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Srikant Singh, CGL Topper, Ex. ASO, UPSC, CSS

NOUN singular – plural

Uncountable nouns – (i) no plural; always singular
Noun (ii) s/es not added

Countable nouns – singular & plural

Singular – plural
(… c)  (… c + s)

Computer – Mat – mats Crow – crows

computers Pen – pens Museum – museums
Girl – girls Cap – caps Pendulum – pendulums
Book – books Leg – legs Album – albums

Singular – plural
(… c + y)  (… c + ies)

Baby – babied Copy – copies Lady – ladies

Cry – cries Party – parties Ally – allies

Singular – plural
Day – 
(…vv) days(… vv + s)
Key – keys Bee- bees Beardie – beardies
Boy – boys Bamboo – bamboos Lie – lies
Donkey – donkey Baa – baas Sea – seas
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Srikant Singh, CGL Topper, Ex. ASO, UPSC, CSS

Singular – plural
(… ch/sh/s/x/z)  (… ch/sh/s/x/z + es)
Bench – benches Clash – clashes Box – boxes
Torch – torches Bus – buses Quiz – quizzes
Crash – crashes Loss – losses Buzz – buzzes

Singular – plural
(… o)  (… o+ s)

Avocado – avocados Photo – photos

Commando – commandos Piano – pianos
Concerto – concertos Radio – radios
Euro – euros Solo – solos
Kilo – kilos Soprano – sopranos
Logo – logos Zoo – zoos
(… o)  (… o+ es)
Echo – echoes Tomato – tomatoes
Hero – heroes Torpedo – torpedos
Potato –potatoes Veto – vetoes
(… o)  (… o+ s/es)
Buffalo – buffalo(e)s Motto – motto(e)s
Cargo – cargo(e)s Tornado – tornado(e)s
Mosquito – mosquito(e)s Volcano – volcano(e)s

Singular – plural
… f(e)  … ves
Calf – calves Half – halves Leaf – leaves
Elf – elves Knife – knives Life – lives

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Srikant Singh, CGL Topper, Ex. ASO, UPSC, CSS

Loaf – loaves Thief – thieves Hoof – hoofs/

Self – selves Wife – wives hooves
Sheaf – sheaves Wolf – wolves Dwarf – dwarfs/
Shelf – shelves dwarves
Plural of compound nouns
Passer-by – passers-by
Runner-up – runners-up
Mother-in-law – mothers-in-law
Step son – step sons
Court martial – courts martial
Heir-apparent – heirs-apparent
Man-servant – men-servants
Woman-pilot – women-pilots
Milkman – milkmen
Commander-in-chief – commanders-in-chief / commander-in-chiefs
Shoe store – shoe stores
Kite-maker – kite-makers
Irregular forms
Child – children Penny – pence (unit of money)
Ox – oxen Person – people
Foot – feet Datum – data
Goose – geese Agendum – agenda*
Tooth – teeth Memorandum – memoranda
Man – men Medium – media (the media – sing.)
Woman – women Bacterium – bacteria
Mouse – mice Criterion – criteria
Louse – lice Phenomenon – phenomena

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Srikant Singh, CGL Topper, Ex. ASO, UPSC, CSS

Hypothesis – hypotheses Nucleus – nuclei

Basis – bases Radius – radii
Crisis – crises Focus – foci
Oasis – oases Formula – formulae / formulas
Analysis – analyses Lacuna – lacunae/ lacunas
Thesis – theses Vertebra – vertebrae
Diagnosis – diagnoses Alga – algae
Fungus – fungi Chateau – chateaux
Cactus – cacti/ cactuses Tableau – tableaux
Hippopotamus – hippopotami/ Corpus – corpora
hippopotamuses Kibbutz – kibbutzim
Stimulus – stimuli

Plural same as singular

Barracks – barracks An Irish man – the Irish
Series – series A Spanish man – the Spanish
Crossroads – crossroads A Dutch man – the Dutch
Species – species A French man – the French
Headquarters – headquarters Aircraft – aircraft
Works – works (factory) Spacecraft – spacecraft
Means – means Hovercraft – hovercraft
Innings – innings (cricket) Offspring – offspring
A Swiss – the Swiss Sheep – sheep
A Chinese – the Chinese Deer – deer
A Japanese – the Japanese Fish – fish
A British man – the British Salmon – salmon
A Welsh man – the Welsh Cod – cod

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Srikant Singh, CGL Topper, Ex. ASO, UPSC, CSS

Trout – trout Swine – swine (pigs)

The data is – the data are (datum – data)
A dice is – many dice are (die – dice)
The media is – xxxxxxx (medium – media)

Uncountable singular nouns often confused as countable/plural.

