioness, heroine |
| Common | Either sex | child, teacher, friend, baby |
| Neuter | Without sex | table, book, tree |
Notable feminine forms: author→authoress, hero→heroine, fox→vixen, bull→cow, drake→duck, gander→goose, horse→mare, nephew→niece, wizard→witch, sir→madam, monk→nun.
8. Case
Definition: Case shows the relation of a noun/pronoun to other words.
| Case | Function | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative (Subjective) | Subject of the verb | Ram plays. |
| Objective (Accusative) | Object of verb/preposition | I met Ram. |
| Possessive (Genitive) | Ownership ('s / of) | Ram's book. |
Possessive Rules: Singular → add 's (boy's). Plural ending in s → add only apostrophe (boys'). Plural not ending in s → add 's (children's, men's). Use 's mainly for living things; use "of" for non-living (the leg of the table, not "the table's leg" — though fixed phrases like "a day's journey", "at his wit's end" are allowed).
COMMON EXAM ERRORS
| # | Wrong | Correct | Explanation |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | He gave me many informations. | …much information. | "Information" is uncountable. |
| 2 | I bought two breads. | …two loaves of bread. | "Bread" is uncountable. |
| 3 | The sceneries here are lovely. | The scenery here is lovely. | "Scenery" has no plural. |
| 4 | She gave me a good advice. | …a piece of good advice. | "Advice" is uncountable. |
| 5 | The furnitures are new. | The furniture is new. | Uncountable; singular verb. |
| 6 | My all luggages are heavy. | All my luggage is heavy. | "Luggage" is uncountable. |
| 7 | He has three childs. | He has three children. | Irregular plural. |
| 8 | The mouses ran away. | The mice ran away. | mouse → mice. |
| 9 | The datas are correct. | The data are correct. | "data" is already plural. |
| 10 | Many sheeps were grazing. | Many sheep were grazing. | Unchanged plural. |
| 11 | Two dozens of eggs. | Two dozen eggs. | After a number, dozen/score/hundred stay singular. |
| 12 | The poetries of Keats. | The poetry of Keats. | "Poetry" is uncountable. |
| 13 | My spectacle is broken. | My spectacles are broken. | Always plural. |
| 14 | The scissor is sharp. | The scissors are sharp. | Always plural. |
| 15 | This is the boys' cap (one boy). | This is the boy's cap. | Singular possessive. |
| 16 | The childrens' park. | The children's park. | "children" is already plural → 's. |
| 17 | He is at his wits' end. | He is at his wit's end. | Fixed idiom: wit's end. |
| 18 | The jury was unanimous in their verdict. | …in its verdict. | Acting as one body → singular. |
| 19 | The committee was divided in its opinion. | …were divided in their opinions. | Members differ → plural. |
| 20 | Mathematics are my favourite subject. | Mathematics is my favourite subject. | Subject names in -ics are singular. |
| 21 | The proceeds was donated. | The proceeds were donated. | "Proceeds" is plural. |
| 22 | Ten miles are a long way. | Ten miles is a long way. | Distance as a single idea → singular. |
| 23 | The number of students are rising. | The number of students is rising. | "The number" → singular. |
| 24 | A number of students was absent. | A number of students were absent. | "A number of" → plural. |
| 25 | The table's leg is broken. | The leg of the table is broken. | Use "of" for non-living possession. |
EXAM TRICKS
- Uncountable checklist: news, advice, information, furniture, luggage, scenery, machinery, poetry, work, knowledge, traffic, bread — never add –s; quantify with "much / a piece of".
- Plural-only checklist: scissors, trousers, spectacles, tongs, pliers, jeans — always plural verb; count with "a pair of".
- Collective-noun test: One body acting together → singular verb/pronoun; members acting separately → plural.
- "The number / A number" rule: "The number of …" is singular; "A number of …" is plural.
- Distractor: Setters pluralise uncountables (informations, advices) or wrongly place the apostrophe (childrens', boy's vs. boys').
FREQUENTLY CONFUSED PAIRS
| Pair | Distinction | Example |
|---|---|---|
| much / many | much + uncountable; many + countable | much water / many books |
| less / fewer | less + uncountable; fewer + countable | less milk / fewer cups |
| amount / number | amount + uncountable; number + countable | amount of money / number of coins |
| the number / a number | singular / plural | The number is… / A number are… |
| cloth / clothes | fabric / garments | a piece of cloth / new clothes |
| wood / woods | timber / forest | made of wood / lost in the woods |
EXCEPTIONS — Important, Rare & Advanced
- "Pains" and "means" (Advanced): "pains" (effort) takes a plural verb (His pains were rewarded); "means" can be singular or plural depending on sense (This means is… / All means were…).
