Regular plurals

Brijbox English · Learn the idea

Singular means one. Plural means more than one.

For many nouns, add -s: cat becomes cats. Often add -es after s, x, sh or ch: bus becomes buses; box becomes boxes.

After a consonant and y, change y to ies: baby becomes babies. After a vowel and y, just add s: toy becomes toys. The vowel letters are a, e, i, o and u.

Look at these examples

one cat → two cats

Add s to cat. Do not add an apostrophe to make this plural.

one brush → three brushes

Brush ends in sh. Add es.

one baby → two babies; one toy → two toys

B before the y is a consonant; o before the y is a vowel. Check that letter before changing y.

Remember

Check the ending. Many nouns use -s or -es; consonant + y changes to -ies.

Your turn

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

1. One book. Two ___.

Choose the plural. books / book’s / bookes

2. One box. Three ___.

Choose the plural. boxs / boxies / boxes

3. One baby. Two ___.

Choose the plural. babys / babies / babyes

4. One toy. Four ___.

Choose the plural. toys / toies / toyes

5. One dish. Five ___.

Choose the plural. dishs / dish’s / dishes

Make your own sentences

Make a list for a pretend shop. List more than one bag, box and cherry. Write a sentence using one of your plural nouns.

Grown-up guide

Answers for later: cups, brushes, puppies, keys. This starter covers common s/es/ies patterns, not every spelling exception. Teach other endings in small groups after these are secure.

Practice answers

1. books. Books means more than one book. An apostrophe is not used to make this plural.

2. boxes. Add es to box: boxes.

3. babies. Baby becomes babies. A consonant before y signals this spelling change.

4. toys. Toy becomes toys. After a vowel and y, we keep the y.

5. dishes. Dish becomes dishes. We add es after sh.

Check the child’s own writing

Did I write bags, boxes and cherries?
Did I keep apostrophes out of these plurals?

One possible example: Three bags, two boxes and six cherries. The cherries are red.

Try another day

Make these plural tomorrow: cup, brush, puppy and key. Say why each ending fits.

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.