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Examples Help! Definition and Meaning of Irregular Nouns
A noun is the
name of any person, place or thing as John, London or book. Just add an
's' to make most words plural - examples: cats, dogs,
girls, bats.
Just when you
think plural words are simple along comes the phrase 'irregular
nouns'! What exactly does this mean? What is an irregular noun?
Most English nouns are very predictable ( or regular ) in the
spelling of the plural form - you just add an 's' or 'es' which make 'regular' plural words.
But there are always exceptions to the rule and these are
referred to a 'irregular plural nouns! The meaning or definition of an
irregular noun is as follows:
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Definition &
Meaning |
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When irregular nouns
change from their singular form to become plural, their spelling
changes, in a different way to regular plural words,
where cat, dog and book are made plural by adding a
letter 's' - cats, dogs, books etc. But it would be
incorrect English to add an 's' or 'es' to
'irregular' words.
The word
'mouse' changes to mice to indicate
the plural
The word 'cactus' changes to cacti
The word scissors does not change at
all to indicate the plural
It would be incorrect
English to add an 's' or 'es' to these 'irregular' words.
The word
'diagnosis' changes to diagnoses
Hippopotamus - hippopotami
Louse - lice
The
following list of examples of irregular nouns will make this definition
even clearer: |
|
Definition &
Meaning |
Examples Help!
List of Irregular Nouns
This list of
English examples will prove useful when learning about different
parts of speech:
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When Irregular
Nouns
become Plural |
|
Singular |
Plural |
Singular |
Plural |
|
analysis |
analyses |
appendix |
appendices |
|
bison |
bison |
cactus |
cacti |
|
calf |
calves |
child |
children |
|
elf |
elves |
foot |
feet |
|
goose |
geese |
knife |
knives |
|
leaf |
leaves |
life |
lives |
|
loaf |
loaves |
man |
men |
|
mouse |
mice |
person |
people |
|
scissors |
scissors |
tooth |
teeth |
|
Singular |
Plural |
Singular |
Plural |
The Noun Game
Looking for a
worksheet, test, exercises or quiz game to test your
understanding? Check out
your knowledge and understanding of the different types by playing the Noun Game!
The Noun Game
Examples Help -
Understanding Irregular Nouns!
Understanding the different types of nouns is not very
difficult, but it is made daunting because of the seemingly
complicated names! Just glancing through this page provides a
fast overview of Irregular nouns. Remember that Irregular
nouns are the words used to describe more than one item. Examples of Irregular nouns are
beds,
boys, girls, books and cats. They are created by adding a letter
's' to the end of a word or by adding 'es' such as in churches,
boxes or witches. |