News Macaroni Cutlery
Billiards Sugar Pottery
Draughts Salt Imagery
Measles Corn Fuel
Mumps Maize Grass
Mathematics Wheat Steel
Physics Rice Granite
Diabetes Barley Plastic
Darts Rye Water
Gymnastics Bunting Chalk
Rabies Accommodation Commerce
Rickets Baggage Employment
Ballistics Luggage Dirt
Civics Trivia Dust
Cybernetics Bread Electricity
Genetics Chess Evidence
Physics Chewing gum Information
Linguistics Equipment Mischief
Semantics Advice Paper
Optics Jewellery Rubbish
Food Crockery Scenery
Spaghetti Drapery Scenery
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Srikant Singh, CGL Topper, Ex. ASO, UPSC, CSS

Poetry Progress Thunder

Furniture Oxygen Traffic
Knowledge Underwear Vocabulary
Lightning Weather Work
Luck Clothing A cold
Money Machinery A sore throat
Oil Publicity A headache
Plastic Research Alphabet
Permission Slang
Wood (woods – jungle)
Stone (stones – pieces of stone)
Athletics (but ‘aquatics’ is plural)
Politics (their politics are)
Statistics (these statistics are)
Ethics (the party’s ethics)
Economics (my family’s economics)
Mathematics (his mathematics are)
Nouns which are always plural (never used as singular)
Cattle Clergy Lees
People Poultry Groceries
Folk Vegetables Trousers
Police Peas Jeans
Staff Beans Pyjamas
Crew Oats Trousers
Gentry Pulses Pants
Infantry Lentils Scales
Cavalry Grapes Scissors
Vermin Dregs Pliers
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Srikant Singh, CGL Topper, Ex. ASO, UPSC, CSS

Glasses Thanks Particulars

Spectacles Troops Pincers*
Binoculars Alms Proceedings
Socks Amends Proceeds
Shoes * Annals Quarters*
Earrings Arrears Rations *
Clothes Ashes Refreshments*
Congratulations Auspices Requirements*
Contents Bellows * Riches
Customs * Braces * Shackles
Funds Breeches Shears
Goods Briefs Spirits*
Manners Chattels * Stairs *
The Middle Ages Credentials Tactics
Odds Drawers* Tidings
Outskirts Eaves Tongs
Premises Fetters Valuables
Regards Fireworks* Savings
Remains Goggles Earnings
Ashes Lodgings* Headphones
Savings Nuptials
Surroundings Obsequies
Nouns of multitude can take plural verbs as well
Committee Government Orchestra
Team Jury Party
India (as a team) Ministry Union
Family The BBC Staff
Firm Choir Parliament
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Company Electorate Group

Compound nouns often misspelt
A clothes shop A drinks cabinet
A glasses case A goods train
A customs officer A sports car
Arms control A sportsman
A savings account A greeting(s) card
The accounts department An antique(s) shop/ dealer
The sales department The drug(s) problem
The outpatients department The arrival(s) hall

Special ones
3 – 3’s But – but’s
T – T’s MP – MP’s / MPs
If – if’s MLA – MLA’s/ MLAs

You must know the difference between the following pairs of

words
Advice advices Wood woods
Good goods Arm arms
Force forces Colour colours
Copper coppers Quarter quarters
Iron irons Cricket crickets
Sand sands Work works
Word words Manner manners
Abuse abuses Custom customs
Horse horses Effect effects

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 English – ZERO to HERO
Srikant Singh, CGL Topper, Ex. ASO, UPSC, CSS

Moral morals Damage damages

Pain pains Greeting greetings
Spectacle spectacles Humanity humanities
Air airs Order orders
Compass compasses Particular particulars
Return returns Proceeding proceedings
Letter letters Regard regards
Minute minutes Vesper vespers
Part parts Water waters
Light lights Way ways
Practice practices Number numbers
Respect respects Powder powders
People peoples Ground grounds
Amend amends Wage wages
Appearance appearances Work works
Beef beefs Hair hairs
Chain chains
Number + dozen, score, hundred, thousand, million,
billion, trillion, lakh, crore
Five hundred dollars Hundreds of dollars
Several thousand times It cost thousands.
A few million years Millions of years
Singular forms are used as modifiers (adj.) before nouns
A ten-rupee note ten rupees
Two ten-rupee notes five miles
A three-mile walk two litres (of milk)
A 3.5 litre engine five hours

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 English – ZERO to HERO
Srikant Singh, CGL Topper, Ex. ASO, UPSC, CSS

Thirty two-hour lessons Hours of hard-work

A four-foot deep hole twenty feet (tall)
A six-foot tall man two kilograms (of rice)
A sixty-year-old man a sixty years old man
800 metre races a hundred meters long

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