Irregular plurals

Brijbox English · Learn the idea

Rule: Say the pair together: one child, two children. Adding s will not work for every noun.

Pattern: Learn and use the pair: child → children; foot → feet; sheep → sheep.

Some plurals do not follow the usual add-s or add-es patterns. We call them irregular plurals.

Some words change inside: tooth becomes teeth. Some change more: child becomes children.

Some stay the same: one sheep, two sheep. Learn the whole pair and use it in a sentence.

Look at these examples

child → children; mouse → mice

We say two children and three mice.

tooth → teeth; foot → feet

The vowel sound changes in these pairs.

sheep → sheep; woman → women

Sheep stays the same. Woman changes to women.

Watch out

Irregular means the usual add-s rule does not apply. Some forms change; others stay the same.

Your turn

Say or write your answers. An adult can read the questions aloud.

1. One child. Two ___.

Choose the plural. childs / children / childes

2. One mouse. Three ___.

Choose the plural. mouses / mouse / mice

3. One foot. Two ___.

Choose the plural. feet / foots / feets

4. One sheep. Five ___.

Choose the plural. sheeps / sheep / sheepes

5. The child lost two ___.

Choose the plural of tooth. tooths / teeths / teeth

Sentence workshop

Try each task before looking at the grown-up guide. Say your answer or write on paper.

Change one into two.

One child saw one mouse.

Make both nouns plural, with two of each.

Explain: Which words changed without adding s?

Repair the extra endings.

Two sheeps stood beside two children.

Fix the plural that is wrong. Keep the plural that is already right.

Explain: Why do sheep and children need no extra s?

Make your own sentences

Write two sentences about a strange picnic. Include at least two irregular plural nouns. Underline each one and say its singular partner.

Grown-up guide

Later answers: women, feet, sheep. Practise a few pairs at a time, in sentences, and revisit them. This is a starter set rather than an exhaustive list.

Practice answers

1. children. Children is the plural of child.

2. mice. Three mice means three of these small animals.

3. feet. Feet is already plural. Write two feet.

4. sheep. Five sheep is correct. The number tells us there is more than one.

5. teeth. Teeth is the plural of tooth. We do not add another s.

Sentence workshop examples

Two children saw two mice. Child becomes children, and mouse becomes mice. These are pairs to learn and use in sentences.

Two sheep stood beside two children. Sheep stays sheep for more than one. Children is already the plural of child.

Check the child’s own writing

One possible example: Three children invited two mice. The mice sat beside five sheep.

Try another day

Without looking, finish these pairs: one woman, two ___; one foot, two ___; one sheep, two ___.

These are starter lessons. Use the child’s explanation and independent sentences to choose what to revisit. Finishing a page is not a mastery result.