- Subjects in –ics (Rare): mathematics, physics, politics, ethics are singular as subjects (Physics is hard) but plural in other senses (His politics are unclear).
- Collective nouns of multitude: "The police", "the cattle", "the gentry", "the poultry" always take a plural verb (The police have arrived).
- Double plurals with different meanings: brothers (sons of same parents) vs. brethren (members of a community); cloths (pieces) vs. clothes (garments); fishes (kinds) vs. fish (number); indexes (in books) vs. indices (in maths).
- Apostrophe with time/measure: a day's journey, a stone's throw, two years' experience — fixed possessive forms accepted for non-living nouns.
50 MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS
Easy (1–15)
1. The plural of "child" is:
(a) childs (b) childes (c) children (d) childrens
Answer: (c) children
Explanation: Irregular –en plural.
2. The plural of "leaf" is:
(a) leafs (b) leaves (c) leafes (d) leave
Answer: (b) leaves
Explanation: f → ves.
3. Which noun is uncountable?
(a) book (b) chair (c) information (d) pen
Answer: (c) information
Explanation: No plural; takes "much".
4. The plural of "man" is:
(a) mans (b) men (c) mens (d) menes
Answer: (b) men
Explanation: Vowel-change plural.
5. "Scenery" is a/an ______ noun.
(a) countable (b) uncountable (c) plural (d) proper
Answer: (b) uncountable
Explanation: No plural "sceneries".
6. The plural of "box" is:
(a) boxs (b) box (c) boxes (d) boxen
Answer: (c) boxes
Explanation: Ends in x → add –es.
7. The feminine of "lion" is:
(a) lions (b) lioness (c) lionine (d) lionees
Answer: (b) lioness
Explanation: Feminine form.
8. "The news ______ true."
(a) are (b) is (c) were (d) have
Answer: (b) is
Explanation: "News" is singular.
9. The plural of "city" is:
(a) citys (b) cities (c) cityes (d) city
Answer: (b) cities
Explanation: Consonant + y → ies.
10. The plural of "boy" is:
(a) boies (b) boys (c) boyes (d) boy
Answer: (b) boys
Explanation: Vowel + y → add –s.
11. Which is always plural?
(a) furniture (b) scissors (c) advice (d) news
Answer: (b) scissors
Explanation: Takes a plural verb.
12. The possessive of "boy" (singular) is:
(a) boys (b) boys' (c) boy's (d) boyes
Answer: (c) boy's
Explanation: Singular → add 's.
13. The plural of "tooth" is:
(a) tooths (b) teeth (c) toothes (d) teeths
Answer: (b) teeth
Explanation: Vowel-change plural.
14. "Honesty" is a/an ______ noun.
(a) collective (b) material (c) abstract (d) proper
Answer: (c) abstract
Explanation: Names a quality.
15. The plural of "hero" is:
(a) heros (b) heroes (c) heroies (d) hero
Answer: (b) heroes
Explanation: Consonant + o → es.
Moderate (16–35)
16. The plural of "datum" is:
(a) datums (b) data (c) datae (d) datas
Answer: (b) data
Explanation: Latin plural.
17. The plural of "commander-in-chief" is:
(a) commander-in-chiefs (b) commanders-in-chief (c) commander-in-chieves (d) commanders-in-chiefs
Answer: (b) commanders-in-chief
Explanation: Pluralise the principal word.
18. "The number of applicants ______ rising."
(a) are (b) is (c) were (d) have
Answer: (b) is
Explanation: "The number of" → singular.
19. "A number of students ______ absent today."
(a) is (b) was (c) were (d) has been
Answer: (c) were
Explanation: "A number of" → plural.
20. Choose the correct sentence:
(a) She gave me an advice. (b) She gave me a piece of advice. (c) She gave me advices. (d) She gave me many advice.
Answer: (b)
Explanation: "advice" is uncountable.
21. The plural of "criterion" is:
(a) criterions (b) criteria (c) criterias (d) criterion
Answer: (b) criteria
Explanation: Greek plural.
22. "Mathematics ______ an interesting subject."
(a) are (b) is (c) were (d) have
Answer: (b) is
Explanation: -ics subject names are singular.
23. The correct possessive: "the cap belonging to the boys (many)".
(a) boy's cap (b) boys's cap (c) boys' cap (d) boy cap
Answer: (c) boys' cap
Explanation: Plural ending in s → only apostrophe.
24. "He is at his ______ end."
(a) wits' (b) wit's (c) wits (d) wit
Answer: (b) wit's
Explanation: Fixed idiom "wit's end".
25. Choose the correct quantifier: "______ furniture was damaged."
(a) Many (b) A few (c) Much (d) Several
Answer: (c) Much
Explanation: Uncountable → much.
26. The plural of "roof" is:
(a) rooves (b) roofs (c) roof (d) roofes
Answer: (b) roofs
Explanation: Exception: add –s.
27. "Two ______ of eggs were bought."
(a) dozen (b) dozens (c) dozenes (d) dozen's
Answer: (a) dozen
Explanation: After a number, "dozen" stays singular.
28. "Ten kilometres ______ a long distance."
(a) are (b) is (c) were (d) have
Answer: (b) is
Explanation: Distance as one idea → singular.
29. Choose the correct sentence:
(a) The leg of the table is broken. (b) The table's leg is broken. (c) The table leg's is broken. (d) The legs of table is broken.
Answer: (a)
Explanation: "of" for non-living possession.
30. The feminine of "nephew" is:
(a) niece (b) nephewess (c) aunt (d) nun
Answer: (a) niece
Explanation: Correlative feminine.
31. "The jury ______ divided in their opinions."
(a) is (b) was (c) are (d) has
Answer: (c) are
Explanation: Members differ → plural verb.
32. Which sentence is correct?
(a) My trouser is new. (b) My trousers are new. (c) My trousers is new. (d) My trouser are new.
Answer: (b)
Explanation: "trousers" is always plural.
33. The plural of "phenomenon" is:
(a) phenomenons (b) phenomena (c) phenomenas (d) phenomenon
Answer: (b) phenomena
Explanation: Greek plural.
34. "The cattle ______ grazing in the field."
(a) is (b) was (c) are (d) has
Answer: (c) are
Explanation: "Cattle" takes a plural verb.
35. Choose the correct one:
(a) fewer water (b) less water (c) less cups (d) fewer milk
Answer: (b) less water
Explanation: "less" + uncountable.
Difficult (36–50)
36. Identify the correct plural with changed meaning: "The army ______ ready."
(a) The forces (army) → were (b) The force → were (c) airs → was (d) goods → was
Answer: (a)
Explanation: "forces" = armed troops, plural.
37. "His pains ______ rewarded at last."
(a) was (b) were (c) is (d) has
Answer: (b) were
Explanation: "pains" (effort) takes a plural verb.
38. Which is correct?
(a) The poet's works are praised. (b) The poet's wors. (c) The poet's workes. (d) The poets work's.
Answer: (a)
Explanation: "works" (writings) is a valid countable use; possessive correct.
39. "The police ______ caught the thief."
(a) has (b) have (c) is (d) was
Answer: (b) have
Explanation: "Police" takes a plural verb.
40. Choose the sentence with the correct foreign plural:
(a) The medias are powerful. (b) The media are powerful. (c) The mediums are powerful. (d) The mediae are powerful.
Answer: (b)
Explanation: "media" is the plural of "medium" (in mass-communication sense).
41. "Brethren" is used to mean:
(a) sons of the same parents (b) members of a community/society (c) brothers-in-law (d) cousins
Answer: (b)
Explanation: "brethren" = fellow members; "brothers" = blood relations.
42. Which uses the apostrophe correctly?
(a) two years experience (b) two years' experience (c) two year's experience (d) two years experience's
Answer: (b)
Explanation: Plural measure of time → apostrophe after s.
43. "The number of accidents on this road ______ alarming."
(a) are (b) is (c) were (d) have been
Answer: (b) is
Explanation: "The number of" → singular subject.
44. Identify the correct distinction: "fishes" vs "fish".
(a) no difference (b) "fishes" = different kinds; "fish" = number caught (c) "fish" = kinds; "fishes" = number (d) both wrong
Answer: (b)
Explanation: "fishes" denotes species/kinds; "fish" denotes quantity.
45. "All means ______ been tried."
(a) has (b) have (c) is (d) was
Answer: (b) have
Explanation: Here "means" is treated as plural ("all means").
46. Which sentence is correct?
(a) The committee have taken its decision. (b) The committee has taken its decision. (c) The committee has taken their decision. (d) The committee have taken his decision.
Answer: (b)
Explanation: Acting as one body → singular verb and pronoun "its".
47. The plural of "index" in mathematics is:
(a) indexes (b) indices (c) indexs (d) indice
Answer: (b) indices
Explanation: "indices" (maths); "indexes" (in books).
48. "The proceeds of the sale ______ given to charity."
(a) was (b) were (c) is (d) has
Answer: (b) were
Explanation: "proceeds" is plural.
49. Choose the correct sentence:
(a) She put on airs. (b) She put on air. (c) She put on an air's. (d) She put airs on her.
Answer: (a)
Explanation: "airs" = affected manners (idiomatic plural).
50. "A pair of scissors ______ on the table."
(a) are (b) is (c) were (d) have
Answer: (b) is
Explanation: "A pair" is the singular subject; verb agrees with "pair".